You have more than likely read a story so intriguing you could not put the book down until you finished it. What was the compelling feature about the story that kept you reading? Often readers are drawn to finish a story because of the plot, the events and actions which occur from the beginning to the conclusion of the story. It is one of the most important basic elements of every good story.
I have written over one hundred short stories for online sites. Like every fiction writer I know, I have at least two or three novels I would one day like to complete. If you are writing a longer fictional work, you should spend time developing the plot. These are tips for plot development I remember when writing fiction.
Present a Conflict Early
Your conflict will be between a person or group of people who want a problem resolved one way and the person or group of people who want a different solution. All of the actions which lead up to the climax and resolution of the conflict represent the struggle between the two people or groups of people to have their own way. The beginning of your story should contain a gripping incident which hints at the main conflict to come and hooks the reader into wanting to read more.
Creating a Plot Outline
If you are beginning to write a longer fictional piece, you may have a great idea for a beginning or a good conclusion. The most difficult job is to select the actions and events which keep the struggle between the characters rolling, building the readers’ excitement, until the final conflict and resolution. One way to keep track of this is by making a plot outline.
Break your story up into a beginning, a middle and an end. If your story is a novel, decide which characters will be introduced and which events will happen in each chapter. The characters and events can be as detailed as you desire.
Plot outlines are not unchangeable. You can choose a different conclusion at any time and write changes into the outline. A good plot outline will assist you in pacing the action and reducing the amount of fluff you might otherwise write.
It is a good idea to have events or actions reach a mini-climax in some chapters to be somewhat resolved in the next chapter. Your readers will be ‘hooked’ into reading the next chapter to find out what happened. Not every chapter has to have a hook at the end.
No Extraneous Action
Every action should help to develop the story line or define the personality traits of the main characters. If an event can be removed without affecting subsequent actions in the story, the event should not be part of the plot. Not every personality trait of your characters has to be shown. Only those traits which will prevent your character from persevering or those characteristics which will be useful in resolving the conflict need to be shown.
Avoid Overdone Story Lines
Murder mysteries where the butler committed the crime, Cinderella stories and the like will seem stale to the reader unless you have a unique slant for a conclusion. Stories containing flashbacks have been overdone as well.
Resolve the Conflict
Make sure every conflict no matter how big is resolved somehow by the end of the story. Nothing is messier in a plot than to have a minor character with a problem simply disappear and never be mentioned again.
No Miracle Solutions
When you have brought the reader to the climax of the plot where the conflict will finally be resolved, do not conjure up miraculous means of helping your protagonist persevere.
This plot device is called Deus ex Machina. The term comes from Greek and Roman theater where an actor portraying one of the gods would be lowered from above the stage to assist the protagonist in resolving the conflict or to help him escape. Miracle solutions include a long-lost brother coming forward to donate a kidney at the last possible moment with no prior clues in the story that the heroine had siblings.
In a similar way, horror stories which end the conflict by having the protagonist awaken from a nightmare leave the reader feeling cheated.
A well-planned plot ensures the reader will not put the book down until he has finished every chapter.
Sources
http://www.musik-therapie.at/PederHill/Structure&Plot.htm;
http://writingcenter.tamu.edu/2007/how-to/creative/plot-development-creative-writing/
