"Your Book's Plot Doesn't Matter"

That YouTube heading caught my attention, and Abbie Emmons’ accompanying blog challenged my thinking about plot construction. (You can read the entire post here.) She said:

Your plot doesn't matter; only your characters do…

In fact, the characters--more specifically the protagonist--are your story.

 

Most writers think that…the most important part of your story is the plot. They think the plot is what drives the story and the characters are just along for the ride. Actually, it's the other way around. I've said it before, but it bears repeating a thousand times: Story is not about what happens; it's about how what happens affects and transforms the characters.

 

This is the backbone of story. It's the foundation, the life blood:  Characters and how they change as a result of their journey.

 

My first impulse was to brush this aside, but the next day I came across this passage in the autobiography of best-selling Victorian novelist Anthony Trollope: 

I have never troubled myself much about the construction of plots…The novelist has other aims than the elucidation of his plot. He desires to make his readers so intimately acquainted with his characters that the creatures of his brain should be to them speaking, moving, living, human creatures. This he can never do unless he know those fictitious personages himself, and he can never know them unless he can live with them in the full reality of established intimacy.

They must be with him as he lies down to sleep, and as he wakes from his dreams. He must learn to hate them and to love them. He must argue with them, quarrel with them, forgive them, and even submit to them. He must know of them whether they be cold-blooded or passionate, whether true or false, and how far true, and how far false. The depth and the breadth, and the narrowness and the shallowness of each should be clear to him. And, as here in our outer world, we know that men and women change—become worse or better as temptation or conscience may guide them…

Twice challenged, I reflected on several novels I had read and movies I'd seen. I could recall the overall theme of each story, and I could visualize the protagonist of each one (at least the image I had constructed in my own mind). I also remembered a few major events that revealed the character qualities of each person. Beyond that, Abbie and Anthony were right: A novel's characters took center stage, while its plot became their background.

I’ve often spent painstaking hours trying to construct a plot worthy of my characters. But didn't that simply confirm that my characters drove the plot? On the other hand, when I became familiar with my characters, they told their own stories.

I'm curious to know your experience. Which do you develop first, character or plot? Do you agree that your plot "doesn't matter" if your characters are engaging enough?

Joe Allison writes both fiction and nonfiction, and has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. He lives in Anderson, IN, with his wife Maribeth.

Dean Koontz on Plotting

Best-selling suspense author Dean Koontz had a violent alcoholic father who threatened to kill him and other members of the family. He says, “The benefit of my childhood was to show that there is evil in the world and that you have to find a way to thread through it, reject it, and find other ways to live.”[1] 

Koontz found another way to live through his Christian faith. He also realized that this pattern was a classic plot outline, which he described this way:

1) The author introduces a hero (or heroine) who has just been or is about to be plunged into terrible trouble. 2) The hero attempts to solve his problem but only slips into deeper trouble. 3) As the hero works to climb out of the hole he’s in, complications arise, each more terrible than the one before, until it seems as if his situation could not possibly be any blacker or more hopeless than it is—and then one final, unthinkable complication makes matters even worse… 4) At last, deeply affected and changed by his awful experiences and by his intolerable circumstances, the hero learns something about himself or about the human condition in general, a Truth of which he was previously ignorant, and having learned this lesson, he understands what he must do to get out of the dangerous situation in which he has wound up.[2]

This worsening-trouble story line “has proven, through generations of novelists, to be the most satisfying, flexible, and least constricting structure by which to order and give meaning to a long piece of fiction” (75). Let’s see how some best-selling authors plunge their heroes into “terrible trouble” with their opening lines:

Ernest Hemingway:

He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish (The Old Man and the Sea).

James Herriot:

They didn’t say anything about this in the books, I thought, as the snow blew in through the gaping doorway and settled on my naked back (All Creatures Great and Small).

Beverly Lewis:

Something about heading for home at nightfall tugged at my better judgment that Thursday evening (The Guardian).

Cara Putman:

“You have one chance to make this thing fly” (Shadowed by Grace).

Follow each of these stories and you’ll see the protagonist trying to resolve his/her trouble, only to get pulled into worse trouble, then worse and worse, like the tightening of a screw. (This is what we call the narrative arc.) The plot builds to a climax, to be resolved when the protagonist gains a new insight into the situation or (in the case of Christian fiction) new insight into the hero’s relationship with God. (This is the character arc.)

