It’s really difficult to start a novel. Where do you begin? How many pages should be in a chapter? Should you outline? Should you just go for it? What about chapter titles? Chapter titles or numbers, which should it be?
Eventually these questions turn into extreme procrastinatory measures (if procrastinatory is not a word, consider it invented), such as a search for the perfect quote to put on its own page at the start of the novel, endless adjustment of margins and formatting, and “research” in the form of checking one’s e-mail.
Having worked with many authors in the past, it’s fascinating to see how many different styles there are. You have the planners, who outline every last detail ahead of time and churn out an almost-perfect first draft, and then you have the revisers, who write their way to what the novel is about, figure it out around page 150, and then go back and scrap the first 150 pages and rewrite them.
But in my opinion, there is absolutely one thing every writer should start with before they begin writing. And that’s a plot.
And do you have a plot? No really, do you?
UPDATED 4/27/20
Plot quiz
Multiple choice quiz! Hope you did your homework.
Which one of these is a plot:
- Four women find redemption and love on a trip to Italy
- A young man comes of age in an unpronounceable kingdom
- A man and his video game collection discover the true meaning of love
- Four friends realize they hate each other
The answer: none of the above!
These are not plots. They are themes. (Or at least what I call themes.) So many times when I ask people what’s the plot they tell me what the novel is about. “It’s about a young man who comes of age and discovers the meaning of life!” (note: also not a plot) All of these themes are descriptions of what is happening beneath the surface of the novel. It’s what the novel is about. When I ask for the plot I don’t want to know what the novel is about. I want to know what happens.
So let’s try that again. Spot the plot in these:
- Snakes get loose on a plane
- A cat with a hat arrives to entertain children
- A crazy general is hiding out in the jungle
- The world is going to end when the Mayan calendar runs out in 2012 (because the Mayans were right about EVERYTHING)
Which is the plot?
Also none of the above. (I’m so predictable.)
These are not plots — they are hooks! Or premises! Whichever label you prefer! They are a starting place. Also not a plot. A premise is just that — a starting point. But where does the novel go from there?
What makes a plot
Ok. So. Enough quizzes. What makes a plot?
Think of a book like a really big door, preferably one of those Parisian ones that are thick and heavy and last hundreds of years. Here’s how it breaks down. Bullet point time!
- The premise, or the inciting incident, is what happens to knock the door ajar. Something sets the protagonist’s life out of balance. Preferably something really intriguing or like totally deep man.
- The climax is when the door closes. Maybe the protagonist made it through the door, maybe they didn’t make it through the door but learned a really great lesson about door closing, maybe the door chopped them in half.
- The theme is how the person opening the door changes along the way.
What’s the plot? The plot is what keeps the door open!! Why can’t that person close the door?
So basically, plot is a premise plus a major complication that tests the protagonist. It’s what opens the door plus what’s keeping the door from being closed.
Plot examples
Gilead: An aging man writes a letter to his young son (premise) because he doesn’t think he’ll live long enough for his son to really know him (complication — also don’t you want to cry already?)
The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A young orphan in Paris wants to repair an automaton because he thinks it will give him a letter from his deceased father (premise — also tears), but in order to do so he must avoid the Station Inspector and enlist the help of a mysterious toy store owner (complication).
A good plot starts with an interesting premise and an interesting door-block. A great plot also implies a quest and a resolution, which is what makes the reader want to read more. We don’t like chaos, we want to see order restored, we want an interesting journey along the way, and we want to see the ways a character changes after facing these obstacles.
So when you’re starting a novel, don’t just think of a theme and leave it at that. The complications are everything.
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Art: Tagebucheintrag by August Müller
Wow, great post, and really helpful! It does make you take a look at your writing with a serious mental checklist.
I’m bookmarking this post.
Add me to the list of people thanking you for this post.
Lucidity is good.
How very timely this post has been for me. Evidently, I like a lot of filler–and not just about what that door looks like either. Damn it, I need plot too!
