Tuesday, May 8, 2012

PROCESS OF PLOT

There are many ways writers tackle the various stages of putting together a story. Here is a guideline to the process of plot:

- Introduce your character.
- The ‘incident’ which changes your character’s life as she knew it.
- First turning point where something happens which alters her thought patterns on solving her problem; perhaps forcing her to venture out of her comfort zone.
- Second turning point introducing more conflict, where for example her behaviour changes. She finds something inside of her she didn’t know she had. Bring out the hero inside of your character!
- Crisis point where your character has the choice to stand and fight for what she wants and believes in, or run for all she is worth.
- The climatic point where the truth is revealed, followed by the resolution that leaves your reader fulfilled by the outcome of the story.

Here is what David B Silva had to say about the successful novel writer Dean Koontz:

If you want it direct and succinct, here’s the way Koontz does it:

1. He gives us main characters that we will care about.

2. He places these characters in immediate and often desperate situations. They must overcome right away if they are to survive.

3. He never allows the readers to catch up with him. There are always new and unanticipated surprises just around the bend.

Keep writing....

18 comments:

  1. I think the key is characters we can care about - if we're not interested in them we won't want to know what happens to them.

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  2. That is so true about Dean Koontz - just when you think the danger has passed, something else happens - and I do agree that you must care about the characters.

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    1. Dean Koontz is another one of my favourite authors Teresa. I agree, caring about the characters keeps us there until the end.

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  3. It sounds so simple, doesn't it? If only...

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    1. Lol Talli - perhaps after a while and several books later ... it is?????

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  4. Such good advice Diane. Character or story. If you don't care about the character, you don't care about the story.

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  5. Great tips, well worth bearing in mind :o)

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  6. Well, Diane, there's one less thing that Dean Koontz can learn from us. Back to the drawing board we go! LOL

    Enjoyed the post. I'm always searching for that magical formula.

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  7. Excellent reminder of what we should be doing, Diane!

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    1. That is so nice of you to say - thank you Rosemary x

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  8. Dean Koontz is just an amazing writer. Love his work and his ability to always keep the reader a few steps behind.

    Ah, if only it were easier... :)

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    1. Hello Shirley - yes, he surely is one writer to aspire to. :-)

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  9. Very useful, thank you. I used to read a lot of Dean Koontz. Must catch up with some of his again.

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    1. Hello Biddy and welcome to my blog. There was a few years there I hadn't read him for a while and am very pleased I've been back to enjoying his writing. :-)

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