The Place For My Writers Notes

Original Posting 9 Sept 2011

I can tell from the excitement in your eye that you're thrilled to see step number four! Yes, having battled your way through thinking about character traits that you like and dislike, the kind of story that you enjoy, trying to answer a whole list of questions about your story, and then thinking about the characters, now, at last... It's time to figure out the plot. Something that gets readers interested early, keeps them involved, and pays off at the end.

Writer's Digest, April 1992, pages 40 to 43 have the article by Jack Bickham. All about plot, or structural planning, that creates a desired emotional response in the reader.

So what is plotting? Well, first of all, Jack wants us to understand that the plot is not a rigid structural framework, where you just fill in the blanks. It's dynamic. "It's a way of structuring your work in order to hook readers early, keep them involved then guessing throughout, and let them finish with a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment. Plot is never the same in any two stories. It's a process, not a format."

You actually already started working on plot. After all, when you looked at character roles, you started making decisions about the story line -- locale, the problem, the action, and the outcome. Any research you did also helped to define the action in your story. You've already thought a little about the length of the story, the pace, the mix of action, dialogue, and mood. Those are all plot related.

Another thing that you've already started to think about is what you want the reader to worry about. One reader worry has to be the strongest -- that is the dominant story question. And the most important thing for planning the plot is making sure you know clearly and precisely what the story question is. So what is a story question? Almost anything, but it has to be vital to the happiness of your viewpoint character. Will he get a better job, can he climb the mountain, will they ever stop fighting, who killed Adam Jones, will Marcel ever find happiness again, what is behind the locked door, what makes this strange blue light flash across the lake? Any of these could be your story question.

Your story question has to be something that can be answered. You need a specific story question that you're going to establish early in the story, and you need a clear answer to the story question that will be revealed in the outcome for your main characters. Your opening introduces the character and setting and the story question. Your climax answers the story question.

You should be able to write down your story question and your story answer on a sheet of paper. Okay, some of you will use your computer, tablet, or something else. But any way you look at it, stop now and write down your story question and your story answer. Don't be surprised if your first effort is vague and you have to try again. Remember, a vivid, clear story question helps you build your plot. Also, the story ending depends on a clear answer -- yes or no, a solution to the puzzle, a change in mood or tone. Make it as clear and precise as you can.

So now you have your beginning -- your story question -- and your ending -- your story answer. How do you connect them?

This my friend is the very heart of plotting. And it all revolves around a sequence of scenes and sequels. So what are scenes and what are sequels? I'm glad you asked!

Scenes are simply story actions portrayed as if on stage (in a movie, on TV...). They are immediate, concrete, and portray conflicts.

Sequels on the other hand, let the reader know how your viewpoint character reacted to the scene. Feelings, thoughts, plans about what to do next... If scenes are action, sequels are reactions.

So, plot is a sequence of scene, sequel, scene, sequel... Connecting the opening that introduced story question to the climax that provides the story answer. Now, in some cases the jump from scene A to scene B is so obvious and tight that the writer puts in only the smallest sequel or even skips it. In other stories, the scenes maybe relatively minor, with long, involved sequels.

The kind of story you're planning helps you determine the right balance between scenes and sequels. Adventure story, strong conflict, clear specific goal -- dramatic scenes with very little sequel, maybe. And you have a fast-moving story with lots of action. Another story might make the change in the character's feelings and thoughts the focus, and spend much more time on sequels.

So how do you structure a scene? Well, scenes center on an immediate goal or problem that the viewpoint character wants to achieve right now -- on his or her way to the ultimate answer. Like the story question and answer, the scene question needs to be shown quickly and clearly to the readers, so that they can worry about it. Then, let the main character struggle to achieve that in this scene. And at the end of the scene, there is an answer. However, the answers at the end of scenes are almost always bad news for the viewpoint character. You want to build the tension, so things just get worse for your viewpoint character. Disasters, new roadblocks, all kinds of problems.

Now when the viewpoint character hits that disappointment, you normally want to give them time to react emotionally, think about what just happened, and come up with a new plan. Emotion, thought, decision -- ETD?

Even though you may decide not to actually describe every step of the way in your story, in your planning, it can be very helpful to go ahead and include each and every step. So for each scene, write down:

1. The name of the viewpoint character
2. The goal -- in 10 words or less, what does the character wants to achieve in this scene?
3. The problem: often another character. Identify the character or problem in the way in this scene.
4. Conflict: briefly, sketch in how the conflict will be presented dramatically
5. Disaster: in 10 words or less, describe the end of the scene -- what is the unanticipated setback that your character experiences at the end of this scene

Next, write the sequel that goes with that scene. Three parts:

1. Briefly describe the emotions your character feels after the unanticipated setback.
2. Briefly describe what the character thinks -- review, analyze, plan -- next.
3. What does the character logically decide to do next? (This introduces the next scene!)

Repeat this, making a chain of scene and sequel pairs that reaches from the story question to the story answer. Feel free to adjust, change, and modify -- this is a plan, and plans change.

Consider the story length. Short stories won't have as many scenes and sequels, novels will have quite a few. Also, consider the type of story, market, and how quickly or slowly you want the story to read. You may want to cut out some scenes or add some. You may want to consider the balance between your scenes and sequels. The kind of characters and the kind of story also can influence where you put your effort. But if you've got the scene and sequel chain built, deciding how to transform that into writing is easier.

