hey guys..any advice on how to go about truning an idea into a really good plot? any advice would be appreciated..thanks
This is something that's going to be a little different for everyone. Would you be okay with posting your idea here, so I can see how you might go about expanding it? If not, I could always just write what I generally do with my ideas.
Please read What is Plot Creation and Development? Begin by understanding the difference between plot and storyline. A plot is a combination of an actor, a goal or objective, a motivation, and an opposition. A storyline is a chronlogicaql sequence of events. Plot is what drives a storyline. Plot is also where tension and suspense are developed.
My advice: 1. So you have an idea, write it down. 2. Keep thinking about it for a few weeks, months if need be. Write down every detail that comes into your head, characters, setting, bits of plots/subplots, phrases. Don't worry about being chronological or about making any sense, just get the ideas down, even if you think they're rubbish. 3. When you've completely exhausted your stock of ideas, start thinking about ways to thread your ideas together. Have as many goes as you need, try and think of different ways to weave your plot and sub plot ideas together. Of course, you can add more ideas in at this stage if you think of them. 4. Once you've got a good plot line worked out (and don't rush that part) you can start working out your chapter plan. Decide on the length of your chapters (I aim for an average length of around 2600 words, but a lot more or a reasonable amount less is quite acceptable). This will require a bit of experience of your own writing, but now you need to work out where to make your chapter breaks, and then each chapter becomes a sort of mini-story, so you need to try and plan for there to be an beginning, middle and end (but to be honest, if you've written a bit before then that will probably come naturally to you as you write). 5. Start writing the actually prose of the story! Some general tips: - Try and spread your explanation of characters and settings throughout the novel - Refer at all times to your plan, because then you will know exactly what's happening in the plot, but won't necessarily make it too obvious for the reader early on, adding suspense - Finally, always be willing to make changes as you write. If you think of a major change to the plot that you think will improve your novel, change it, don't be afraid of going back on what you'd originally planned
