Write Great Fiction--Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell Read Free Book Online

transitions will make your novels more accessible even if you choose to deviate from a linear unfolding. Add a ripping good story, and your novels may turn out to be unforgettable.
A SUMMARY OF PLOT AND STRUCTURE
    These basic plot and structure elements will never fail you.
    A plot is about a Lead character who has an
objective
, something crucial to his well-being. The major portion of plot is the
confrontation
with the opposition, a series of battles over the
objective
. This is resolved in a
knockout
ending, an outcome that satisfies the story questions and the readers.
    A solid plot unfolds in three acts — a beginning, middle, and end.
    In the beginning, we get to know the Lead, his world, the tone of the story to come. We have some sort of disturbance in the beginning to keep away the dull parts.
    We move into the middle through a doorway of no return, an incident that thrusts the Lead into conflict with the opposition. We need some sort of adhesive to keep them together, something like professional or moral duty, or a physical location. Death — physical, professional or psychological — is often a real possibility until the conflict is settled. Some setback or crisis, or discovery or clue, pushes the Lead through the second doorway of no return.
    Now all the elements are there to get to that final battle or final choice that’s going to end the story.
EXERCISE 1
    Analyze some novels or movies with a view toward understanding their three-act structure. Specifically note:
When is there a disturbance to the Lead’s ordinary routine? What change happens early on? (If it doesn’t, does the book or film seem to drag?)
At what point is the Lead thrust into the conflict? At what point can he not return to normal?
When is there a major clue, crisis or setback that makes the climax inevitable?
If you’re bored, ask yourself why. Look to see if the LOCK elements or three-act structure is weak.
EXERCISE 2
    Look at the elements of your current plot. Are they lining up in a way that will help readers get into the story? Or are you ignoring structure? If so, why?
EXERCISE 3
    Using the structure diagram, map out your current plot. Come up with a disturbance scene and events that make up the two doorways of no return. Write these down in summary form. Tweak them to make them original and involving.

Chapter 3
How to Explode With Plot Ideas
    There is only one type of story in the world — your story.
    â€” Ray Bradbury
    In Woody Allen’s movie
Annie Hall
, there is a passing conversation between some players at a fancy Hollywood party. One guy says, “Right now it’s a notion, but I think I can get money to turn it into a concept … and later turn it into an idea.”
    As with all satire, the scent of truth lurks underneath. Before your plot exists, it is a notion you have. A spark, which at some point ignites. But it is here where many stories are doomed from the start. Not every idea is of equal value. To find the best plots, you need to come up with
hundreds
of ideas, then choose the best ones to develop.
    That’s what this chapter is about.
    And before you jump into the top twenty ways to get plot ideas, you need to spend some time on the person who is going to turn them into fiction gold — you.
    That’s where you start in finding plots.
    William Saroyan, whose novels have more passion in them than most, was once asked the name of his next book. “I don’t have a name and I don’t have a plot,” he replied. “I have the typewriter and I have white paper and I have me and that should add up to a novel.”
    That’s why Saroyan’s work seems so fresh. He was not content with the old advice,
write what you know
. He figured out early that the key to originality was
write who you are
.
    Fiction writers, especially those who write to inspire, should follow Saroyan’s example. By going deep into your own heart and soul, you will find a