Evaluate the plot of your current work in progress with these questions in mind: Do I get my hero/heroine into trouble at the outset? Are the stakes high enough? Does the trouble become progressively worse as the protagonist tries to resolve it? Does the protagonist get a new understanding of the situation or of herself that leads to a resolution of her problem? 

This kind of plot makes a compelling story because it's true to life. Just ask Dean Koontz.

---

[1]Interview with Raymond Arroyo, “The World Over,” October 19, 2012 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyVAddoJByU

[2] Dean Koontz, How to Write Best-Selling Fiction (Cincinnati: Writers Digest, 1981), 74.

Interview With Amy Wallace

  by Jeff Reynolds

  I had the honor of interviewing my favorite author last month – Randy Singer for those who missed it. This month, I have the honor interviewing another author who's in my top three (with Allistair MacLean being the other, but I'd have to conduct a séance to interview him, and most of you would frown at that.) This author is Amy Wallace, who wrote the excellent Defenders of Hope series, and has released the second book last fall of her latest series, Place of Refuge.

Jeff Reynolds: Welcome, Amy. I've noticed you have a bachelor's degree in Counseling and Guidance from the University of Louisville , and also are a graduate of the Gwinnett County Citizen's Police Academy . Where does your writing journey coincide with these degrees? How has your education affected your writing and your Christian life?

Amy Wallace: I graduated from U of L ( GO CARDS!) ages ago and the Citizen's Police Academy about nine years ago, both a fantastic experience. I attended the CPA, a volunteer, sixteen week, behind the scenes look at the police department, when I was working on my first suspense series about FBI Crimes Against Children agents. I wanted to better understand and honor the law enforcement professionals I highlighted in my novels.

My counseling degree has served me well in life and writing, to better understand human nature and observe in the real world what I write about in my stories. Not only that, but also to see how vital healing is to a healthy, loving relationship with God and others.

JR: If asked what my favorite fiction series is, your Defenders of Hope trilogy would be towards the top. I'm now reading Hiding In Plain Sight, the first in the Place of Refuge Series. Could you tell us about the series, and if you approached the writing any different between the two?

AW: Thank you very much for that high compliment!

The Defenders of Hope series is a suspense series about the FBI Crimes Against Children Unit in DC that focuses on hope and healing amid life’s most challenging storms. The Place of Refuge series is a Mennonite romantic suspense series focusing on a small town police officer protecting her loved ones, her town, and the surrounding Mennonite community from uncharacteristic violence in Hiding in Plain Sight, and, in Nowhere to Run, a stalker who forces Ashley to put happily ever after on hold to protect and defend those she loves.

Writing these two very different series included tons of research, interviewing FBI and other law enforcement officers, and plenty of editing! I tried a few new things with plotting in the Place of Refuge series after having read James Scott Bell’s Plot and Structure. But the biggest writing difference between the two series came in dealing with theme.

For Ransomed Dreams, Healing Promises, and Enduring Justice, theme grew as I wrote the stories. Ransomed Dreams' theme of healing through forgiveness became a deeper life lesson that forgiveness unlocks the future. For Healing Promises, the theme began as healing and hope amid life-shattering circumstances. The story grew out of a question I asked a Secret Service Agent: What would an FBI agent do with a cancer diagnosis? The theme grew and became Faith Under Fire and tackled the questions: Where is God when life hurts? Can God be trusted? For Enduring Justice, the theme deepened from healing from past abuse to secrets can’t last forever. Justice isn’t enough. Healing is.

The themes for the Place of Refuge books began with a simple theme and stayed pretty true to the original ideas. Hiding in Plain Sight’s theme is control. Who is in control? Can He be trusted? Nowhere to Run is about protection. Is God powerful enough to protect His children?

JR: In October, 2011, you taught a course on Plotting. Does this mean you're a committed plotter? Or do you ever try Seat of the Pants writing? After all, you have done great plot twists in your story that I didn't see coming.

AW: I’m what James Scott Bell calls a Borg plotter. I'm a full time homeschooling mom, my first and favorite career, so I don't have time to just sit down and see where the story takes me. Which, according to my pantser friends, requires plenty of rewriting. I love doing the research and character charts and outlines that help me know my characters and story so well that when I sit down to write, I have a good idea where I'm going. Plus, to honor law enforcement officers who serve us well and many of whom have been a fantastic help to me with each of my stories, I feel compelled to get my facts and twists and suspense plot right and reasonable before I sit down to write. And even with all the plotting I do, there are always surprises along the way, which keeps the journey fun.