Thank you! 🙂
Talk about filler, I saw that movie Disturbia last night and whew–that was a 105 minute flick that shoulda been 90 minutes MAX! I don’t need to see some loser ssitting on the couch eating stupid stuff! On with the plot already! I felt like I was watching a consumer electronics expo for almost 2 hours…serious dreck they’re putting out these days, screenwriters shsould learn how to plot, too.
The most thorough (and engaging) description I have EVER read regarding plot. It’s over the top!
I do not agree however, that all writers “absolutely” must have a plot before beginning their novel. There may be that rare writer who is able to let the plot unfold as his or her story progresses. I’m sure this is not the norm, but there just are no absolutes when it comes to writing.
I don’t ususally have a thorough outline before i start my thrillers, but I do have (what ai tink is) an engaging premise, with a beginning (opening scene, usually a murder), and a climactic ending….with a couple of stepping stones in between. Then I just go for it during the first draft.
O.M.G. By any chance were you at Germano’s in Baltimore this weekend, eavesdropping on my conversation? I was whining to my sister and nieces about the fact that I am stuck in my novel because “I have a premise and a theme, but I don’t really have a plot.” My exact words.
Thank you for this … very helpful.
I don’t know… Perhaps if you reversed the two. The old man fears dying without his son truly knowing him (premise) so he tries to write him a letter (complication).
(Now, I have not read the book so I am under the assumption that the man is incapable of proper communication with his son and not simply that he just discovered the boy/man and doesn’t have the time needed to develop a bond. Certainly if the latter were true he should be doing more than writing a letter. It’s his failure to articulate, to communicate, to even think on a common level with his son [the former] that I’m assuming is the driving complication of the story.)
Nathan, thank you. That may very well be the single most helpful post I have ever read.
I have a premise, plot, and a complication, but capturing them together into something that made sense has been challenging. Your post helped unlock the struggle I’d been having with my query letter. A thousand thanks.
re: Gilead, I would say that “dying father writing letters to his son” is the premise, and that the conflict between Ames and young Boughton is the plot.
Character over plot? or Character driven plot? I prefer the second.
Nathan, I can’t get over this!!! You are more amazing than ever, and it appears to me that you wrote a thesis in a few paragraphs which had all the qualities of poignant teaching. Professorship??? 🙂
Plot is the dog that ate my underwear.
What an incredibly helpful post! Thanks, Nathan!
Omagosh! I get it now! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
“Do You Have a Plot” is a fascinating blogpost for Juneteenth. I’m sure Ralph Ellison knew what a plot was, but I’m equally sure he didn’t want to be bound by that knowledge for about 40 years.
I add to the chorus: Great post.
I’m also fascinated by the different ways that writers work. Personally, I have never been able to outline. I kind of wish I could because plunging into a book and not knowing where you are going is a little scary at times. But I love what Ian Rankin said about this – he’s the Scottish mystery writer, for those unfamiliar.
I read an interview where he revealed that he knows some elements of his story and leaves others to discover and develop during the process.
He said, “If I knew what was going to happen, why would I need to write the book?”
I am struggling with my synopsis and this has helped SO MUCH. I am definitely querying you first, because if you’re this smart on a blog, you’re definitely worth 15%. 😀
This is one for the archives! Thumbs up on articulating plot so so memorably.
Ah, she says, scales falling from eyes.
Am I correct in assuming the same applies to a memoir?
A long post, but a very interesting one! I’m new to your blog but am thoroughly enjoying it. Thanks for all the helpful tips.
