I've typed this up here because I prefer being able to go back and edit over and over again before releasing anything, and using comments means my stream of consciousness needs to be perfect, which it never is. Also I hate word limits. So here goes: <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> PLOTS AND PLOTTING (And other related topics) <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> What story will you be telling? For some writers, this part of their writing journey comes very easily. Others, who have no trouble dreaming up cool characters and an interesting world for them to play in, are lost when it comes to deciding what will happen to them. Or, perhaps, they can't be bothered deciding until the moment they have to write it down. There are two extremes to peoples' plotting methods. EXTREME ONE: PANTSING (Also known as 'writing by the seat of your pants' or 'making it up as you go along') Exactly what it says on the tin. This is what happens when a writer's best work is spontaneous, and they write whatever comes into their head. Plot twists are added arbitrarily; subplots and mysteries are resolved at around the same time as the author themselves work out what's going on in their own story. The advantage to this kind of writing is that it can feel very fresh and original. If the writer isn't bound to a plot, they have a lot more creative freedom. The disadvantage is that writers who do this are much more prone to writers' block than anyone else, as they don't have a plan of what's going to happen next (unless they carry one in their heads, and it's likely to have huge holes in it). EXTREME TWO: PLANNING Some writers prefer to create a massively detailed plan, timelines of everything remotely relevant (or not) to the story that has ever happened in their world, histories and lore, vast character sheets, levels of research that would make their teachers proud, and so on. Until they could find their way through their country's lore and proposed storyline in their sleep, they aren't happy to begin the actual story. Such writers are also prone to making innumerable drafts. The advantage to this style is that all this hard work tends to pay off into an extremely detailed world with logical internal rules, a storyline that feels satisfying and the only shape it could possibly be, and much greater scope for levels of complex subplots that pantsing writers would quickly lose track of. Also, the levels of perfectionism tend to result in something highly polished. The main disadvantage to the writer is that all this research quickly expands to fill all the time they could have spent on the story, and they never get around to finishing it to their satisfaction. Also it's easy to overdo the amount of lore in your story, when readers are there for the action rather than a fictional history lesson. Finding middle ground that works for you is recommended. One method is to write a basic plot, but to be prepared to chuck it all out the window and start again if you get a better idea. I favour pantsing, but I also love spending time on worldbuilding and character building. Having lots of information about them - even if it never makes it into the finished story - can help you out of writers' block: if you get stuck, ask yourself how the main character would react to this situation, and how that reaction would play out in your world. If you're here for a plot for your own story: I can't help you. The plot /is/ the story. If you could get someone else to write it for you, it would cease to wholly be yours. That said, there are a few basic plot structures that can help you get started. Here are two of them, again at opposite ends of the spectrum: RANDOM EVENTS PLOT Exactly what it says on the tin. A Random Events Plot is what happens when a series of seemingly unconnected things happen to your protagonist, which may or may not be building towards some sort of crescendo. These work well for serial stories or comic strips, where the aim is to keep your audience entertained through interminable instalments. They aren't so good for novels or short stories, where your audience will be expecting something more structured. Authors who make it up as they go along are prone to this. Gag-a-day comics and monster-of-the-week stories tend to be along these lines. The good news is that they're very easy to plot, as you can write about whatever encounter comes into your head and nobody will care that it doesn't relate to previous events. THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE There are many, many, many variations on this theme, but in its basic form, it works like this: The first act consists of introducing the character in their normal day-to-day life, the catalyst for the plot, and the character accepting the call (or refusing it, only to find out that it knows where they live). [continued]
[Continued. This needed to spill over into the notes and credits, never a good sign.] The second act involves the rising action where the main character's actions lead to a sequence of events that build towards the climax, often with a minor victory for the villain to make it clear that they're a credible threat. (Or you can tease the audience by giving the heroes a minor victory, only to override it moments later, to convey much the same about the villain.) The third act is for your climax and its aftermath. It doesn't need to be in that order, though; stories that begin in the middle of the action often insert the first act in its entirety halfway through the second act as a flashback, or break the first act up into a series of flashbacks that get scattered through the story. PREDICTABILITY It's not necessarily a bad thing. On the one hand, you don't want your audience to be able to literally write the story for you. On the other, if your plot developments feel like they came out of nowhere, you're breaking their willing suspension of disbelief. Adding some foreshadowing - events that will suddenly make sense once you've written the Reveal - will go a long way. If you're going to be original and tricky about things - particularly endings - try to make it less about the outcome itself (which will probably boil down to 'the good guys win' anyway, as most of your readers will guess) and more about how that outcome is achieved. OTHER THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND Some questions it can help to ask yourself when developing a plot, whether in advance or as you go along: -What is this character's purpose for being in this scene? (If there isn't one, and you can't come up with a good one, remove them.) -Does this scene build towards the climax? (If not, you can get away with leaving it in if it goes towards character development or exposition, but otherwise get rid of it.) -Has this development been hinted at? (If not, either add some foreshadowing to an earlier scene so it doesn't come out of nowhere or - you guessed it - get rid of it.) -Is this action something that this character would take? (If not, and you can't add a good reason why they might be acting out of character... you know.) -What events led to this happening? -Why didn't the characters see this coming? (Going back and adding details that make this more believable can help.) -What would be the simplest solution to the problem being faced by the characters? (If it's not the one your characters are using, you'll have to either add some details meaning they can't use it, or explain why they'd choose a more complicated solution. Or rewrite the story entirely so they use the simple solution after all, if you want.) -Is it obvious what's coming next? (Get a friend to read it to make sure.) <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I hope you can use this contribution! (Also that it isn't too long. If it is but you still want to use it let me know and I can cut some stuff.) If you publish it, please credit to @Constable-Angua. The music in this project is Joe Hisaishi's score 'Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind'. Highly recommended film if you haven't seen it.
