Are you DONE but NOT DONE? Discovering your story's plot...
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Thanks for the suggestion KTC. I'm going to try it. I managed to write a query letter for both my novels, but the synopses have been difficult and frustrating. Maybe this exercise will help!
Hey, this looks very useful, Kevin. I'll give it a try, too.
Now...if I can only decide which WIP to use it with first.
Now...if I can only decide which WIP to use it with first.
Every time I try to figure out all these aspects of plot with my stories, I feel like someone trying to decipher something in a foreign language. And then, after working really hard to translate each word into something I can understand, realizing that I knew the language all along. Realizing that my story as written had all these things, in the proper place and with the right emphasis, all along. I just didn't know it.
Is that normal?
That I instinctively put these things in but, when asked to name them, can't?
Sure makes writing a query something akin to reaching down my throat and pulling out my liver.
Is writing mostly learning to trust your instincts?
Is that normal?
That I instinctively put these things in but, when asked to name them, can't?
Sure makes writing a query something akin to reaching down my throat and pulling out my liver.
Is writing mostly learning to trust your instincts?
Novel Title:
The Incredible Blanco Brothers
Conflict:
Ansel’s struggle to have his own identity.
Complications:
-He is one of three identical brothers
-His brothers are both talented and famous (one of them authoring a comic book starring three identical brothers that look strangely like Ansel and his brothers. The little untalented plagiarist.)
-He is lazy
-His parents want him to fit a mold that he refuses to fit
-His brothers are unwillingly involved in a conspiracy to take over the American Youth, involving comic books and stupid trendy products that determine social status and ruin the lives and self esteem of people who refuse to buy
-One of his brothers has apparently lost his mind and stolen a very valuable comic book for no apparent reason and is attempting to throw away his talent and success by starting out in a life of crime.
Rising Action:
-In reaction to the attention surrounding his brothers Ansel enrolls in wilderness survival training camp, despite a warning from crazy comic book stealing brother that if he goes something very bad and death-like will happen to him.
-Ansel cheats by smuggling in matches and dehydrated food and thermal socks and fails miserably at surviving at survival camp
-but he does, through no design of his own, survive the attempt on his life during a freak storm
-unfortunately, he washes up on an island in his underwear
-even more unfortunately, the island is a juvenile detention camp, one his identical brother just escaped from
-naturally, they think he’s his criminal brother
-and apparently this whole scenario was laid out in that same brother’s comic book, ahead of time, and now Ansel realizes that things happening in the comic book will happen in real life
-he never read his brother’s comic book, out of spite. Now he has to.
(But is all this complication? It takes half the book to get to the realization. The rest of the book is fixing it.)
Climax:
-Exciting showdown at Comic-Con, dressed as corresponding characters from criminal brother’s comic, revealing the identity of the bad guys and saving the world from brainwashing homogenizing trendy products everywhere (or else just the one involved in the conspiracy. Think Apple.)
Falling Action:
-through last-ditch efforts by the baddies, Ansel and his brother’s identities have been wiped permanently. They must now apply for citizenship and immigrate as foreign nationals.
-Ansel looks at his green card and, to his horror, realizes that his brother changed the registration form and made him the corresponding character from the comic book, the one based off him, and now he has to deal with his new identity. Because of the trials and tribulations of the book, he well equipped to deal. He now loves his brothers and proved to his parents that he can pilot his own future and determine his own destiny. Or something.
Two clear concise sentences? Que?
"After finding out that whatever his brother writes in his hit comic happens in real life, Ansel Adams White must get over his pride and jealousy for his identical brothers' success and uncover a conspiracy to take over the world, in the process proving to himself and said world that he is an individual and talented in his own right. He succeeds."
The Incredible Blanco Brothers
Conflict:
Ansel’s struggle to have his own identity.
Complications:
-He is one of three identical brothers
-His brothers are both talented and famous (one of them authoring a comic book starring three identical brothers that look strangely like Ansel and his brothers. The little untalented plagiarist.)
-He is lazy
-His parents want him to fit a mold that he refuses to fit
-His brothers are unwillingly involved in a conspiracy to take over the American Youth, involving comic books and stupid trendy products that determine social status and ruin the lives and self esteem of people who refuse to buy
-One of his brothers has apparently lost his mind and stolen a very valuable comic book for no apparent reason and is attempting to throw away his talent and success by starting out in a life of crime.