JR: Your books are full of heart-warming, feel-good topics like losing one's family, child-killing, cancer, and racism. What reaction have you had both from the publisher/editor end and from the readers?

AW: While my novels do hit on hard topics, the focus is always on healing. I believe to show the light and hope that are ours in Christ, we have to acknowledge the darkness where He shines brightest.

The reactions from publishers and readers have been overwhelmingly positive. In large part because my stories aren't just high intensity suspense, but because they are full of flawed, searching, real characters who connect with readers, and I pray lead them closer to Christ and the healing possible in Him.

JR: One thing all your books have is a set of discussion questions. Was this your idea or your publishers? Any response from people who used those questions you'd like to share?

AW: The discussion questions were something I wanted to include to help readers and book clubs connect even more to the story. One of my favorite responses was a long letter from a reader of Ransomed Dreams that detailed how this story helped her forgive her father and begin the painful process of reconciliation with someone who had abandoned her as a child. It made me cry to read how my characters and the theme of the novel touched this woman's heart to the point her life was changed for good and a vital relationship began to heal.

JR: Besides your fiction, you've been a contributor to Writing Inspirational Fiction, God Answers Mom's Prayers, and Chicken Soup for the Soul Healthy Living Series: Diabetes. (I'm not much for chicken soup -- I'm waiting for the Supreme Pizza with Jalapenos and Anchovies For The Soul books to come out.) What was that like?

AW: Pizza is awesome soul food, but nothing beats chicken soup when you're under the weather. ;-)

I began my writing journey in creative non-fiction and learned how to write well in less than two thousand words. That's tough! I credit my first editors with teaching me how to make every word count and paint a picture.

JR: What do you have planned this year? I'm sure the second installment of Place of Refuge is coming out -- could you give us a preview? Also, am I correct that you'll be teaching a course on the ACFW Course Loop this year?

AW: I’m working on a new suspense series set both in current day Louisville , KY , and in Cold War Berlin , two places I love and miss terribly.

Yes, I’m teaching on the ACFW Course Loop about the gift of words and lessons learned in the writing trenches.

The second book in the Place of Refuge series, Nowhere to Run, came out in October 2012.

Someone’s out there…

Police Officer Ashley Walters is ready to leave behind the nightmares and embrace the future ahead of her. Along with her best friend, Margo, and her fiancé, Patrick, Ashley is planning the wedding of her dreams.

But happily-ever-after is put on hold when Ashley’s worst fears are confirmed: A stalker is watching her, and he’s ready to strike. Forced to flee for her own safety and the protection of those she loves, Ashley finds refuge in a gentle Mennonite community in Shipshewana , Indiana . But danger lurks even there, and Ashley must face the greatest question of all: Is God powerful enough to protect His children? 

JR: Besides writing, you also are a homeschool mom of three, a Bible study leader, a women's group speaker, a co-leader of a young writer's group, and a chocoholic. My guess is your spare time hobbies are eating and sleeping. How do these activities help with your writing, and how does your writing help with these activities?

AW: Yes, eating and sleeping are important to fit into my homeschooling, writing, and teaching schedule. So are reading, running, time with friends, Star Trek, and mom and daughter dates with my precious kiddos. All of those things together make life a joy and gift.

It really helps that I love writing and I love teaching! Teaching is one of my top two spiritual gifts, and I feel alive when I can share what God has taught me. Chocolate of course helps with all of life's difficult tasks. ;-) Teaching also inspires me to write better and understand how I do what I do. I began teaching a high school creative writing course this year and I love it! My students challenge me to write and teach my absolute best.

All of life helps with writing, making me sensitive to emotions, struggles, joys, and triumphs that bring fiction to life. And fiction helps me understand life. I work out my salvation and my wrestling matches with God at my computer.

JR: Thank you for your time. Could you tell us about your very creative website, and anything else we might be interested in?

AW: Thank you for having me on your blog! Thanks too for the kind words about my website~ Dark Chocolate Suspense (www.amywallace.com). It's a fun, interactive site that includes information about my books, about keeping kids safe, Bible studies, tips for writers, and fun quizzes about my stories. Please come and have some chocolate inspired fun and leave me a note in the guestbook! I love hearing from readers!

