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Exercise #341: Craft
Posted 11/6/09
I am following some of your suggestions for our future - including this one - Craft exercises, and the first thing that caught my eye was “plot.” I loved Jessi’s suggestion for a plot exercise, so here it is!
Jessi said, “One area I'd like to work on, especially now that I'm thinking about my NaNoWriMo novel, is plotting out a longer piece. We get a lot of practice in other Desk Drawer exercises creating shorter works that lend themselves to exploring a single plot line. Creating believable subplots that ultimately embellish the main story arc seems like a tall order to me. How do novelists do it?
Maybe this is more of an idea for a Training course than a single Craft exercise. For a single exercise, though, we could be given the outline of a basic plot and asked to outline up to three believable subplots. Critiquers can comment on how well the subplots fit into the overall arc and how interesting they would be to the reader (do they enrich the story or are they distractions?).”
(Does anyone feel inclined to teach a plot class? Email me privately!)
Thank you, Jessi, for a great suggestion. Here’s what it morphed into.
For your main plot:
A group of people get along quite well, even though they are of diverse backgrounds. One day, a stranger is cast into their midst. This new one seems to get along with the others, but dissension begins and doubt creeps in. Something happens to bring the originals together with the new one, and at the end, everyone realizes that each of the others has their own unique strengths. (Alternatively, the new one could get their just reward. You may also make minor changes to the basic plot line.)
First, give us your main plot. Specify any changes from the one given, add anything necessary for clarifying your subplots. For instance, you might need to decide on the number, name, and sex of the people in your group, so the subplot makes sense. This re-telling of the plot does NOT count in your word limit.
Now, create up to three subplots that would weave into your main plot line. Give us as much detail as you think we need in order to see the value in them. You may add a little bit about how you imagine this story would wind itself to a satisfying ending.
Finally, give us an example of an outstanding subplot you’ve encountered. Was it in the novel you just finished reading? The movie you saw last weekend? Give us the details, and tell us why it made you take notice.
Critiquers, some questions you might answer:
* How well do you think the subplots fit into the overall arc?
* How interesting do you think they would be to read along with the main plot line?
* Do you feel they enrich the story?
* Did you see a subplot, yourself, as you read? (If so, share!)
* For the example, did you agree the subplot was a cool one? (Did it make you want to read that book or see that movie yourself?)
Word limit: 750 for the subplots combined, 600 for the example
Please use the subject line
SUB: Exercise #341/yourname
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