The Plot Thickens

Our walking conferences have continued (when the weather is suitable), and we spend most evenings camped out on the big leather sofa playing “what if.” The results are looking good. We have a plot that flows nicely from beginning, through the middle, and most of the way to the end.

A problem we dealt with on our previous novel was the fear that we did not have enough plot, and we’re grappling with that again. Since the last novel’s first draft wound up at 150,000 words, we’re trying not to worry too much this time. Chances are we do have enough story.

Once we talked through the arcs for all the characters, and sketched in their major actions, we switched from open-ended discussions to a more structured approach. Jen brought out the color-coded note pads (because Kent has a phobia about index cards) and assigned each character a color. Then she wrote out each character action, one per note, and Kent arranged them in a grid.

Kent’s grid quickly outgrew the ottoman, and he had to move to the floor. The sprawling patchwork rainbow of paper squares made a nice visual representation of the plot.

Each character had their own column, with the rows denoting the passage of time. Anytime characters interact, those actions go in the same row. This leaves blank areas when a character isn’t up to anything interesting, and it allowed us to see if we’re staying away from any story lines for too long.

Switching to a different, visual mode of brainstorming is a great way to spot inconsistencies or other problems lurking in what you’ve already come up with. It also has a way of lighting up the creative faculties, which can accelerate things and open up new avenues to explore. It’s a go-to methodology for getting unstuck.

We spent an evening studying the grid and making notes, and now we’re back to brainstorming to flesh out the thin spots. We will probably cycle through the process another time or two before we’re ready to write up an actual outline.

In a co-writing relationship it’s vital that the partners share an understanding of all aspects of plot and character so that they can write toward the same goal, seamlessly.