Rising Action:
-In reaction to the attention surrounding his brothers Ansel enrolls in wilderness survival training camp, despite a warning from crazy comic book stealing brother that if he goes something very bad and death-like will happen to him.
-Ansel cheats by smuggling in matches and dehydrated food and thermal socks and fails miserably at surviving at survival camp
-but he does, through no design of his own, survive the attempt on his life during a freak storm
-unfortunately, he washes up on an island in his underwear
-even more unfortunately, the island is a juvenile detention camp, one his identical brother just escaped from
-naturally, they think he’s his criminal brother
-and apparently this whole scenario was laid out in that same brother’s comic book, ahead of time, and now Ansel realizes that things happening in the comic book will happen in real life
-he never read his brother’s comic book, out of spite. Now he has to.
(But is all this complication? It takes half the book to get to the realization. The rest of the book is fixing it.)
Climax:
-Exciting showdown at Comic-Con, dressed as corresponding characters from criminal brother’s comic, revealing the identity of the bad guys and saving the world from brainwashing homogenizing trendy products everywhere (or else just the one involved in the conspiracy. Think Apple.)
Falling Action:
-through last-ditch efforts by the baddies, Ansel and his brother’s identities have been wiped permanently. They must now apply for citizenship and immigrate as foreign nationals.
-Ansel looks at his green card and, to his horror, realizes that his brother changed the registration form and made him the corresponding character from the comic book, the one based off him, and now he has to deal with his new identity. Because of the trials and tribulations of the book, he well equipped to deal. He now loves his brothers and proved to his parents that he can pilot his own future and determine his own destiny. Or something.
Two clear concise sentences? Que?
"After finding out that whatever his brother writes in his hit comic happens in real life, Ansel Adams White must get over his pride and jealousy for his identical brothers' success and uncover a conspiracy to take over the world, in the process proving to himself and said world that he is an individual and talented in his own right. He succeeds."
Xx|Wow, that took forever to write. But every time I try something like that, it gets better. I guess that's a good sign. It's just that Whisper's so complicated. I know what happens, etc. But to narrow stuff down into those categories is h-a-r-d hard!
Anyway, 'cuz it's so long, i won't post it. But I'll work on the one or two sentence thing...
thanks for the form thingy. It's a great tool. :3|xX
Anyway, 'cuz it's so long, i won't post it. But I'll work on the one or two sentence thing...
thanks for the form thingy. It's a great tool. :3|xX
Novel Title: Seventh Circle
Conflict: I have three MC's (heaven help me)
Roger's struggle between severing his ties to humanity (what he deserves) and reaching out to the people around him (what they need).
Timothy's struggle between doing what is best for his own life (the logical choice/what others want him to do) versus what is best for those he helped in the past (the emotional choice/what he wants to do).
Ellie's struggle between normalcy (being like everyone else) and being herself (abhorrent to the world).
Complications:
- Owen (family servant) injuring himself - why?
- Connor (Roger's eldest) stalking Roger
- Timothy needing to choose between job offers
- Ellie unable to find understanding friends/boyfriends
- Roger hiding meetings with Ellie from Timothy
Rising Action:
- Timothy discovers Ellie, befriends, possibly attracted to
- Owen injured - self-inflicted or other?
- Connor appears and confronts/injures Roger
- Connor alerts enemy, enemy attacks house
- Roger and Ellie flee together
- Timothy abandons career, goes after enemy
Climax:
- Timothy is severely injured
- Owen diagnosed
Falling Action:
- Timothy's slow healing, realization that he cannot work again
- Roger's admission of love for Ellie
- Owen resolves family issues
- Connor begs forgiveness
- Roger's coping with guilt over Timothy's injury, Connor's betrayal
There! I did it! And it wasn't so hard. Yay! Thanks, KTC. I didn't really have an issue with my plot sequence, but defining my three MC's central conflicts has really helped.
Conflict: I have three MC's (heaven help me)
Roger's struggle between severing his ties to humanity (what he deserves) and reaching out to the people around him (what they need).
Timothy's struggle between doing what is best for his own life (the logical choice/what others want him to do) versus what is best for those he helped in the past (the emotional choice/what he wants to do).
Ellie's struggle between normalcy (being like everyone else) and being herself (abhorrent to the world).
Complications:
- Owen (family servant) injuring himself - why?
