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Plotting Your Novel
By Lee Masterson
"By failing
to plan, you are planning to fail."
A good story
is made up of a logical beginning, a bumpy middle and a satisfying
end. But a good plot is made up of more than just these three
basics.
Plotting an entire
novel is a complex task, best summed
up by saying it is the author's way of showing the reader the
events as they are unfolding. A successful plot depends largely
on how the author chooses to display those events as they unfold.
A carefully crafted
plot-line, interwoven with clever characterizations, tightly written
dialogue and enough action to hold a reader's attention are only
some of the factors which determine whether a book is a memorable
journey, or merely a story moving through the motions from start
to finish.
Let's look at
some of the ingredients you will need to include into a successful
plot-line.
The
Hook
Beginning a long
story, such as a novel-length work, with a detailed description
of the surroundings, the setting and the people who will be involved
in the rest of the story is no fun for a reader. The author has
offered his reader no real temptation to continue turning pages
to find out what happens next.
You must lure
the reader into wanting to continue deeper into your fictional
world by introducing some form of action at the outset. This will
throw your audience into the thick of things, and tempt them to
keep turning pages to find out what happens next. All the creatively-crafted
description in the world won't hold a reader's interest as well
as a strong opening action scene.
Action, in this
instance, does not specifically mean a wild car chase, or a shoot-out.
But it should involve some aspect of conflict, difficulty or obstacle
which will entice a reader into wanting to find out how your character
got himself into that predicament in
the first place.
Characters
The best stories
are usually about interesting, likeable people facing extraordinary
situations. Heroes are never perfect.
In fact, it is usually because of his or her flaws that a hero
becomes more endearing.
Work on displaying
your protagonist's strengths and weaknesses through his actions
and dialogue. Showing your reader how a character reacts to a
situation tells more about that person than a lengthy, boring
chunk of narrative can. Similarly, how your hero reacts to the
characters around him can highlight much about his personality.
Villains should
be no exception to this rule. Allowing your protagonist to defeat
the 'bad guy' just because he is a bad guy will make your villain
appear weak and one-dimensional. Creating a worthy opponent capable
of defeating your hero, complete with intelligence, skill and
charm, will make your story more engaging because of its realism.
It will also
force your audience to care more about what happens to your hero,
especially when you make it clear that your hero could possibly
be beaten by this worthy opponent.
Introducing strong
leading characters during your 'hook' will involve your reader
with their situation immediately, but it is ultimately the characters
themselves, and how they handle their predicament, that will remain
fixed in the memory of a reader long after the book has been finished.
Conflict
Once you have
your reader firmly hooked, and you have him caring about what
happens to your characters, you must step up the tension by creating
conflict.
This could be
a conflict between the characters you have already introduced,
or it could be an inner conflict within the thought processes
of your protagonist. Perhaps your plot involves an adversary or
an obstacle for your hero to overcome.
Whatever type
of conflict you choose to insert into your story, it must be clearly
drawn so that the reader is left in no doubt as to the difficulty
facing your hero. Reversals are a relatively simple way to introduce
conflict and tension to a plot line.
Introduce a reversal
of events, which stops your protagonist from reaching her goal.
Your heroine will be surprised by the change in events, and forced
to act upon the new situation at hand.
Just as you bring
this first conflict to a satisfying resolution, step up the tension
another notch, and introduce another, more demanding obstacle
to impede your hero.
The obstacles
you insert should become increasingly more difficult, building
toward one major climactic scene.
Sub-Plots
As in real life,
no person ever lives their life focused on one solitary event.
The same should be true for your characters.
Your hero will
not be single-mindedly consumed by the obstacle you have placed
in his path. He will still have family, friends, a job, romantic
involvements, responsiblities, a social
life, and many other things, although none of these outside things
should overshadow the main point of your story. They are simply
the mundane trivialities of life that will make your story more
believable, because your hero will still have to face these, no
matter what other horrors he might be facing.
But be warned.
A sub-plot is not a good excuse to add a lengthy romantic interlude
(unless, of course, you are writing romance!). Nor is it a place
to 'pad' your novel to increase the word count.
Climax
This is often
the hardest part of a novel-length work to plan for, and even
harder to write. You may know in your mind that the hero beats
the bad guy, the girl gets her man, and they live happily ever
after, but what about the details behind your characters getting
all these things?
Have you created
a believable build-up to this final pay-off? Having a great showdown
scene without explaining why it is a necessary step for your characters
to take can make your reader feel cheated, and make your story
seem contrived.
Are there any
reasons why this conflict couldn't be resolved another way? If
there is any other possible outcome, you can be sure that your
audience will think of it, and wonder why you didn't. Set up your
obstacles so that the only possible remaining outcome is the big
final climactic showdown you have planned. Your readers will probably
see it coming, but at least they won't feel cheated.
Denouement
A 'denouement'
is the 'wrapping up' of all the little loose ends of your story.
It is almost like the epilogue in a film, or the "They lived
happily ever after" portion of a story.
After such an
intense climactic scene, it is often necessary to include a wrap-up.
This has the dual effect of tying up all of the sub-plots to a
satisfying conclusion, and also showing your audience that life
after the big showdown is still continuing, although with some
very apparent changes.
Remembering to
include all of these things into a novel can seem daunting, but
if you spend a little time in the planning stage, your story will
benefit from it in the end.
This Article was found at: http://www.articleblast.com/
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