Watching Paint Dry

Last month, I shared some thoughts about how each fictional conversation needs to advance our narrative. The overall plot should do the same, or the story will be about as interesting as watching paint dry.

John Gardner calls the plot's forward movement profluence, and in The Art of Fiction he describes several kinds of profluence. Basically, a profluent narrative is one in which people and circumstances change. Without change, the story doesn't move forward; in fact, without change we have no story, just a series of word pictures. Carole Bugge ("C.E. Lawrence") puts it this way:

If paintings are lakes, stories are rivers--they are going somewhere. They pull the reader along, and take us on a journey. Stories must move forward...

A great premise is only part of the game--and not that big a part...What we need as writers is to be able to play the long game--to keep the ball in the air as long as possible, which means to keep readers turning the page.--Carole Bugge, "Keep It Moving," The Writer (August 2012), 34.

All right, then, let's play a little volleyball. I invite you to plot a novella with me about...watching paint dry! I'll give you the premise and a one-sentence summary of a chapter. Let's see how many GREAT chapters we can add to the plot, in no particular order, based on the story premise.

The only rule is profluence: Each chapter must show a significant, stakes-raising change in the protagonist and/or his situation. Here we go:

Premise / Watching Paint Dry

Alfonso is a hard-scrabble house painter living in Rome, 1938. On his way to work one morning, he's strong-armed off the street by a couple of burly soldiers who take him to the mansion of dictator Benito Mussolini. Il Duce plans to paint a mural on the east wall of his dining room (he fancies himself another Michelangelo), so they've "commissioned" Alfonso to prepare the wall with a fresh coat of white paint.

Mussolini

Mussolini will arrive late afternoon to inspect his work. The paint must be perfectly dry and flawless, or the hapless house painter will be shot at sundown. (Mussolini's thugs point to 4 mounds of dirt in the back yard--graves of his unsuccessful predecessors--to emphasize this point.) Then they lock the door and leave Alfonso with a bucket of paint, a brush, and a chamber pot. He finishes painting the wall by mid-morning. {End of Chapter One.}

Chapter Summaries

• An enormous horsefly lights on the wall and crawls toward the ceiling, leaving an obvious track behind him.
• {Your turn...}

Joe Allison and his wife, Judy, live in Anderson IN where Joe serves as Coordinator of Publishing for Church of God Ministries, Inc. Joe has several nonfiction books in print, including Swords and Whetstones: A Guide to Christian Bible Study Resources. He's currently writing a trilogy of Christian historical novels set in the Great Depression.

Visit Joe's blog at http://hoosierwriter.wordpress.com

I Don't Believe It! (But I Want To...)

It is called suspension of disbelief. One of the most challenging balancing acts in fiction-writing is to captivate the reader's imagination and allow him or her to escape into the fantasy of your story while still believing the events could, at least in that context, occur.

Readers want to pick up a book and lose themselves in a fantasy world, a mystery, or a romance. They will believe that a farmhouse from Kansas can travel through time and space and squash a wicked witch in the land of Oz. Or that an elderly English spinster will solve the mystery and save the day, because Miss Marple always catches her man (or woman). Can a Civil War-era southern belle rebuild an entire plantation all on her own? We believe that if anyone can, Scarlett O'Hara is the girl for the job. We willing suspend our disbelief because the author makes us believe and makes us want to believe. Through the development of characters, plot, and setting we accept the story the writer delivers and find ourselves fully invested in following it through to The End.

In recent months, I've read two unrelated stories where the heroine died (or appeared to die) but was actually in a herb-induced very deep sleep. In one case the reader knew the plan ahead of time and in the other the reader learns of the plot twist as it occurs. In both cases the authors excelled in creating a believable back story, conflict, and tone as to make the scenario not only credible, but entirely thrilling.

So, I've been thinking about this whole suspension of disbelief business and I am curious about your thoughts, too. What scenarios have you read that seemed unbelievable but the author developed so well that it made perfect sense for the story? What books would you recommend with those captivating plot twists that leave you holding your breathe and racing to the last page? And what plot turns have you read that just left you feeling disappointed and shaking your head. ( Please, in this case, don't use the titles or the author's names.)

We know that many of the things in the stories we read aren't plausible, but, when the author does it right, we just can't seem to get enough.

Nikki Studebaker Barcus