- Connor (Roger's eldest) stalking Roger
- Timothy needing to choose between job offers
- Ellie unable to find understanding friends/boyfriends
- Roger hiding meetings with Ellie from Timothy
Rising Action:
- Timothy discovers Ellie, befriends, possibly attracted to
- Owen injured - self-inflicted or other?
- Connor appears and confronts/injures Roger
- Connor alerts enemy, enemy attacks house
- Roger and Ellie flee together
- Timothy abandons career, goes after enemy
Climax:
- Timothy is severely injured
- Owen diagnosed
Falling Action:
- Timothy's slow healing, realization that he cannot work again
- Roger's admission of love for Ellie
- Owen resolves family issues
- Connor begs forgiveness
- Roger's coping with guilt over Timothy's injury, Connor's betrayal
There! I did it! And it wasn't so hard. Yay! Thanks, KTC. I didn't really have an issue with my plot sequence, but defining my three MC's central conflicts has really helped.
Is this for published pieces or non published pieces?
I have one book out and one being edited by a publisher so it will be out soon lol. I have a dozen pieces started, one needs to be typed and edited, two finished and waiting for word, and two dozen fighting around in my brain lol.
Here's the one that's out lol.
Novel Title:
Cursed Blood
Conflict:
Getting rid of the evil curse one way or another
Complications:
1. Donna can't die or stop others from dying.
2. Donna constantly has flashbacks from her "bad days" (her birthday)
3. The snake like birthmark won't come off and causes problems
4. Holy water hurts like Hell and causes more problems
Rising Action:
This piece is filled with things happening, one after another so this is hard to answer lol
Climax:
Again, there is so much going on in this story, its hard to say it in words lol
Falling Action:
The ending where Jack is willing to put his life on the line to be with Donna on her bad day to see if the cure will work.?
I have one book out and one being edited by a publisher so it will be out soon lol. I have a dozen pieces started, one needs to be typed and edited, two finished and waiting for word, and two dozen fighting around in my brain lol.
Here's the one that's out lol.
Novel Title:
Cursed Blood
Conflict:
Getting rid of the evil curse one way or another
Complications:
1. Donna can't die or stop others from dying.
2. Donna constantly has flashbacks from her "bad days" (her birthday)
3. The snake like birthmark won't come off and causes problems
4. Holy water hurts like Hell and causes more problems
Rising Action:
This piece is filled with things happening, one after another so this is hard to answer lol
Climax:
Again, there is so much going on in this story, its hard to say it in words lol
Falling Action:
The ending where Jack is willing to put his life on the line to be with Donna on her bad day to see if the cure will work.?
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Novel Title: Atlantis Reborn
Conflict: Poseidon, God of the Sea, discovers his soul mate is a mortal woman named Cleito. They marry and she becomes pregnant. A prophecy is discovered that their unborn son will rise up to kill Zeus when he is older. Zeus finds out and attacks Poseidon and his wife. Cleito gives birth and is forced to send her baby into the future to protect him from Zeus. Zeus then kills her in a rage. The son of Poseidon and Cleito is found abandoned on a beach off the coast of Western Australia 3,000 years later and raised to believe he is human.
Complications: At age seventeen, Dylan (Poseidon and Cleito's son) identity is discovered when he is hit by a truck and walks away unhurt. Zeus sends the Erinyes, three assassins, to take him back to Mount Olympus. Poseidon sends Clymene, a goddess faithful to him, to get to his son before Zeus has a chance.
Rising Action: Zeus confronts Dylan on the oval of his high school surrounded by hundreds of students and threatens to reveal that he is not human if he does not come with him back to Mount Olympus. When Dylan refuses, Zeus kills one of the students, making Dylan so mad he uses his powers in front of everyone in his school ruining whatever chance he had of going back to living a normal life. Poseidon arrives and a fight erupts between him and Zeus. At the end Dylan makes the decison to leave with Zeus in the hope he might be able to get a chance to kill him in revenge for murdering Cleito, his birth mother.
Climax: When Dylan refuses to join with Zeus to take over the world, the two of them engage in a big battle, which ends with Dylan being stabbed in the chest with the Blade of Medusa, a sword capable of killing gods. Dylan falls to the ground with the knife protruding from his chest. Zeus thinks he is dead for a moment then he opens his eyes and pulls the knife out of him, which turns to wood. Hera appears along with Poseidon. She stabs Zeus with the real knife, who begins to age rapidly, then crumbles into dust and dies.
