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PLOTTING A STORY:
Last one day workshop we outlined our story. We decided who our main character was, what their goal,
motivation, and conflicts were, who would help them on the way, and how the story would end. And, we
interviewed our characters so we now know them as well as we know our family members. Now we need
to expand on that story line and create a more detailed plot to work with. It will help if you have your
story sheet and your character interviews beside you as you create this plot.
To me, to write a story of any size without a plan or plot is like going on a journey without a map or
GPS. But some writers say they feel restricted by the structure of plot. That doesn’t have to be the way it
works.
There are two methods of preparing to write a story.
The Intuitive Approach
Sometimes called ‘writing by the seats of your pants’.
With this approach you set off on a journey with no idea of where you are going, allowing the words to
carry you along as they will.
Every time you get stuck, which you will be often, you can use a form of brainstorming to get you going
again. Ask yourself questions – where are my characters? What are they doing? Why did that happen?
What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, and feel emotionally? What am I trying to express or
communicate with this scene or story?
The main problems with this method is that sometimes you can get so stuck you can’t get going again, or
you end up with a lot of material that must be cut later, thereby wasting time and energy. The questions
that you asked to try to get going, are the same ones you would ask when plotting the story, so why waste
time being stuck. Ask them at the start.
The other method is the Analytical Approach or Plotting
Some writers plot out the entire story before they write a word, complete with characters sketches,
chapter-by-chapter and scene-by-scene breakdowns and conclusions.
Such planning can help with the actual writing process because you know what you are writing about –
and it can help you tie up any loose ends. However, some people feel it limits them to only writing what
was contained in the plot, and doesn’t leave room for any of those great leaps of the imagination that can
take you in all sorts of surprising directions. This doesn’t have to happen. My plot lines are only a guide.
Most writers develop a plot-line where they know their beginning and their end and a number of key
scenes along the way. Then, as they are writing, they develop these plot-lines further as new ideas come.
I adjust my plot line to suit where the story has changed before I write the next chapter. This way I know
exactly what I want to happen in that scene.
So what exactly is a plot?
A Plot is the bare bones of a story - it a series of events which is driven by the protagonist’s attempt to
RESOLVE a source of CONFLICT. The protagonist’s actions and reactions to a set of problems,
obstacles, or ordeals guides the plot.
This means a plot works in two ways – what is happening (the sequence of events) and why it is
happening (cause and effect)
Character and plot are entwined, because the personality of your characters will determine how they
react to any given situation. That is why it is so important to do your character interview.
Let’s look at exactly how much, and what kind of information you need to include in this outline. At
each change of scene, ask yourself these questions.
•
•
•
•
•
Where are my characters?
What are they doing?
Why did that happen?
Use all of the senses: What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, and feel emotionally?
What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene?
Not all of these questions will be appropriate at each point but you will only know this by
asking them.
Let’s look at an example.
This is an extract from my plot for The Oracle of Nevaah and following is the scene that plays
out from this plot point.
Plot Scene: The two troops go to the stadium to speak to the crowd. Palesa is excited by the
reward offered for information on whereabouts of the twins. When she spots them hiding under the seat,
cowering in fear, she is tempted to turn them in for the 50 gold pieces offered (which is more than they
would earn in a 5 years). She is obsessed with the reward, but wonders if the evil ruler would pay even
more if she took them and Briador to him.
Basic information on the character Palesa: She is 15 has auburn hair and is slim and attractive.
She was with the people who fled the city when the evil ruler took over. She wears the colours of the
middle class (blue and with a more elaborate decoration on her blouse) and feels the twins are beneath
her. Rais saw her the night before and is smitten by her.
Let’s break down that paragraph to see how it answers our questions.
Where are our characters and what are they doing? The two troops go to the stadium to speak to the
crowd. Palesa is excited by the reward offered for information on whereabouts of the twins. When she
spots them hiding under the seat she is tempted to turn them in for the 50 gold pieces offered (which is
more than they would earn in a 5 years). So we know where they both are at that point, and what they
are all doing. The soldiers are on the stage, the twins under the seats hiding, and Palesa is watching and
listening.
Next question:
What can my character hear, see, and feel emotionally? Palesa hears the trooper offering a
reward, is excited at first mention of a reward. When she sees them under the seat, she becomes obsessed
about having it and more. The twins are listening to the speech and cowering in fear.
Next question:
What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene or story? I am trying to create a
sense of urgency, a hook to make the reader want to read on and find out what happens next. And I’m
introducing Palesa and showing her true character.
