Five Plot Elements from “The Plot Thickens”

One type of plot structure is the theory that there are five important elements necessary to build a story.  Each must happen for the story to succeed, and they must happen in the order given.

1. Exposition.  This is the beginning of the story, often the first chapter, when the main character is introduced.  The reader relates to him through small details – his quest to find the perfect birthday gift for his daughter, the way he watches another family at the mall and wishes his own family was complete.  Whatever tool you use to establish the reader’s connection, his sympathy with the character, it must be done quickly, before he loses interest.  Setting is also introduced at this point, anchoring the reader in the location, time period, flavor and mood of the story.  Is it a western?  Set in the American nineteenth century or modern times?  Is it a comedy?  A murder mystery?  Clue in your reader so he can quickly establish himself in the story.  The initial conflict is also introduced at the beginning.  The storm is headed toward the small boat with no land in sight.  The patriarch of the family has died, pitting son against son.  Show the stakes involved in your character’s life.  This is where he moves from the ordinary world and receives the call to action.

2. Rising action.  This is the bulk of the story.  Your character is forced to take action.  His decisions, influenced by narrower and narrower events, lead him deeper along the path he doesn’t want to take.  Tensions increase, and conflict and disaster await at every turn he takes.

3. Climax.  This is it.  The big, black moment, the event he’s been pushed toward since the beginning.  This is the high point of the story, the main danger.  Your antagonist must face his worst fears, both internal and external, and your reader is anticipating disaster and wondering how the hero will survive.

4. Falling action.  This is a relatively short sequence in the story.  Here, the reader finds out the results of the antagonist’s decisions.  We discover if he won or lost and the repercussions of his actions.

5. Resolution.  All the conflicts are resolved, loose ends tied up and the correct ending revealed.  There’s nothing more to do but write “the end.”

The five elements condenses the plot into your elevator pitch.  Your character, his conflict, danger, results and resolution is the basis of all you need for your query letter, twenty-five words or less pitch and synopsis to those in your life who want to know what you’re working on.

Expand on these elements, adding characteristics, details, decisions and consequences to give you a healthy outline to write against.

Take care,

Cheryl

Copywriters are constantly challenged to set pricing for their work.  Some set hourly rates.  Others bid by the job.  I estimate how much time a job should take and set a by-the-job bid, because I feel it’s the most fair price for my customers.  I’m a slow writer, and I don’t see why my customers should have to pay for my slowness when they could find someone faster.  However, I don’t discount myself too much either.  While a customer might find someone faster, they aren’t going to find anyone who puts as much thought or care into their project as I do. 

I liken copywriting to painting a picture.  It may only take a certain number of hours to accomplish a task, but it has taken years to learn and develop the skills to write copy that’s effective.  And those years of practice benefit my customers when I choose the words to reach their audience.  When an artist friend of mine is asked how long it takes him to paint a picture (usually by people trying to figure out if he’s getting paid too much for his work) he replies, “Twenty three years and two weeks.”  I know exactly what he means.

In the world of non-fiction or article writing, your pay is determined by some one else.  There are editors worth working for at a lesser rate.  The one who makes you look better than you are.  The one who teaches you how to get better at what you do.  – It’s amazing when someone is willing to pay you for your work while you’re learning how to do it better.  Other editors demand perfection on the first glance.  They pay better, and they push you hard, but if you aren’t near their level of the ideal writer, they aren’t going to give you the time of day, and you’ll never learn to be a better writer from them.  Both kinds of editors are great to work with.  You just have to appreciate their benefits, and always strive to improve.

Fiction is far trickier.  I’ve seen some pretty crappy writing make it into print and result in a paycheck.  I’ve also seen some great writing meet one rejection after another.   In fiction, it’s always hard to tell what is going to sell.  Fiction writers can type away for hundreds of hours without any way of knowing if it’s going to pay.  Some of them do it for the love of writing.  Others hope that they’ll “make it big someday.” 

For those who write fiction without the promise of money, there is a different payoff.  There’s great satisfaction in a piece that comes together just right.  There is the joy of the journey that each story brings to you.  There is the camaraderie of those who write along side of you.  Dare I say it’s priceless?  It is.

Enjoy your week.  Find time for your writing.  It all pays in its own way.

All the best,

Mary

As you can tell, Cheryl and I love to play off of each other’s ideas.  Cheryl does it more than I do, because in her motherly way, she feels compelled to fix my stuff.  I’m okay with that.  In fact, I think it’s fun to see what she does.

We have fun reading what the other one writes.  Cheryl is always factual.  I often spout my opinion.  It works.

In this tradition, we have written a book together.  A book about writing.  Plotting, specifically.  In its last stages of production, it should be available for downloading sometime in the very near future. 

So, now is the time to let us know what you think should be included in a book about plotting.  We are always open to suggestions, and we value your opinions – even if it delays the debut of our book a bit.  We want to give our readers something in which they are genuinely interested.

Time is of the essence!  Tell us what you think is important to know, what you wish someone had told you “way back when,” or what you may wonder about.

All the best,

Mary