1. Naia

    Naia New Member

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    I created a wonderful universe in my head, but I can't come up with a plot!

    Discussion in 'Plot Development' started by Naia, Jun 17, 2017.

    Alright, I'll try to sum up what I have so far the best that I can.
    So, it's set about 100(ish?) years in the future. A lot of things are still the same, except massive radiation pockets bubble beneath the Earth's surface, and every so often, one of them pops, resulting in massive explosions and radiation exposure.
    I already have a few characters.
    The main character is Joop. He lives with his father, but when a radiation pocket near their home erupts, they have to evacuate.
    I don't exactly know what happens next. Joop meets the rest of the characters I designed, but I don't know how. I don't know the climax, or the ending, or anything.
    Help please? :)
     
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  2. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    How would radiation bubble?
     
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  3. Naia

    Naia New Member

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    OK, I haven't exactly gotten everything figured out yet, my dude, and I was just trying to write it down quickly in the easiest way possible so I could get some help.
     
  4. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    I hear you, my dudette. Not quite sure how we can help without anything beyond the nature of the calamity to go on. Your characters are on the run already, so I would have them meander onto the next town or enclave and meet one of the other characters you've come up with. Throw them into a jackpot and see what happens. Whatever you've come up with in your head is fairly useless without a story to hold everything together. What do your characters want? What are the stakes? Who is standing in their way? What do you want to write about?

    We can't answer any of that for you.
     
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  5. izzybot

    izzybot (unspecified) Contributor

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    I can't say I have this problem, but I guess I'd think about what happens after they evacuation. Where do they evacuate to? Is the world adequately set up to house refugees, or are there severe overcrowding issues in the areas where it's safe to live? How is this going to complicate your characters' lives? That's something to start with, but @Homer Potvin has the best questions when it comes to what you actually want to write about - and how what your characters want and what will obstruct that figures in.

    If you just want to explore this universe you've created, I'd try to construct a plot that'll showcase it as much as possible. Maybe your cast's goal is to get to the bottom of the radiation bubble thing (?) and find a way to stop it from happening, or to solve the overcrowding issues by allocating resources better (sounds like a dystopian thing; it's always a good time to overthrow a corrupt fictional government!).
     
  6. Cave Troll

    Cave Troll It's Coffee O'clock everywhere. Contributor

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    "In other news, stock in lead lined panties is gaining steam." :supergrin:

    Well that is quite the pickle of a jam you have there, sirette.
    Worry about the ending when you get that far, it really doesn't
    matter at the moment. Sounds like you are have a case of the
    'Middle Story Blues', unsure of what direction to whisk your
    characters off in.
    Work off the world and the society you have in the beginning.
    Are people friendly to each other, or is it every man for himself?
    What are some of the other struggles that they can undergo
    while being nuclear pimpled out of house and home?
    Where are they trying to get to that will be safe for them to
    stay? What mental effects do these events have on them?
    Seems you could really have a long grueling journey story
    for your characters living in such an inhospitable world that
    they live in.

    Think about all the possibilities of what could happen, until
    one strikes your fancy and see where you end up. :)

    Good luck and hope you find your plot. :supersmile:
     
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  7. Walking Dog

    Walking Dog Active Member

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    One time I ate a bowl of navy beans, and the National Guard had to evacuate Texas because of the gas bubbling out of my butt. The damage to my social esteem was such that I developed aspirations of bringing to ruin all farmers of navy beans. Plot is born out of conflict. Don't be afraid to write something silly at first. As you get deeper into the story, better ideas surface. The important thing is to enjoy writing the story.
     
  8. RWK

    RWK Member

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    I'll second the bubbling radiation issue, especially because once it erupts into the surface you are going to have long-lasting issues. The contamination of the weapons testing ij the 40s, 50s, and mid 60s have affected virtually the entire planet to the point that they have to salvage steel off of sunken warships for certain uses.

    But that is an easy fix.

    How does the nation(s) deal with this issue of periodic population relocation? There's an opportunity for conflict.

    BTW: The main character is Joop. He lives with his father, but when a radiation pocket near their home erupts, they have to evacuate.

    The above in italics means that when the pocket erupted, they defecated. Buildings and towns can evacuate, but people simply expel waste during an evacuation. :D
     
  9. MrSandman1924

    MrSandman1924 New Member

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    I think a major question you will have to answer is, 'what type of radiation is bubbling?' There are countless types of radiation, many of which are mostly harmless to unshielded humans in normal amounts, like light, radio waves, and even sound waves.
     
  10. Stephen1974

    Stephen1974 Active Member

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    How does radiation bubble?

    Well, how about it interacts with something else in the ground. Gas perhaps, or given the controversy, fracking. The fracking lets loose radiatin underground, that contaminates everything around it and create a radioactive gas and as the ground is fractured from the fracking, the gas build up eventually finds a weak spot and breaks through.
    Joop goes on to discover the corporations of the day knew about this problem but kept it quiet. Perhaps they even invent an alternative explanation as to why its happening, but there is a super pocket about to blow and wipe scotland out. Joop might work for the corporation or he might be an activist or he might be a geology student. Does he save teh day or does the pocket explode and we get a how does joob and his buddies survive story.
     
  11. RWK

    RWK Member

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    I would disagree. You can play with the laws of physics in a fantasy setting, but in near-future sci-fi basing your core concept on make-believe is not going to sell. Not to mention attacking fracking will cost you a lot of readers. It would be popular with opponents of fracking, but a better course would simply be to avoid the entire issue altogether.

    Write what you know, and what you can research. That's my two cents; spend it as you will. ;)
     
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  12. Stephen1974

    Stephen1974 Active Member

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    I agree. Perhaps reseraching the effects of radiation is in order. As for upsetting people in favour of fracking. I wouldnt be concerned by that. The literary world is full of books that use technologies as the bad guy, from AI's to Nano Tech, from nuclear testing to GM foods. I do think you would have to come up with something semi plauasible though.
     
  13. Wreybies

    Wreybies Thrice Retired Supporter Contributor

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    First thing to ask yourself is why are you writing this story?

    Joop & Fam have to evacuate. Understood.

    What do want to say with this?
    • People can find the drive to do the undoable when needs be?
    • The power of family is unshakable?
    • We all go through bad shit, here's mine?
    • Sometimes crazy shit happens and we have to find a way to stay sane through it?
    • This is my metaphor for climate change, mining, whatever...
    • etc.
    • etc.
    • etc.

    You need a why.

    When you know your why, the direction will fall into place because the plot will lead to the flowering of that why.

    Screen Shot 2017-06-18 at 2.53.05 PM.png
     
  14. Thundair

    Thundair Contributor Contributor

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    Is Joop a hero or a victim? I would see him finding a boring machine in Texas that would out gas the bubbling to a harmless area. The world would grow crops again and get back to the trivial things that really divide us. He would find a crew on the route to get the boring machine but would have to overcome obstacles inside and outside his group. Don't forget the back story and make sure you put him in a "no hope" situation in the end, with a surprise resolution. I better go take my nap I'm wandering again.
     
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  15. Mouthwash

    Mouthwash Senior Member

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    This is something I can't seem to find. Your examples would just result in facile moralistic pattern-matching, but I don't have the answers to more interesting questions. How can I write without the answers?

    One of the themes of ASoIaF is that actions have consequences. People die as a result of bad choices, you don't have humble farmboys overthrowing dark lords. But that can't be all there is to it. There's a sense of meaning behind events; it's an epic and not a tragedy.

    What am I missing?
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2017

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