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#Post#: 122--------------------------------------------------
8 Plotting Pointers
By: phantomphan114 Date: November 13, 2011, 8:46 pm
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I thought this would be neat to have a reference when we're
thinking of plots for our rp or great for works in progress on
fan-fics. They can be loose guide lines to get the juices
flowing when stuck at some point in a story. I found this in one
of the writing blogs I follow. Here's the link:
HTML http://lynnettelabelle.com/chatterbox-chitchat/8-plotting-pointers/
Here are the 8 plot points:
1. Know where to start. A story should begin at or near the
inciting incident. This is the moment when the protagonist’s
normal life is suddenly turned upside down and her journey
begins. This means the story has already begun before we opened
the book, but we won’t learn about this backstory until later
on. For now, we want to enjoy the moment, see how the character
handles herself, what she has to lose, and where she’s going
from here. The backstory can be slipped in later through
flashbacks, exposition, inference, or dialogue. Don’t DUMP it at
the beginning or anywhere for that matter.
2. Keep your characters true to themselves. A mild-mannered man
won’t hit his girlfriend. Unless the writer has shown us a
different side to the character, we won’t believe the man could
be violent. Motivate, motivate, motivate. We’ll believe a
character can and will do anything as long as it’s properly
motivated and makes sense within the story.
3. Nothing should happen at random. Every element in a story
must have significance. Always ask, “Why this person and not
another? Why this place instead of that? Why would he say or do
this? What is its purpose? Does it move the story forward? Does
it reveal something about the character? Will the story still
make sense without this?”
4. Tick tock goes the clock. The protagonist should have a sense
of urgency. If she doesn’t attain her goal by such and such,
this will happen… Without this ticking time bomb looming over
her, the heroine can easily get distracted and forget what’s at
stake. Or she can simply take her time attaining her goal, but
the reader probably won’t stick around.
5. Show character growth. Make ‘em suffer. I know it’s tempting
to give your characters a break. You don’t want to hurt your
darlings. But, you MUST torture them. Every time life starts to
get easy for your characters, another hurdle must present
itself. The more things the hero has to overcome, the stronger
he’ll be in the end.
6. Subtly foreshadow things to come. You want the reader to
realize the clues to the killer’s identity were there all along.
If only she’d been paying closer attention and hadn’t been so
focused on the story… A miracle shouldn’t solve the problem. The
villain shouldn’t suddenly cave or become weak. The final clue
to solve the mystery won’t drop from the sky. And the killer
won’t be someone we’ve never seen or heard about before. But
remember, foreshadowing something is done subtly or you’re no
longer foreshadowing, you’re giving it away.
7. Resolve it. Whatever the conflict may be, and no matter how
hard it’s been for the hero to overcome it, at some point, he
must do just that. By the end of the story, he should’ve learned
enough and grown enough that he can finally attain his goal. The
reason the hero can now overthrow the villain is because the
hero has grown and is stronger, not because the villain is
weaker.
8. Remember your readers. Make sure your story fits within the
genre you write and what your readers expect. It’s okay step
outside the box, but don’t run from it.
#Post#: 146--------------------------------------------------
Re: 8 Plotting Pointers
By: 22639 Date: November 18, 2011, 8:19 pm
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This is great, Sarah. Thanks for sharing it with us.
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