The Place For My Writers Notes

Original Posting 16 October 2007

Complicating Plot and Structure (19)

Wandering through the book Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell, we find our way to chapter 8 where Bell talks about complex plots. Straightforward fast plots are easy enough, but how do you make it a little bit more complicated. Readers remember little bit more complex plots, but only if they seem simple. That's a contradiction you might want to keep them in mind.

The first suggestion about making memorable complex plots is to think about theme. This is a value or lessen or insight -- a new way of seeing things -- that you want the reader to take away from your story. One way to help clarify it in your own mind is to write it down in one line or sentence. You don't want to force your story to fit the theme, you want your characters and their struggle to create a theme.

The second suggestion is subplots. Add in those extra strands and themes, weave them in so that they feel organic, and make sure that they add to the overall effect. Sometimes these are the personal or interior reflections of the overall theme.

The third suggestion is to think about symbols and motifs. This is tricky because it can be overdone so easily, but done carefully and lightly these can add quite a bit. Symbols represent something else, while motifs are repeated images or phrases. These often come out of the sensory detail that you write into the scenes.

The fourth suggestion has to do with long novels. Especially with the current trend towards thick bricks of books, you may be dealing with a sweep of time and space that is just plain bigger than old-time novelists had to deal with. Bell suggests breaking it into shorter pieces and dealing with each one of them using the LOCK and three act structure.

Parallel plots. Simply two or more plot lines running in parallel. One of the nice things about these is making each plot complete and having a suspense build each time you switch to the other plot.

Structure and style games include nonlinear stories of various kinds. One of the keys to making these work is remembering that the reader wants to know what happened. One way or another, they want a coherent story. Presenting things in a nonlinear way -- the readers will try to fit it into a coherent narrative. Make sure that at the end of your novel they have the pieces they need.

Okay. This chapter is sketchy, since frankly this is the advanced piece. Still, Bell provides several interesting exercises. First, take a piece of paper (or a word table) with three columns. In the first column, list rich or outstanding details from your scenes. In the middle column, list the main characters. And in the last column, list the major settings. Then look across the table for connections between the columns. Pick two or three connections that really stand out, and consider how you might emphasize these in your novel as motifs or symbols.

Second, figure out what you want the reader to learn from your novel. Write it down in one sentence. Then consider ways to bring this out naturally. Avoid the old-fashioned "and the moral of the story is . . ." but make sure there are natural places to see this.

Third, relax and see what images you think of for your novel. You might try playing some music that stirs you, and just let it wash across your mind. Jot down the images and scenes that float up while you're doing this. Repeat this occasionally while writing and revising your novel. You may be surprised at what your subconscious wants to put into the novel.

So that's the chapter on complex plots. Next we'll take a look at character arcs.

Of course, in the meantime, write!