Editing tips - Plot – Cause and effect

Writers will argue over whether a book should be driven by character or plot. It isn’t so black and white as that.

Plot is the story’s engine, drawing various events together and relating the consequences of characters’ actions in response to those events. Essentially, plot tells you about cause and effect.

Some stories are character-driven while others are driven by the plot. It depends on the type of story. An action-adventure tale will move at a swift pace through several twisting and turning sub-plots while a love story may linger on the dilemmas faced by a number of characters. Whatever type of story it is, both character and plot have to be in harmony.

A plot-heavy story will appear contrived and keep the reader at a distance, while a character-rich tale will pull the reader in to the point where the plot is not evident but simply obstacles faced by this character you’ve got to know.

Plots are relatively easy to think up, it seems. They must be. More than once I’ve been accosted by a would-be writer saying, ‘I’ve got this great plot for a novel. Will you write it for me?’ Well, no, thanks, I’ve got more than enough of my own to work on. Nice to be asked, though.

Some writers don’t have a plot when they start – whether it’s a short story or a novel. They have the kernel of an idea, or a theme, or even an ending in mind. Then they throw in a few characters and see how they react to their situation. It works for some. Tolkien was well into The Fellowship of the Ring when he put his hobbits inside an inn and introduced a ruffian called Strider. At that point Tolkien didn’t know who Strider was or where the book was going! They write by the seat of their pants - pantsers.

Others plan each scene in fine detail, leaving nothing to chance and revel in the constraint this imposes.

Most writers probably fall somewhere in between these two extremes. It depends on the material and that initial spark. If a particular character leaps out at the writer, wanting to be written about, then it invariably becomes a character-driven tale. Private detective Maisie Dobbs jumped fully formed into Jacqueline Winspear’s mind at traffic lights! If a clever twist on a standard theme has popped into the mind, then the test is how to lead up to that twist ending.

 

I’m biased, I believe in plotting, even for a short story. Writing is much easier if you have a plot-plan to follow. It doesn’t mean you’re in a rut. The plot-plan is a rough-and-ready road, but as the story progresses you’ll find that characters will want to take the occasional more interesting byway. Some writers let the characters wander off at a tangent and never rejoin the original plotted road; others are hard taskmasters and bring the character back in line after an interesting diversion!

Plots should stem from the motivation of your characters. So it’s vital that you get to know the people in your story. Character building is another big issue.

Invariably, you will also be writing to a theme in your story. Make sure that this central idea runs through the story and is embodied in one of more character’s thoughts and actions.

A plot without conflict is not much of a plot. Again, conflict needs another detailed discussion, at another time. Suffice to say that drama must contain some obstacle which the protagonist has to overcome.

By carefully preparing your plot-plan beforehand, you control the occasional diversions and bring everything back on track. By getting to know your characters before starting, you have a good idea how they will react to your plot-plan and how they will shape the story.

Nothing is cast in stone. On occasion I have found that the initial plot-plan was too simplistic and the characters, as they became fleshed out in the writing, suggested more logical and stronger plot directions to take. That’s fine, as long as you remain in charge and don’t let the story completely unravel.

Good plots need to be consistent, convincing and contain character interaction. Weak plots simply take the reader from point A to point B and are usually implausible – they haven’t been thought through.

A story is often about a character’s growth or change through adversity, which is brought about by facing obstacles and overcoming them. The plot provides the means for the character to evolve.

For novel-length work, it is necessary to introduce sub-plots, which can be tests for secondary characters as well as the main protagonist. Yet these sub-plots must move the story forward, serve a purpose and reinforce the theme.

Convoluted plots exist, but they often appear contrived and lose all but the most attentive reader, so it’s advisable to steer clear of complex plot structures.

Every writer enters into a contract with the reader. The writer should not cheat. If the plot requires a twist, then that should be hinted at earlier rather than just being tagged on at the end.

A lengthier version of this subject can be found in Write a Western in 30 Days. (But you saw through my plot and knew I’d say that, didn’t you?)

 

http://goo.gl/wQgSSh

 

 

 

Make a Date

Some time ago I published a regular monthly column linking a set selection of dates in history. The series was popular. I'm busy coordinating the articles into book form. As today is 24 September, here are a number of linked events for that date plus three other September dates. To avoid repetition, I've simply indicated the relevant date in brackets. The four dates for this article are:

 

2, 13, 24 and 28 September

Being late to adopt fresh ideas isn’t new for the UK. Long before the Euro there was the Gregorian Calendar, which we adopted in 1752, nearly two hundred years later than most of western Europe (2).

