I've got my story idea but I'm struggling to create a plot and fill in the gaps. I'm so eager to get started but want a clearer idea of where the story is heading before I start. The basic idea is of a girl living in Paris with her mother. Her mother is killed and she ends up on the run with a man who's been hired privately to mind and protect her. She has no family and she went to live in Paris with her mother when she was 8 in an attempt to keep them both safe, and that the man minding her has been hired by her grandfather. I'm still debating why they had to move away and why they're now after them again. I've a few ideas but any suggestions are welcome! I've been throwing around possibilities for a while and think some fresh ideas and perspectives will help me make some decisions. Thank you in advance
Hi, welcome to the forum. Have you written before? Are you experienced or new at it? It sounds like you have a setting, and some characters, but not really a complete story idea. Good novels are more than just what actions happen in them. The reader needs to have a reason to want to read about the character. A good story needs more than people in danger running from some unknown thing even if that thing turns out to be clever or interesting. I started my story with a character, what she was like, what her struggles with life were among peers she didn't fit in with. I also wanted to write about sexism and the generation gap I myself experienced. And the biggest theme in the book besides the main character is how I see society, how people are so divided right now in how they view the world yet each side is certain they see the world as it is. The world cannot be two such opposite things at the same time. How does anyone decide what is real? The story then grew around those concepts. What happens in the story only matters in that it tells something I am trying to tell. I suggest thinking more about the story you want to tell rather than the mystery you want to reveal. The mystery then, when it grows around the story, can reveal itself as you write.
You must understand your protagonist better. Plot is just the choices your hero makes under all the pressure you put him/her under.
Sound a bit like "The Da Vinci Code" but that's just my own opinion. You definitely have an idea at hand, but I can see why you need a plot ._. For now I suggest you find an antagonist for your story. There can't be a yin without a yang if you know what I mean.
where did she come from originally? what happened to her father? what happened to the rest of her family? are they alive or dead? why is Paris safe? is she being protected, is her mother being protected, or both? who/what is she being protected from? how does the man fit into this? those are just a few things I think you'll need to answer Keep in mind you don't necessarily need to know EVERYTHING, you can figure it out as you go. The most important thing is that all your characters have strong (logical) desires and motivations. Everyone needs a want and a why. For example: the girl wants to escape and go into hiding so she can live safely, the girl wants to kill the bad guy because she wants to avenge her mother's death, the girl wants to find her grandfather to ask him questions and discover why her mother was killed the man wants to keep the girl safe because the grandfather once saved his life and he owes the grandfather a debt so this is how hes repaying it the man wants to keep the girl safe because he's been hired but also really hates the other guy and wants to kill him the man wants to keep the girl safe because he was secretly in love with her mother and the girl looks just like her the evil thing wants to kill the girl because she has been prophesied to destroy the world on her 19th birthday the evil thing wants to kidnap the girl because she knows the location of some sacred book the evil thing wants to kill the girl because the grandfather once killed someone and this is revenge the evil thing wants to kill the girl because her magic powers are the only thing keeping the ballance of power from shifting from good to evil the evil thing wanted to kill the mom because she committed a crime once and there was a huge bounty for her, now he wants to kill the girl because she was the sole witness the evil thing accidentally killed the mom when he stole something valuable from her, now he wants to kill the girl because she was the sole witness Once you know the characters motivations you will know how they will react in a given situation and your story will flow from there.
