Today we start looking at plotting. First, as far as I can tell there is no right way to plot, no wrong way either. I have writing friends, successful authors who have the beginning of the story in their heads, the end of the story, some even to the final scene, and nothing in between. I also know some very successful authors who have no idea when they sit down at the computer what they are going to write. There are a whole lot of URL’s that talk about the perfect way to plot, there are computer programs that do the plotting for you, and there are authors like me that have to plot the whole story out before I can do the first bit of composing.
So whether you want to use the snowflake idea, the story arc, sticky notes, time lines, there is no right way to plot. I started this blog because I wanted to share what I’ve learned in this business as a midlist author. And, yes, I’ll address that one of these days as well. What I learned is that what works for you is what you should use.
So, how do you know what will work. You have to give a couple of ideas a try. Try the snowflake idea, learn about the story arc, try plotting as you write. Write a scene. Can it go anywhere? The basics of plotting is showing a story. (Note I didn’t say tell a story) You don’t want to tell a story, you want to show one. You have real characters, with real motivation, and goals, so you are going to show me their story, scene by scene from the beginning to the end. That’s the plot. How you do it, is simple. What works best for you. Tomorrow, I’ll tell you how I found my plotting method and how it works for me. This doesn’t mean you can’t use it, because it may not work for you. It may be the perfect method for you. Try it and see.
Remember this blog is about what I’ve learned, not what works for everyone.
Allison Knight
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