From that outline and the character interviews for each character involved, I sat and started
writing. Let’s look at how that paragraph plays out as a full scene.
This scene was written from that outline.
The twins cowered under the seats of the stadium and held their breaths as they listened to one of
the men on the stage call to the assembled crowd. “Good people of Adaya, in the name of our
esteemed ruler Yaholo, we come seeking the whereabouts of three people. A boy of fifteen
named Rais and his twin sister Kanda. These youths are blonde and blued eyed and wear the
clothes of farm workers. The other is a man named Briador, who we believe is a member of your
community.”
At the mention of Yaholo, the faces of the crowd closed and they started drifting away.
The guard stepped forward in an attempt to stop them, and shouted, “I assure you that no harm
will come to these people. Our esteemed ruler has offered a reward of fifty gold pieces for
information that leads to the capture of the trio.”
At the back of the crowd stood the girl with the auburn hair, her eyes lit up at the
mention of the reward. She was sick of this small town, where she had lived for a decade, and
longed to travel back to the walled city where she was born and raised until she was almost four.
Her mother’s wistful stories of their life there had fuelled this desire, and now, with her mother
passed on, she felt a stronger tie than ever with the city. While she didn’t remember much about
her life before she came to Adaya, her dreams were often filled with her time in the palace and
shadowy images of the other people who lived there. Without knowing who they were, she felt a
strange longing to see them again.
With that sort of money, I could go back, and live like a queen, she thought.
Her eyes searched the crowd for strange faces that might be the twins mentioned. She
caught a glimpse of a fair head and brown costume and wandered over to the other side of the
stadium. The person she had seen turned out to be a farm boy from her school. Disappointed, she
headed for the seats to listen to what else the stranger had to say. As she sat, she glanced down,
and through the crack between the seat and the back, she saw two pair of terrified blue eyes. A
low growl alerted her to the presence of Nobosi and she hesitated.
Moving further along the seat, she was just about to call out when she heard the man say; “The
esteemed Yaholo would even be prepared to welcome his loyal subject into the city as a part of
the reward.”
The girl slumped in the seat her mind racing with possibilities. If Yaholo is willing to
offer so much for information, what would he offer for the capture and delivery of the twins and
Briador directly to him? All I have to do is get the twins to Briador and convince them to travel
with me to the walled city.
When there was no response to their offer of reward the man shouted, “You have had
your chance. If they are found hidden in your town the person hiding them will be executed.”
The troops stalked from the stage and proceeded to roughly search every building.
The girl stayed where she was as the fearful crowd deserted the streets. When the coast
was clear, she slipped under the seat to where the twins were hiding.
“Thank you for not turning us in,’ Kanda stammered.
The girl looked down her nose at Kanda huddled nervously at her feet. Snivelling
peasant child, she thought. “Why does Yaholo want you?”
Tears sprung to Kanda’s eyes and she scrubbed at her cheeks. “We have no idea, but if
we could just find Briador, he might be able to tell us.”
Rais was staring at her. He was trying to speak, but he had to untangle his tongue first.
He had been hoping for a chance to meet her and now she had come to their rescue. He could not
believe his luck.
You can see that my outline was just the bare bones of that scene. The dialogue and actions of all the
characters was worked out and written from that basic outline and character profile. So even with the plot
outline there is a lot of work to do.
The Basic Formula Of All Stories
We’ve talked last time about the basic formula for stories but before we start on our plot, we’ll run
through them again.
Protagonist + Objective + Obstacles = Story
OR
Character + Desire + Conflict = Story
Someone wants something that is hard to get. Once you understand this, it is much easier to plan
your story.
The plot should follow this 4 part sequence:
1.
Exposition or Inciting Incident: The beginning chapters –
2.
Rising Action: The middle chapters –
3.
Climax: The end chapters –
4.
Falling Action: The final scene: The tying up of loose knots or the ‘happily ever after scene’.
This is how it looks on a graph.
I have included the Three Act script plot formula to show that it is just the same. In a short story
or a children’s picture book the Three Act script format would be more appropriate than the one below it,
as there wouldn’t be so much conflict.
Fill out the form:
Let’s go through the formula and fill out our plot sheet. If you don’t have enough room on the
sheet, use your note pad. There is no set number of incidents I have just used six as an example.
1. The beginning chapters - The exposition and Inciting Incident: This is the starting point
where you introduce your characters and set the scene. Start with an Inciting Incident or situation – the
catalyst that begins the major conflict – a problem or complication to be solved – the point at which
normal life is changed. This dramatic opening provides the hook that makes the reader want to read more.
