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Hello all! For those of you who don’t know me I am Liska Boyce, YA fantasy novelist (or at least trying to be lol) and world-builder.
I have been working on a complex idea for a new novel – think at least 6 main POVS, a sentient House, and possibly the beginning of a series? – and realized that I am a plotter. Unfortunately I also realized that I’m not a plotter in the traditional sense. None of the methods other people use work for me. I did this with characters a while back, but I had to completely design my own character development system. Any suggestions on how I might figure out what to do with my plot?
"Legend-makers are echoers of the Truth, though they may look askance and tell a lie." ~ J.R.R. To
Well… the good news is, your problem is shared by many! There are so many different kinds of plots out there, that I’ve never understood why some people say there is one perfect method. There really isn’t. Most people don’t follow a strict structure and that’s normal.
What plot structures have you tried? There might be one out there for you – something you haven’t tried yet.
Regardless of what you’ve tried, I suggest learning about popular structures and understanding why they work. Once you know why they tick, you can pluck out pieces of different structures and come up with your own invention.
For example, I’ve heard of the Save the Cat plot beat, where the protagonist helps someone, and they prove their moral goodness to the reader.
I don’t use that idea for every story. But I understand its purpose. If I want my protagonist to seem like a good guy, and I want to quickly prove it, I’ll use the plot beat. But maybe I don’t care about proving his morality! Maybe he’s a morally gray guy and the reader likes him because he’s interesting, not because he’s a good guy yet. So I don’t need him to follow the Save the Cat structure.
If you understand the utility of common plot structures, you can mix and match them to your liking, or even twist them into a crazy new thing. It helps to know the “rules” before you break them. (They aren’t rules. But. You know what I mean. 😉)
Uh, yeah! That’s my opinion. Take it with a grain of salt, of course.
If you need help brainstorming a specific plot thread, or you’re out of ideas, or stuck on something – I’m happy to help!
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