What Is Plot Creation and Development?

[Cogito]

It seems the majority of threads begun here lately are of the form:

Here's my idea for a story, what do you think of it?

My answer to most of these is the same. It doesn't matter what the storyline is. It may sound so familiar you want to groan and say, "Oh, not another one!" It may sound so outlandish and improbable that you think to yourself, "You have got to be kidding!"

What matters is how you write it. Are the characters well developed? Is the dialogue believable and interesting? Is the description well balanced with the action?

These are not the kinds of questions you can answer from a plot summary.

So why do we have this forum at all?

First of all, let's distinguish between the theme, the storyline, and the plot.

The theme is a concept that sums up the point of the story. Typical themes are:
Coming of age
The value of friendship
The value of integrity
Lessons of life
Overcoming overwhelming obstacles
Your relationship with God

The storyline consists of the sequence of events. What happened first, and to whom? What events led to other events, and what events merely happen to coincide.

The plot is the force that moves the story along. It consists of actors, environment, conflict, and resolution. Every plot has a conflict that defines it. A large work, such as a novel, may have many subplots wound around a central plot, each of which has its own conflict.

Conflicts may be:
Man vs. man (in the broadest sense - sentient being vs, sentient being)
Man vs. himself (inner dilemnas, moral conficts, warring motivations, etc)
Man vs. God (includes man vs. nature, man vs. natural obstacles)

Various people draw up somewhat different lists of the types of conflict, but this covers the general range.

The plot develops from when you first introduce the elements of the conflict, up to the climax where the conflict reaches a critical point, and thence to the resolution. The resolution may be an outright victory, but more often it's some manner of compromise, whether a satisfactory one or not.

So developing a plot is a matter of identifying/defining the conflicts that comprise the plot, and deciding how they interact. Subplots may, either in building toward their climax, or in their resolution, complicate the central conflict.

Nor do all the plots need to be resolved by the end of the story. Some loose ends bring a more realistic feel to a story, although you should have some manner of resolution for your central conflict, lest your story feel "unfinished."

So try to think in these terms rather than focusing on whether the storyline is appealing in and of itself.

[Milady]

Great post, Cog. We do get a lot of threads like that. I'll even admit to creating some of them, though usually I'm trying to get assistance on a nut or bolt of the plot.

[Crazy Ivan]

Thank you. We've had a flood of these lately. Hopefully this will get things more back on track.

[Samswriting]

I came to look at this because of a post in the "general" area :-) wonderful summarized :-) And of course everyone checks the sticky's at the top of each area :-)

[B-Gas]

Well, now we have somewhere to direct people who post 'here's my idea' posts to. Just stab them with

[+URL="http://www.writingforums.org/showthread.php?t=10677"]go here[/URL]

after removing the '+'. That should give them some direction.

[Cogito]

I removed or moved several posts that strayed off topic (including a couple of my own responses - oops!). Please limit responses to the distinctions between theme, plot, and storyline.

This is a stickied thread because it deals with a recurring source of confusion. I'd rather not have to close it in order to keep it informational.

[AnonyMouse]

I don't quite follow on the difference between "plot" and "storyline." Is a storyline a collection of plots and sub-plots or are they two completely different things?

For example:
Imagine there's a novel about a soldier named Jim who goes off to war. While fighting in the war, he falls in love. Let's assume Jim's love life is a sub-plot and the war (his conflict with the enemy) is the major plot. In this case, would the storyline be a combination of all these things or do I have the wrong idea altogether?

[Cogito]

A storyline is a sequence of events. A storyline can exist in the absence of plots, which can sometimes mean that "It has no plot" is a valid criticism. Ususally, though, "It has no plot is hyperbole."

A plot is defined by the tension between a character attempting to achieve a goal and the resistance he or she faces from conflicts or obstacles. It is analagous to Newton's Law, F-ma. In other words, the imbalance between the force driving a character toward and away from a goal result in movement of the plot. A plot has an actor, a rising action, a climax, a falling action, and a conclusion.

Several plots can overlap, seeming to be a single plot. However you can separate out the individual conflicts, and see that not all elements of the goal are necessarily achieved at the same time, if at all.

A storyline tells you what happened. Plots tell you how and why.

[psyence53]

Yes, I've always struggled to separate plot from storyline.
Could storyline be described as SEQUENCE of events, in comparison to plot being the CONTENT and FACTORS (etc) of events?

(This is a helpful thread btw, Cogito, from the few posts I have read of yours, you're awesome! Haha. )

[Smithy]

So, does this mean we shouldn't post Synopsise for feedback?