You can show the normal life of the main characters later. Many authors prefer to start this way. The
hook can be just a few words that foreshadows a coming Inciting Incident as in Mathew Reilly’s – Six
Sacred Stones: the novel begins,
‘On the day his farm was attacked with overwhelming force, Jack West Jr had slept till
around 7.00am.’
The rest of the first chapter then tells us of the normal life of this character – his family – where
he lives and why – what his background is etc. But we keep reading because we know there is going to
be an attack and we want to know when, why and how. But don’t drag this out too long or you will lose
them. Get to the action scene before the end of the first chapter.
The remainder of this first section of any book should tell what the incident was and how our
character reacted to it. How it changed our protagonist’s life and what the character plans to do about it their Goal and Motivation.
Here is an example of an outline for an opening scene. This one paragraph, plot scene outline became
the first 2 pages of The Mystery of Nida Valley.
First Chapter: Opening scene outline:
Amanda goes missing while on an excursion at the local haunted, Historic Manor. Meg comes home
from school, finds a note from her mother, and phones her at Amanda’s Gran’s house as instructed. She
hears the worry in her Mum’s voice, panics, and goes to the manor to search for Amanda.
Let’s break down that paragraph to see how it answers our questions.
Where are our characters and what are they doing? Amanda has gone missing while on an excursion
at the local haunted Historic Manor. Meg comes home from school, finds a note from her mother, phones
her at Amanda’s Gran’s house as instructed. So we know where our characters are at that point. Amanda
is missing, Meg is at home talking to her mother on the phone, and her mother is at Amanda’s Gran’s
house.
Next question:
What can my character hear, see, and feel emotionally? Meg sees the note, hears her
Mother’s worry and panics.
Next question:
What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene or story? I am trying to create a
sense of urgency, a hook to make the reader want to read on and find out what happens next. And I’m
introducing my main character and showing her personality.
From that opening paragraph and the character interviews for each character involved, I sat and
started writing. Let’s look at how that paragraph plays out as a full scene.
Meg Sealy stared at the note on the kitchen bench. Two words leapt out at her, AMANDA and
MISSING. The rest of the message told Meg to phone her mother at her best friend’s home. Meg
frantically dialled the number. Her mother answered the call. ‘I don’t want you to worry, but Amanda
is missing. She went to Millson Manor this morning with the high school history excursion. When
they were ready to leave she couldn’t be found.’
Panic made Meg’s voice catch in her throat and she squeaked, ‘Mum, how could she just …
vanish?’
‘We’re not sure yet. Your dad is coming home from the police conference. He’ll take charge of
the search. I’m going to stay with Amanda’s gran for a bit. Just stay there and do your homework. I’ll
be home soon,’ Mary said, in an attempt to reassure.
Meg could hear the concern in her mother’s voice and she was anything but reassured. She stood
dumbfounded, her mind racing. Her vivid imagination conjured up all sorts of reasons for Amanda’s
disappearance, none of them good. The last one – an alien abduction – she dismissed with an annoyed
shake of her head. She remembered her father’s response when she had come up with a similar
explanation for the absence of her cat, Ginger. ‘You must learn to tame the scriptwriters of your wild
imagination,’ he had said, an amused twinkle in his eye.
Meg knew there was no way she could concentrate on her homework. She scribbled, ‘Mum, gone
to Millson Manor to see what’s happening’, on the notepad and charged out the door.
She raced her bike up the hill to the gates of the manor as though aliens chased her. Her long
blonde hair streamed out behind her.
There is a bit more to this scene but because of time constraints, I won’t read it all. But from this
you can see you don’t have to write the whole scene down as a plot outline, just the bare bones. Meg’s
character interview told me how Meg would react. My knowledge of her wild imagination, her loyalty
to her friends and her adventurous spirit meant I knew what she would do in this situation.
Using the first three sections of the form, write an outline of the first scene for your story that
shows the Inciting Incident and your character’s reaction to it.
2. The middle chapters - The rising action: Here we show a series of conflicts and obstacles to
overcome, ordeals to undergo, lessons to be learnt, and revelations to be understood. This section gives
details of the journey and lists the scenes with each scene being more dramatic than the last. This leads us
to a Crisis - a crucial or decisive moment in the story that has a powerful effect on the protagonist – a
turning point - the Midpoint Reversal. This is the scene where your protagonist must decide does
he/she have the strength and determination to go on. Is the goal worth the effort? This crisis stops the
middle chapter from sagging. This can be a physical obstruction or an emotional one.
