I'm currently working on a fantasy story, and I'm having trouble getting ideas for a main plot. I already have a subplot: One of the main characters, Kime (a fox/human), wants to find out why her supposed father sold her into slavery when she was a little girl. Ryuka, a fellow slave and also a foxkin, promises he'll find a way for her to see him. Only thing is, Kime's father is the king. The other two main characters are Leona (a cat/human who runs a martial arts school while trying to stay hidden from her family), and Greg (a wolf/human who gets himself into trouble constantly and is a thief). Yeah, I know it sounds cliche. I'm just wondering if I would able to take the sub-plot and add to it so that a main plot might develop from it.
When I start a story I usually start with generic A to B points. Ok, so we have to fox-people slaves, one of whom promises the other that'll he'll help her find her father. Question to ask that may help: Where is her father? Does the boy know who he is? Does the girl? Do they know how to find him? Does he really know where she is or is she mistaken? How do they plan to escape wherever they are (I doubt the slave master will let them leave just for a visit)? Keep asking these questions as you go from one point to the next in the plot and eventually you'll have something workable. From there tweak and twist to your plot's delight.
Thank you for the advice! I haven't tried that too often, but I'll defenitely see where it takes the story!
Perhaps writing the sub and main plot as parallel story lines. Then, when your ready, bring them together.
I'm not sure I'd call it a story if it doesn't have a main plot. I might call it a premise, or an idea. Why can't you just use the sub-plot as the plot? It seems reasonably big.
You have storylines, but not really plots. There are suggestions of potential conflicts in what you've pointed out, but you need to more clearly identify conflicts/obstacles. A plot consists of actors, a goal, and conflicts/obstacles which act t prevent the actors from achieving the goal. The struggle to prevail over the conflict to reach the goal is what defines a plot. The main plot is the conflict that characterizes the story. Subplots may directly affect characters' progress toward the main goal, or act as a distraction. Overcoming obstacles, or failing to overcome them, often results in character development, resulting either in a stronger character, or with an additional internal struggle. A storyline is merely a sequence of events. Plot, on the other hand, drives the story by compelling action and growth from characters. Try using these principles to see if they help you build your story.