Hate that whole “you need a plot” thing. It stinks, I tells ya. I’m a panster to the nth degree, and I’m trying desperately to change. Cause there’s nothing like a guaranteed mid-novel slump. Or wall. For banging head against. This was a helpful post, thanks.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm….I am writing my second thriller and I think I agree with everything you’ve said. I had a premise about a year ago, found the hook or a couple of hooks by late last year, I found the time to work out a plot earlier this year and now…
I feel like I am finally at the beginning of the writing process
It’s like everything till here has been step number -3, -2, -1 and I am now on 0 :)))
I’ve opened the door, in your terms, and I know how its going to close and what it will do to the protagonist, so in essence I’ve got the elevator brief done…now comes all the imagination of creating a story around it full of incidents, twists, turns, characters…that are all really superfluous…whose only function, which only I hopefully (and not my readers) know and realize, is to keep the door open 🙂
I’ve realized in getting started with this latest novel (My first is doing well but it came from nowhere and gripped me and made me a writer..so i cant say too much about the process for that one) that fiction is really, in a sense, quite a shallow and shameless task of creating characters, twists and turns to keep the pages turning around a core premise that – albeit brilliant and superbly insightful at the end of the day for the reader – is really something that can be expressed in a line or two without needing a full novel!
The sad part with most struggling writers is they start life somewhere at step +1 or step +2 without going through this process…
All this also reminds me of the superbly humbling “The fool doth thing that he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool”
A wise writer knows that he is a fool…to the extent that the bulk of his writing is keeping the door open..while the fools start with thinking that writing is all about intelligent and classy vocabulary and language.
It’s a tremendously painful process … creating meaningless but gripping stuff to package a very intelligent premise … but that pain is the essence of fiction.
P:S: I reached this blog from Joe Novella’s group of Facebook but I sure as hell am gonna stay! Great stuff!
Nathan, I’m adding a link to this post to my workshop materials. Thanks!
Well, I was going to come and gush about how much I needed this post at this exact time, but now that feels kinda cliche.
Oh well.
Thank you for the awesome post! I needed this post right at this moment. You are great.
That was a really great definition of plot. Thanks a lot for yet another informative post 😀
I’m personally not a huge fan of intricate outlines, but there has to be a basic plot structure. Like you said: there has to be something to keep the door open and ultimately you have to decide on what closes it in the end. Of course writing involves spontaneity, but then again the plot itself has to follow certain mechanisms like exposition, climax, finale etc. to make it work. That’s when and outline and scene cards are helpful to eradicate plot holes or superfluous scenes.
Usually I try to leave a fun quip as my comment, but today all I can say is: thank you. I’m in that “sitting and pondering” phase, where I leave my manuscript alone for a period of time to consider it before I begin the big Revision, and your post just helped me understand why I’m so dissatisfied with what I have now.
I didn’t have a clear plot.
It’s not that I didn’t have a plot — I did! I do! — but it’s not clear. The door-block isn’t clear every step of the way. It’s confused with other door-blocks. Maybe because my character is so confused herself.
Regardless, you’ve brought me clarity, and I think I know what I need to do to make this manuscript rock. Thank you.
Debra Dixon wrote a great book GMC, where she used your format ________ but ________ because _______.
et voila, PLOT.
Eva
I don’t like outlining all before hand because sometimes you can get really great ideas by seeing how the writing transforms characters and motivations in your head into something entirely new, adaptable, and exciting on paper. I do agree, however, that you need a clear idea of your plot before you ever sit down to start writing.
I guess it’s like a road trip: know the final destination, but be prepared to take some back roads and pit stops that you never planned.
I’m the sort who gets down everything beforehand and then starts writing. It’s all well and good to have a worked out plot. It gives me focus and a goal. I’m starting here and want to get to there. Generally though, characters happen along the way, and the fabulously crafted plot takes detours, stops for booze, takes in a movie, and tries desperately not to have a nervous breakdown. I let the characters shape things to some extent, thus you can’t be overly attached to plot, or you end up with characters doing rather dumb and out of character things to achieve your brilliantly devised ends. Once you start, it’s basically impossible in my opinion to then seperate character and plot. They morph and transpose and other nifty words about change. I alter my plots, because I realize the mc just would not do something, so I just come up with some devious plan to get them back toward the ending I want. It’s fun to torture them in that respect. Anyway, interesting and valuable post, Nathan.
JDuncan
Nathan,
I am currently published, (my first novel), and am seeking some advice.
My publisher, X Publishing, has suggested that I seek a new publisher, as X has taken me as far as possible. X Publishing, with the current industry trends, cannot continue.
