like the island

Title:
Pants on Fire
(or possibly, Just Another Opus)

Genre:
Bildungsroman/Künstlerroman-ish; coming-of age, but with slightly older characters than is typical of this genre (aka, I’m not really sure right now)

POV Specification:
Third Person, Omniscient (but withholds some information)

Estimated Length of Book/Number of Sparks:
50,000 words/ 3 story sparks

High-Concept Blurb:
Sam Kroeger is a girl with some problems, and Michael Carver is a giant man-boy who also has some problems. They meet and create even more problems for themselves.

BEGINNING STORY SPARK:
Sam is managing her fake profiles and getting bored with her current boyfriend, Jacob. Lauren announces her engagement to Lucas on the same night Paige’s boyfriend of four years announces he’s leaving her for someone else. The group goes to an art gallery to view the work of a friend who’s agreed to take Lauren’s engagement photos. There, Samantha meets Michael, a young artsy type who intrigues her.

Identifying the Main Character: Samantha (Sam)

Outside POV:
She’s got long, medium brown hair—wavy, but not in the attractive, beachy way. Her eyes are gray-green and her face is round. Her eyebrows don’t match—one is more thinned out toward the temple than the other. She recently celebrated her twenty-second birthday, but people often tell her she looks much older than that.

Self POV:
I’m a girl, not yet a woman. I’m not totally sure what that means but I know it to be true. I’ve just started a new chapter in my life and I’m coming to terms with the fact that, although I’ve been told I have a lot of talent and potential, I have no idea how make good use of those talents. I’m pretty disappointed with where I think my life is headed, but I’ve gotten pretty good at hiding my insecurities. I’m an actress, after all.

Occupational Skills:
Sam has just graduated from Northwestern with a BA in Theatre, and is currently interning at a downtown theatre in the marketing department. In the past, she held lead roles in her alma mater’s productions; she’s a talented performer and feels most comfortable when she’s in character.

Enhancement/Contrast:
Sam’s got a witty tongue, and attracts a lot of new friends wherever she goes. She a caring person, and friends often seek her out for advice.

Symbolic Element: none

Setting Description:
Paige and Sam share a fifth floor walk-up unit in Evanston, IL. None of the furniture in the apartment matches. Most of the plot takes place in and around the Chicago area. The gallery Michael works at is downtown. 

Character Conflicts (Internal):
Sam has a degree from Northwestern, which should mean something, but she’s not trying to do anything with it. She can envision herself in the life she wants five years from now but doesn’t know how to get herself there. She’s been used to following the advice from others, but no one is offering any direction anymore, and having to decide things for herself is really confusing and scary to her. Her friends are all going through major life changes and she feels like she should be too, but she’s not. She’s resentful of her boyfriend’s success to the point of not loving him anymore. She’s jealous of her friend’s engagement, and she’s intrigued by the idea of living out someone else’s life other than her own.

Evolving Goals & Motivations:
Sam becomes intrigued by Michael and wants to pursue him, but a) doesn’t want Jacob to find out, and b) doesn’t think Michael would be interested in who she really is.

Plot Conflicts (External):
Sam creates a fake profile online and befriends Michael. She acts not as herself, but as her character when she’s with him. Lauren asks Sam to be her maid of honor, and Sam accepts, even though she’s annoyed by the engagement.

MIDDLE STORY SPARK:

Sam and Michael, who’ve been covertly spending a lot of time together, begin having an affair. Paige gets fired from her job, and Lauren tries to help her out by offering to pay her to help plan the wedding.

Character Conflicts (Internal):
Being around Michael makes Sam forget her lackluster life and being around her real friends reminds her of how boring she is and makes her feel incredibly guilty. Paige needs money but is still heartbroken and wants nothing to do with love or any celebration of it.

Evolving Goals & Motivations:
Sam’s morals would dictate that she do the noble thing and break it off with Jacob, but this new person she’s becoming has a different set of ethics.

Plot Conflicts (External):
Sam starts to dissociate. Paige takes on the wedding planner gig but isn’t that happy about it. Lauren and Lucas become one giant ball of annoying.

END STORY SPARK:
We find out Michael is a hoarder. Sam gets a reality check in a big way.

Character Conflicts (Internal):
Michael’s apartment is filled with old cardboard, glass, plastic, and basically garbage that he started collecting so he could make this recyclable materials sculpture, but he “never got around to it.” He thinks himself this great artist, knows a lot about art, talks a lot about art, but he doesn’t actually produce art. In essence, he seems perfect on paper, but is actually a giant douche. (Or, rather, just a loser.) Sam now has to process that this idea of a person she’s developed feelings for is a total lie, and now Michael repulses her.

Evolving Goals & Motivations:
Sam starts recognizing all the fronts the people around her are putting up, and she feels oddly comforted by that, but also wants to stop the act she’s been putting on.

Plot Conflicts (External):
Michael kills himself. Lucas hooks up with a dude at his bachelor party. Jacob beats the shit out of Sam when he finds out about her affair with Michael. Paige confronts Sam about the way she’s been living—claiming she’s all these different people but never actually being them. Sam realizes she’s only as good as what she’s doing.