That great European and Roman, Pompey the Great was assassinated in 48BC on the orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt (28). In 1898 British and Egyptian troops led by Kitchener defeated Khalifa Abdulla al-Taashi’s Sudanese tribesmen (2), which resulted in British dominance in the Sudan for many years. Twenty-six days later in 1396 the Ottoman Emperor Byazid I defeated a Christian army at Nicopolis (28). And on the same day in 1970 Egypt’s first president Gamal Abdal Nasser died, thirty years and fifteen days after Italy’s Mussolini invaded Egypt.

 

Another notable invasion was William the Conqueror’s, in 1066 and all that (28). Since then the British Isles haven’t been successfully invaded, though a few battles have inevitably been lost – such as the airborne’s defeat at Arnhem in 1944 which happened to be on the same day too.

As the Second World War lasted six years, it’s logical there’ll be many note-worthy days in that conflict. Last month Anne Frank’s final diary entry was commemorated; in 1944 she and her family were put on the last transport train to Auschwitz (2) in 1941...

German bombs damaged (13) Buckingham Palace in 1940 but this was nothing compared to the ten thousand buildings destroyed during the Great Fire of London of 1666 which started at a baker’s in Pudding Lane (2).

The Second World War ended officially with the surrender of Japan in 1945, accepted by General MacArthur and Admiral Nimitz (2). Twenty-two days later in 1564 English navigator and Japanese samurai William Adams was born. And in 1988 the cartoonist Charles Addams died (28) but will forever be known as the creator of the Addams Family.

Coincidences between names or events crop up from time to time, such as the battle of Marathon which supposedly began in 490 BC and on the same day a mere 2,460 years later the first New York City Marathon took place (13). Interestingly, this month in 1937 saw the death (2) of Pierre de Coubertin, the French founder of the modern Olympic Games.

While discussing New York, the Netherlands surrendered New Amsterdam to England (24) in 1664; and on the same day (24) in 1493 Columbus set out on his second expedition to the New World.

It’s doubtful if anyone involved in the first airplane flight in Europe (13) in 1906 would have realised how advanced and commonplace flight between countries would become. A year earlier aviator, inventor, film producer and eccentric millionaire Howard Hughes was born (24). Indeed, this was only fifty-five years after the first airship was displayed (24), and on the same day in 1908 the first Ford Model-T was built. Forty years later, the Honda Motor Company was founded (24). Forty-six years after that, the Ulysses spacecraft passed the sun’s south-pole (13). Such is progress.

Advances in technology haven’t always gone hand-in-hand with advances in human relationships. In 1871 Brazil passed a law freeing future children of slaves (28), yet there are thousands of children used as slave labour round the globe, not only in South America. Children’s author Dr Seuss died in 1991 (24) a year before Roald Dahl - who was born (13) in 1916 – the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which has just been released starring Johnny Depp; in 1857 Milton S Hershey was born and became a chocolate entrepreneur and founded the Hershey Chocolate Company (13). In 1936 children’s entertainer Jim Henson was born; he was the creator of The Muppets (24) – a surreal menagerie of creatures!

 

Author of the famous novel about whales and whaling, Moby Dick, Herman Melville died (28) in 1891; and on the same day animal-rights activist and one-time sex-goddess actress Brigitte Bardot was born in 1934, ten years later to the day as that heart-throb Marcello Mastroianni.

As mentioned before, history is riddled with battles. The Battle of Actium during the Roman Civil War in 31 BC saw the defeat by Octavian of Mark Antony and Cleopatra (2). Eleven days later in 1759 British General James Wolfe beat the French on the Plains of Abraham and died the same day (13). Amazingly, some modern-day schoolchildren thought the Battle of Britain referred to the fight of Helm’s Deep from The Lord of the Rings. In 1973 that book’s author, J.R.R. Tolkien died (2).

History and Time are fascinating subjects. Two favourite plays by J B Priestley are Time and the Conways and An Inspector Calls. Both shift time for the audience to reveal inner truths and strong messages. Priestley was born (13) in 1894 and his output was varied and prodigious.