Young Writers Society

Hello! A few months ago, I came up with an idea fora Christmas story. However, I never went through with it. Even though the Christmas season has ended, I am revisiting the story and need help splicing a few issues. To start off, here is my idea so far:

It's Christmas time, and Ambrose, the main charcter, decides to mail a letter to Santa. Though he doesn't believe in him, he writes a letter just for kicks, which he hasn't done in years. Everything seems fine, but Ambrose soon reciever's a threatening letter back from Santa. (What the letter says, I don't know.) Children all over the world have experienced the same phenomenon, as well, including Ambrose's friend (a currently unnamed girl character.) Realizing that Santa Claus is not only real, but evil and planning to take over the world, Ambrose and his friend are determined to stop him. Now, Ambrose must form unlikely alliances, develop difficult strategies, and ultimately discover the true meaning of Christmas to defeat the red and white suited menace.

I also know a bit about Ambrose. Basically, he's very intelligent, always deep in thought, and rarely speaks. Everything around him goes into his head, yet little comes out. He also doesn't trust people. All of this adds more conflict to the story.

My friend gave me the idea of Amrbose befriending a rich socialite girl at some point in the story. Then they would fly in her private jet to the North Pole.

Now, onto the issues:
1. Why would a socialite girl be interested in Santa Claus? How would Ambrose befriend her?
2. Does everyone receive threats from Santa or only selectees individuals? Ambrose would not be very important if everyone else in the world was receiving the same messages.
3. What exactly is Santa's evil plan?

I really need help with answering these questions. Thank you for reading and I look forward to your responses!

I have a few more questions for you.

1- Why has Santa decided to act now? What is it about this particular moment that makes Santa decide to act?

When you're writing a story with a villain, you have to characterize the villain just as much as you characterize the protagonist. Questions about motive, timing, goals, and emotional drive are all appropriate to ask your villain, because they will be a major force in the story.

2- Is there anything at all that drives Ambrose to write a letter to Santa? What in his character would allow it to happen?

If you couldn't tell from my first question, I'm not fond of "just happened that way". When you rely on that too much, you end up with weak characterization and a plot that runs on coincidence. And remember: the truth is stranger than fiction, because fiction has to make sense (Mark Twain).

Right now, I think a lot of your questions would be answered via basic characterization, especially of Santa himself. Figuring out what makes him tick, what he wants, why he's even revealing his plan in the first place— those are all questions that you need to ask of your villain in order to create a good villain.

Why is a very important part of character action. Ask it, and frequently. Then you'll have a plot.

To be honest, I really like the sound of your story. It sounds like a lot of fun.

To add to what Rosey said, I'd definitely agree on the reason behind why Santa is now behaving this way. Why would he do this?

A good example would be one of the only few comic books I have ever read. It's called 'Irredeemable' and is basicly the story of 'what if Superman went bad?'. What I liked about the story was that they made his downfall believable. They used psychology and his perspective to their advantage. The people have stopped praising the hero for his deeds and is perceiving him as something to take for granted.

In turn, it drives him mad and vengeful upon the very people he was protecting in the first place.

I bring this specific story up, because it has pretty good analogies to Santa. Obviously, Santa Claus was someone who was once the wonder and amazement of children everywhere. Yet now, in this modern day, there is very little faith in him. His extraordinary work is going by without praise, wonder and fear. I'm talking from a story aspect here, within your work.

It's one aspect of your story I could buy if you pulled it off right. And it's very important to get your characters motives clear and have them make sense.

Perhaps you're right that Ambrose wouldn't be special if everyone else got the same letter, but she could still be different by being the one who decides to act.

Thank you to everyone who replied so far!!! Character motivation is my #1 issue right now, and you have me more important questions to answer. I still need help with the socialite girl, though. Can anyone help me brainstorm for her motives specifically?

Sure!

Ask yourself how her relationship is with:

- Her parents
- Her friends
- Her social status
- Other social statuses

Once you've figured out how she fits in with her societal role, it should be a lot easier to figure out her motives. For example, if she really revels in her social role, then she could not want anybody else to upset her parents' position as the gift givers in her life? She wants to prove she's better than some figure that was thought to be mythological? Or does she really want people to like her, so she bends over backwards to help other people?