Falling Action: Dylan and Poseidon visit the spirit of Cleito in Eysium, the Greek afterlife, where the three of them have a chance to bid farewell to each other. Hades uses his powers as the God of the Underworld to have Cleito reicarnated. The last scene is of Poseidon in a hospital looking down at a baby girl in a crib with a mark of a trident on her tiny wrist (marking her as his soul mate) he puts a red rose in her crib then walks away. He makes a vow to return when she is older so that the two of them can be together again.
And so begins a long, complicated series, about Gods searching for their soul mates.
Conflict: Poseidon, God of the Sea, discovers his soul mate is a mortal woman named Cleito. They marry and she becomes pregnant. A prophecy is discovered that their unborn son will rise up to kill Zeus when he is older. Zeus finds out and attacks Poseidon and his wife. Cleito gives birth and is forced to send her baby into the future to protect him from Zeus. Zeus then kills her in a rage. The son of Poseidon and Cleito is found abandoned on a beach off the coast of Western Australia 3,000 years later and raised to believe he is human.
Complications: At age seventeen, Dylan (Poseidon and Cleito's son) identity is discovered when he is hit by a truck and walks away unhurt. Zeus sends the Erinyes, three assassins, to take him back to Mount Olympus. Poseidon sends Clymene, a goddess faithful to him, to get to his son before Zeus has a chance.
Rising Action: Zeus confronts Dylan on the oval of his high school surrounded by hundreds of students and threatens to reveal that he is not human if he does not come with him back to Mount Olympus. When Dylan refuses, Zeus kills one of the students, making Dylan so mad he uses his powers in front of everyone in his school ruining whatever chance he had of going back to living a normal life. Poseidon arrives and a fight erupts between him and Zeus. At the end Dylan makes the decison to leave with Zeus in the hope he might be able to get a chance to kill him in revenge for murdering Cleito, his birth mother.
Climax: When Dylan refuses to join with Zeus to take over the world, the two of them engage in a big battle, which ends with Dylan being stabbed in the chest with the Blade of Medusa, a sword capable of killing gods. Dylan falls to the ground with the knife protruding from his chest. Zeus thinks he is dead for a moment then he opens his eyes and pulls the knife out of him, which turns to wood. Hera appears along with Poseidon. She stabs Zeus with the real knife, who begins to age rapidly, then crumbles into dust and dies.
Falling Action: Dylan and Poseidon visit the spirit of Cleito in Eysium, the Greek afterlife, where the three of them have a chance to bid farewell to each other. Hades uses his powers as the God of the Underworld to have Cleito reicarnated. The last scene is of Poseidon in a hospital looking down at a baby girl in a crib with a mark of a trident on her tiny wrist (marking her as his soul mate) he puts a red rose in her crib then walks away. He makes a vow to return when she is older so that the two of them can be together again.
And so begins a long, complicated series, about Gods searching for their soul mates.
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Very interesting analysis tool and categories... where did you get this, Kevin? From a book or some kind of guide?
I might do one with my WIP. I can do one for the published novel, but it's a little too late... LOL.
I might do one with my WIP. I can do one for the published novel, but it's a little too late... LOL.
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Thanks, Kevin. That's the first one of those I've seen. Gosh, wonder what havoc I could wreak with identical quadruplets?
Successful birth of identical triplets has about a one in two million chance. (Actually, that's just one of many different and conflicting odds I've found. Chose the bigger one, since it's more amazing.) But anyway, I've found it a lot more common than one might think. Although my story is pretty much based on strange coincidences and unlikely happenings, so it really fits. For instance: the bad guys are identical twins. They think triplets are a novelty and that one (Ansel, of course) is expendable.
What can I say. The plot revolves around comic books. And it's YA. I'm allowed to get unlikely.
Thank you again for putting up the exercise. Getting things in order, as you're coming down the home stretch with edits and getting that query ready, really really really helps.
*Copying and pasting into word* Thanks a bunch, I've been chewing on this subject for a while, wondering how the heck am I going to put this plot into two sentences! (bleh!)
Thanks again for this thread!
Thanks again for this thread!
Interesting idea, Kevin. I've got a snyopsis that I keep fiddling with. I'm gonna go apply it and see how it works.
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