Jack ends his article with a list of questions to help you check your plot. Here they are:

1. Do you have a clear story question?
2. Does the ending answer that question?
3. Does every scene relate somehow to that story question?
4. Do the scenes follow each other in a logical way?
5. Does every sequel relate in feeling and thought to the scene ahead of it?
6. Does each sequel lead logically to the next scene?
7. Are there scenes that can be trimmed or eliminated without hurting the story?
8. Are there sequels that can be trimmed or eliminated without hurting the story?
9. Does each scene have a clear goal driving the conflict?
10. Does each scene end badly for the viewpoint character?
11. Are the feelings and thoughts of the character in each sequel believable?
12. Is there any scene or sequel that I have forgotten to include?

Take the time now to look over your plan. Make sure that it's as solid as you can make it. And then... Step five! The first draft! Writing at last? No, you've been writing in every step. But now you can let the words flow...

After, that is, you've actually gone through and done the plotting. Story question, story answer, scenes and sequels... Get that skeleton in order.

original posting: Thu, 29 Apr 1993 18:32:01 JST

Please note that this is a summary of what I consider the important parts of Bickham's book. It does not reflect all the material in his book (you really should read it), nor does it contain a lot of my normal fascinating prose stylistics. Having said that - hope it gives you a few clues about a reasonably good craft book...

Scene & Structure
Jack M. Bickham
Writer's Digest Books, 1993

One point to make clear at the beginning is that Bickham is NOT prescribing the form of presentation. You should use your best dialogue, description, and other tools to drape and form the selected scene. All that he is describing is the bare bone structure that underlies your writing. How you doll it up is left to your discretion - whether you like scenic description, stream-of-consciousness inwardness, flashback fantasies, or some other way of covering the structure is your choice. He is definitely NOT providing a canned plot for you to work with, although you might use his tools to extract such a plot from your favorite book or two...

The main structural component described is the sequence of scene and sequel.

A scene starts with the goal of a viewpoint character, proceeds through conflict, and ends in tactical disaster for the viewpoint character. The reader responds to the goal by forming a scene question, which should be specific, definite, have an immediate goal and clear connection to the overall plot goal, and have a simple yes/no answer.

A scene consists of moment-by-moment action constructed using stimulus (internalization) response pieces. Stimulus and response must be visible, usually dialogue or action, while internalization allows the thoughts of the viewpoint character to be explained.

The tactical disaster ending a scene should be an unanticipated but logical development that answers the scene question, relates to the conflict, and sets the character back. The three possible endings are no (simple failure); yes, but... (conditional success - usually setting up a dilemma); and no, plus... (failure, plus new problems).

While scenes may be linked with a transition (simple change in time, place, viewpoint), the full element needed is a sequel, containing emotional response, thought, decision, and new action. In a sense, the scene acts as stimulus, which must be followed by sequel acting as response. If a sequel must be skipped (due to time pressure, etc.), there should be a later "flashback" sequel, completing the sequence for the reader.

A story (basically novel) begins with a significant change that threatens the main character's self-concept. This, in turn, causes the character to form an intention or story goal in response, which provides the reader with a story question. The end of the story occurs when the story question is answered. The story focus must be on material that relates to the story question.

To plan a story -

1. identify the main character's self-concept
2. pick a significant event that threatens that self-concept
3. determine the moment of change that you will start with
4. lay out the intentions/goals the character will attempt to use to fix
5. lay out a plan of action for the character to try
6. determine when/where/how to answer the story question

Bickham suggests the following major ways to structure the scene/sequel sequences:

1. scenes move main character further and further from quick attainment of goal
2. scenes develop series of new and unexpected troubles, although not obviously related
3. scenes require character to handle unrelated problem before returning to original action line
4. interleaved subplots
5. plot assumption puts deadline (ticking clock) into action
6. plot arranged so that options dwindle
7. plot arranged so that complications and developments previously hidden are revealed

One point should be made clear - a scene/sequel sequence is NOT a chapter. Bickham points out that "chapter breaks" are a relic of earlier publishing (when novels were published as serials), and you should never use a chapter break as a transition. Place chapter breaks at the moment of disaster ending a scene, in the middle of conflict, or some other point that keeps the reader reading. Bickham suggests that most chapters have more than one scene.

(my gloss - remember 1000 nights and a night and make each chapter break a cliff-hanger!)

The book also contains a large amount of material dealing with problems in handling scenes, variations you might want to try, and other fine points. There are plenty of exercises, annotated examples, and so forth to make this a useful study book.

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Strategy Worksheet
    Main character's self-concept
    Significant event that threatens self-concept
    Moment of Change to start with
    Intentions/Goals to fix
    Plan of Action
    When/Where/How answer story question
    Scene Planning -
        Move further and further from quick path to goal
        New and unexpected troubles
        Unrelated problem that must be solved first
        interleaved subplots
        deadline (ticking clock)
        dwindling options
        hidden complications/developments revealed
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Scene/Sequel Worksheet
Scene (consists of Stimulus - Internalization - Response)
    Goal:
    Conflict:
       Who?
       Where?
       How long?
       Twists (4+):
    Disaster (No!, Yes, but..., No, plus)
Transition
Sequel
    Emotion (description, example, discussion)
    Thoughts (review, analysis, planning)
    Decision
    New Action
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