1. miss sunhine

    miss sunhine New Member

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    Anyone read/write Crime Novels?

    Discussion in 'Plot Development' started by miss sunhine, Jan 27, 2012.

    Hi,
    Anyone whose read my previous posts know i am a young, inexperienced writer but would like to be an Author one day. I've struggled for a while coming up with an idea i really like and i thought this up like half an hour ago and got out of bed to type it up. So forgive me if it's confusing i haven't worked it out myself yet and i know it's hard to tell a book by only reading the plot up it's like honest opinions:

    A woman called Katie who lives in the city is called back to the small village were she grew up due to the sudden suicide of her father. They were never close but she's not surprised he left his ruined old farm to her as she was his only relative, and he sent her away when she was 18.
    Not only does she have to return to a place she'd put behind her and a house that holds unpleasant memories for her, but also something she did in her youth that has caused her great guilt.
    Before she left very suddenly, she was engaged to the Vicar's son, Peter, and due to his religion they weren't going to have sex until after they were married.
    But she had an affair with her best friends husband and fell pregnant, obviously he'd know it wasn't his child and she'd lose him. Appalled by her behaviour her father encouraged her to leave which she did and set up a new life for herself and her son. (who is the son of her best friend's husband). She has always regretted her actions and never stopped loving Peter, but upon her return she discovers Peter needed a shoulder to cry on when she vanished and turned to her best friend. Shortly after her best friend's husband died. She and Peter were married. Peter clearly hasn't gotten over the hurt, and she doesn't get the welcoming from her friend she thought whose paranoia is understandable.
    The farm house is a mess and when going through her father's old papers she discovers something that could suggest he was murdered. Something that spreads back into her youth, but at the time she paid little attention too.
    The only people her father ever knew live in this village, are people she knew growing up, and even though her father was a drunk and an unpopular man. Who and why would anyone kill him?
    The need for answers forces her to reconcile her relationship with her best friend.
    At the same time her son is on holiday from school and coming to join her at the village. How can she stop Peter finding out she left all those years ago because she was pregnant? Also how can she hide who the true identity of who her son's father is from the friend she never wanted to leave behind? The son who looks so much like his real father.
    As her personal problems begin to heat up, her memories swarm around her, her father's killer appears to have a grudge against her as well, or something she knows but has forgotten.

    So i'm guessing it's a Crime really but not a traditional whodunit, i wanted to know what you think of the idea and how original it is.

    Thanks for reading
    x
     
  2. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    A story concept means nothing. I can tell you now, it has all been done before. What matters is how you write it, the characterization, the flow, the imagery, all of it.

    There's no benefit in asking what other people think of the concept! They'll either say,"Sounds great," or, "it sounds like a ripoff of..."

    If the idea stirs you, write it. Then ask people what they think of the final story. After they tell you what they don't like about it, revise it, usually several times, until you're happy with it or until you throw up your hands and say the hell with it.

    Please read What is Plot Creation and Development?
     
  3. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    yup!... all of that...
     
  4. miss sunhine

    miss sunhine New Member

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    I know, but i wasn't asking if it would be a good book or get published i was merely asking for opinions on my plot idea, and it is important. You can get an idea of a story from the plot and what it'll be like, so that's all i was asking for.
     
  5. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    You asked what we thought of the idea, and how original it is.

    Those are irrelevent questions, and you should forget about them. A story idea is not the story. It is a starting point. Whether it is good or not comes from the quality of the writing.

    As for originality, forget that too. Every significant story has been told before, in some form or another. Originality comes in how you tell it.

    Stop asking for approval to go ahead with the story. You don't need permission, and you don't need your ego stroked. You need to develop the confidence to dive into the real work, writing it, without worrying whether the idea is good enough.

    Good stories can come from the most boring-sounding premises, and the greatest sounding premise will flop like a wounded carp if the writer cannot do it justice.
     
  6. Tesoro

    Tesoro Contributor Contributor

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    I think you shouldn't worry so much about what other people think, write the story you want to write. Everybody will tell you different things about it, so just trust your instinct and write.
     
  7. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    no, you can't!

    ditto cog, again, miss s... the point we're making is that even the best plot idea ever can be an unreadable mess of a flop in the hands of a poor writer, while even the worst one can be a bestselling, award-winning, literary success in the hands of a really good writer...
     

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