TURBINE | KAPOHAU

A Visit from the Goon Squad consists of short stories or segments, each one focussing on a single character. There is a core group of characters including band members and groupies, plus additional characters ‘once removed’ from this initial group. I was particularly intrigued by the way Egan structured the stories — this is an issue I’ve been dealing with in my own folio. 

During my three-hour workshop, it became apparent that readers had been struggling to remember my characters and how they fit together. I have twelve frequently mentioned characters, so this is understandable. A Visit from the Goon Squad could have risked the same issue, however, its structure prevents this, allowing each character to remain distinct and memorable. 

Structurally, Egan places a character’s story immediately after a chapter that briefly mentions them. For example, Bennie might appear in one chapter, then his full story will unfold in the next, even if it takes place years later or before the previous chapter. I’m so pleased to have discovered this structure. This week, I’ve been sitting in front of an Excel spreadsheet organising my stories / chapters to reflect this pattern. I’ve managed to create a similar arrangement with an exception — on two occasions a chapter follows a chapter in which a character is not mentioned. I think this works for the most part and hope to consolidate it. 

Studying the timeline of this book has been an education. In my workshop, I became aware of timeline issues in my own work where the ages of characters don’t align between chapters. Seeing how Egan manages to span almost a lifetime (Bennie’s) and keep characters’ ages consistent has been inspiring.  

This book has made me question my choice not to use speech marks. Thus far, I’ve written the entire manuscript (56,000 words and counting) without them. This was a stylistic choice, and still, the workshop revealed that readers are having difficulty distinguishing between character’s thoughts and dialogue. Not ideal as this halts a reader’s experience, forcing them to work harder. I’ve decided to go through the entire manuscript and insert dialogue marks.  

I read toward the conclusion of A Visit from the Goon Squad rather quickly in hopes of learning how to end a novel in stories. Its very last lines are centred around Sasha, and although she doesn’t appear in the final chapter, the book opens with her thieving story. What did this tell me? The book opens and closes with her, and yet, she is not the protagonist. This has made me consider my own work, which shares Egan’s absence of a central character. The class has suggested my manuscript is primarily about the sisters (Lila and Paralee) or Francis, though none of these characters are central to the story. There are no central characters, there is only a cast of characters. In A Visit from the Goon Squad, the chapters between the first and final do not relate to Sasha in any real way, and yet they build the world she inhabits. I’m left wondering whether I need a central character — which would feel untrue to the manuscript — and if not, how to end my own work? Could I conclude on a beat relating to the opening character of the manuscript? Let’s see.