Fill in the middle three questions.
3. The end chapters - The Climax: This where we give details of the lead up to the final
confrontation - the BIG MOMENT when tension reaches its height - the point in which the hero must not
only face, and defeat, his enemy, but also his greatest fear.
Include in your plot a basic idea of how this unfolds.
4. The Falling Action: The final stage - Where questions are answered and problems solved.
Where we learn more about the motivation of the antagonists and reveal any twists not already revealed.
It is usually much shorter than the previous series of events.
Write in the premise for this scene.
4b. The Final Scene: The Resolution. When all is well – ‘the feast scene’ or the ‘they live
happily ever after’ scene.
Write how you imagine the final scene.
That covers the basic Narrative Arc: You can see that understanding the basic narrative arc of
a story can help you make sure your story does not sag in the middle, fizzle out at the end, or drone on for
too long at the beginning. Editors tell me the ‘too long beginning’ is the most common mistakes in
manuscripts. They say that in most manuscripts, the first two or three chapters are back-story and can be
left out. Formulating a strong plot can help prevent that.
PLOTING A STORY:
Ask yourself these questions at the beginning of each scene – Where are my characters? What
are they doing? Why did that happen?
Use all the senses: What can my character hear, see, smell, taste and feel? What am I trying
to express or communicate with this scene or story? How was my character changed by this
experience?
Not all of these questions will be appropriate at each point but you will only know this by
asking them.
The plot should follow this 4-part sequence:
THE BEGINNING CHAPTERS - The exposition –– Plot the opening scene. This is the
starting point where you introduce your characters and set the scene. Start with an Inciting Incident or
situation – the catalyst that begins the major conflict – a problem or complication to be solved – the point
at which normal life is changed.
1 a.
Answer these questions: Who is my main character? Where is he/she? What are they doing? What
can my character hear, see, smell, taste, feel? What am I trying to express or communicate with
this scene?
. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
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1 b. Inciting Incident: What happens to change their life? Write the outline of how this
event occurs: What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, feel? What am I trying to express
or communicate with this scene? How was my character changed by this experience?
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1c. Show their reaction to the event, and the resulting goal and motivation: Where are my
characters now? What are they doing? Why? What can my character hear, see, smell, taste,
feel? What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene? How was my character
changed by this experience?
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2a. THE MIDDLE CHAPTERS - The rising action: Write the plot outline for the
beginning of the journey towards the achievement of the goal, and include anyone who is
present to help him/her. Where are my characters? What are they doing? Why did that
happen? What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, feel? What am I trying to express or
communicate with this scene? How was my character changed by this experience?
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2b. Now record who is going to stop him/her and why: Introduce the main antagonist and
list the obstacle and challenges they create on this part of the journey. What are they
doing? Why are they trying to stop them and how? What can this character hear, see, smell,
taste, and feel emotionally? How does my main character feel about this person and the
challenges faced? What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene?
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2c. What is the Midpoint Reversal or Crisis that makes the protagonist doubt he/she can
make it. It can be physical or emotional. Where are my characters? What are they doing?
Why did that happen? What can my characters hear, see, smell, taste, and feel emotionally?
What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene? How was my character changed by
this experience?
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3a. THE END CHAPTERS - The Climax: The point from where they plough on with
determination to achieve the goal. Record details of the lead up to the final BIG
MOMENT. How do they get there? Record the obstacle and challenges they face and how
they overcome them. Where are my characters? What are they doing? Why did that happen?
What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, and feel emotionally? What am I trying to express
or communicate with this scene? How was my character changed by this experience?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
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3b. The Final Battle: When tension reaches its height. The point in which the hero must
not only face, and defeat his enemy, but also his greatest fear. Include in your plot how this
unfolds. What are they doing? Why did that happen? What can my character hear, see, smell,
taste, and feel emotionally? What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene? How
was my character changed by this experience?
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4a. THE FALLING ACTION: The final chapters – Plan how we learn more about the
motivation of the antagonists and disclose any twists not already revealed. What are they
doing? Why did that happen? What can my character hear, see, smell, taste, and feel
emotionally? What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene? How was my
character changed by this experience?
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4b. The final scene. Plot the outline of ‘the feast scene’ or the ‘they live happily ever after’
scene. What are they doing? Why did that happen? What can my character hear, see, smell,
taste, and feel emotionally? What am I trying to express or communicate with this scene? How
was my character changed by this experience?
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© Copyright Elaine Ouston 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used to conduct classes, be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
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