I’m receiving two opinions: one is that I should just forget about my first novel, and start all over with another; the other opinion is for me to continue seeking representation.
X Publishing will be reverting all rights back to me, but I am still under contract for now. X wants to make sure I’m represented before cancelling said contract.
What is your advice?
Thank you,
MzAuthor
Wow, one of your best posts! I’m passing this on.
Thanks!
Wow, I really needed that post. thanks, Nathan. It was a good kick in the corduroy pants. Ok, capris.
Thank you for this – excellent post, and Heidi – spot on as well.
I like to start writing, see where the characters are taking me, and then outline; it’s kind of like pulling out a map a few hundred miles into a road trip. I write, outline, write some more, revise the outline…for me, the outline is a reference point, but I might change direction at any time. That’s where the magic is.
Interesting analogy. I’ve never seen plot compared to a door before. [g]
But I don’t think a writer needs to know a plot beforehand. All she needs is a character with a problem. Something he wants and can’t have, or possesses but doesn’t want. The plot will develop out of how the character handles the problem, as well as who he meets along the way and how their problems complicate his problems, because they want different things than he does, or maybe they want the same things…and so it goes. You start with a character and a conflict, add fertilizer, and before you know it, plot has sprouted, growing legs and tentacles and eyes on stalks.
And it’s way more weird and devious than anything you could’ve dreamed up at the beginning.
At least, that’s the way I do it.
What great information!! Thank you so much! I thought I had all of that down, but I feel much more confident about the premise and theme. Thanks for disecting it for us. I needed it!
I look at this and it reminds of the old saying (I’m paraphrasing), “I don’t know art I just know what I like.”
Why does it have to be so complicated?
Okay, I’ve been holed away from lurking here and elsewhere on my fave sites in order to hammer out… my plot.
This is BRILLIANT! More procrastination is in order; no more of this hermit-thinking-great-(thematic)-thoughts stuff. Peace, Linda
Here’s a treatment (or whatever you want to call it) from Philip K Dick – https://philipkdick.com/new_actsofpaul1.html
Wow, that was really helpful, it helped me figur out what my novel is truely about. thanks!
One of the most inspirational blogs I’ve read!! Been through some writer’s block and this post just brought back all the desire to continue writing. Now I know my plot Nathan!! Thank you loads mate!!
Thank you! All of your articles are very helpful. The question is, is the story interesting enough to keep the door open? Or if your audience even cares if the door is open in the first place?
Priceless information, Nathan, thank you!
Long, sure, but you nailed the definition of plot to force me to "bare bones" my works.
This breakdown is AWESOME. Take that, O Keepers of the Plotless Drivel! You can't turn a ship without a rudder, after all.
Can't have a body w/o a skeleton; can't have a cloud without rain; a 'copter can't fly without a wingfin; a dolphin dies sans its dorsal . . .well, you get the general idea.
There's some song lyrics in this, y'all. Just give me credit for the words :).
Well-put and extremely valuable. Thanks.
John
Not only is your blog my hero, it's also very funny and one of the few that simultaneously teaches and amuses. I'm getting smarter while laughing out loud. Bravo, Nathan Bransford.
Another way people are confused about plot:
Is this a plot? "The evil powers of Mordor are growing and threaten to plunge Middle Earth into chaos unless the "One Ring" can be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom!"
Nope. That's the setting, not the plot. Plot focuses on the protagonist.
this was the most helpful thing I've ever read about plot (and theme!) totally straightened out my confusions. Thanks so much! 🙂
Excellent post, and so helpful. I just spent an hour or two crafting my log-line with the help of your post and a related one by Kristen Lamb. It's a lot harder than it looks, isn't it? But I want to thank you for your great advice, so freely given.
i wanted to join nano for a number of reasons, and this year my roomie is doing it, so i had this additional push to try to figure out how to make a book out of these ideas i have.
i had no idea where to start, and this really helped. Thanks!
you rock. Reading more of your stuff.