Chapter One

What Is Plot?

This is an example of what plot is not: “The king dies. The queen dies.”

This is an example of what plot is: “The king dies, and then the queen dies of grief.”1This example comes from novelist E.M. Forster.

What distinguishes the first example from the second? Sure, the first example tells the reader what happens and carries a certain dramatic flair because it involves death. It has dramatic action (the death) but no character emotional development and no thematic significance. Furthermore, “The king dies. The queen dies,” is episodic—there is no linkage between the two events, no cause and effect.

The second example demonstrates plot. That the queen dies from her grief over the king’s death signifies character emotional development. We can extract from this the thematic significance: Love kills. Lastly, the two events demonstrate cause and effect, because they are linked by causality. In other words, the king’s death is the cause, and the queen’s grief—and ultimately her death—is the effect.

These examples beautifully illustrate the following definition of plot:

Sifting Through the Layers

This definition is complicated. Let’s study each layer of the definition, signified by the capitalized words.

Scenes

We cover scene in depth in Part Two of this book with the help of the Scene Tracker template. For now, simply appreciate that plot comes alive in the moment-by-moment action shown in scene, not in summary.

Cause and Effect

“Cause and effect” means that each scene comes directly out of the scene that came before it. In other words, one scene causes the next scene. This creates a satisfying story for readers, because each scene is organic: From the seeds you plant in the first scene, the next scene emerges.

Chapter six discusses cause and effect in depth.

Dramatic Action

The dramatic meaning comes from the action scenes, which are scenes that are played out moment by moment on the page through action and dialogue. Drama is created when the reader is uncertain about the outcome of a scene and the answer to the dramatic question—will or won’t the character succeed?

Chapter eight provides a plan for the dramatic action of your piece.

Tension and Conflict

Tension is present in any scene in which the protagonist is not in control. An outside force preventing her from moving forward creates conflict. Scenes with conflict, tension, suspense, and curiosity are dramatic and compel a reader to turn the pages faster.

Chapter nine gives you a visual idea of how tension and conflict affect the overall plot of your story.

Character Emotional Development

Emotional meaning always comes from your characters. Character emotional development shows the effect the dramatic action has on the character over time throughout the story.

Chapter twelve demonstrates how character emotional development interweaves with the dramatic action.

Thematic Significance

The thematic significance ties your entire story together. It is the reason you wrote your story, or what you hope to prove by writing your story.

If you are one of the lucky ones, you know the theme of your piece. You have already begun developing the thematic significance through the use of just the right details.

If the thematic significance of your story eludes you for now, keep track of themes that come to you as you write. In this way you can expand and exploit these themes when you discover the overall thematic significance of your story.

Chapter thirteen gives you techniques to explore thematic significance.

Plot Redefined

Another way to view plot is to consider how the dramatic action changes or transforms the protagonist’s character emotional development at depth, over time, in a thematically meaningful way. Like the first definition, this definition highlights the three primary plot threads—dramatic action, character emotional development, and thematic significance—that make up the three core dynamics of plot in every great story. This definition stresses an actual character change or transformation, while the first definition includes the all-important aspect of cause and effect.

Other Layers of Plot

Beyond the primary layers of plot we just reviewed, you can also plot out other aspects of your story: the setting, the history, the politics, the weather, the romance, and the mystery and suspense. However, in this book, we will only concern ourselves with the layers we just outlined; you are free to explore the others when you conceptualize your plot.

Relax. We are getting ahead of ourselves here. Breathe. Remember: The harder you try to get this, the harder it is for the information to penetrate your brain. Stand up. Shake out your hands. Stretch your neck by rotating your head slowly from side to side. Feel better? Let’s proceed.