Novel plotting can be one of the most difficult tasks for a writer, especially if he or she isn't an organic linear writer. Those of us who can't write from word the first to word the last without some kind of help are often in need of tools to help us better work with our plot ideas. One of the tools I developed that helps me set the basics of my novels down is the Plotting Form. It helps create a road map for your novels. Why develop a road map? Because when you're planning a trip, it's always a good idea to know where you're going and how you're going to get there. Writing a novel is a journey, a journey that has a beginning and an ending, and has so many options along the way that it's a good idea to know what path you plan to take as you get from the beginning to the end.

Here are the standard ingredients for the plotting form (which you can download here in a zip file).

Your Main Story
Subplots
A Character List
Character Plots
The Resolution
Important Character Interactions
In Development
Ending Character Movements

The first thing you need to know is your main story. I generally write a 5-7 sentence paragraph summary for my novels. This summary will include your main character, by name if possible; the main conflict -- what your MC wants and the main obstacle to that want -- and several minor conflicts if desired; your antagonist, if possible; and the resolution. You need to know what you're starting with, who and what is the main focus of the middle, and where you're going. For many writers, the hardest part of this paragraph is the main conflict. This conflict must be specific so you can state it explicitly without hedging because it is this conflict that will help drive the novel. It must be big enough to cover an entire novel, and your protagonist must want the object of his desire as much or more than life itself - s/he must be willing to do whatever it takes to get the goal that helps create the conflict. The simplest way to state the conflict is Character + Want + Obstacle. From this simple formula, you should be able to write a sentence or two that clearly describes your story's conflict.

Once the main story is determined, it's time to develop subplots. A subplot is a story line that happens along with the main plot and contributes to it in some way. It is a "larger" plot (but not as big as the main plot) that gets interwoven through your narrative and adds depth to your story. A subplot should complicate the main plot in some way, contribute to the changes that will eventually occur in the protagonist, and be comprised of lesser events that add depth to the novel without sidetracking it. However, the subplots should not detract from the main plot. None of them should become the primary focus of your novel. The best subplots will have the following three characteristics:

» They derive from the main plot and eventually twist back to it at least once.

» They affect the outcome of the novel.

» They add variety to your main story in some way.

While your novel will, in a sense, have many subplots, you should create no more than two or three major subplots. Adding more than that scatters your novel's focus and makes it easier for you to stray from your main plot. Too many subplots will also make the novel too busy and harder for the reader to stay interested. On the other hand, while you don't want more than 3 subplots, you can always have less. More subplots means a higher word count and most genres prefer something under 100k. For other novels, the main plot is busy enough without cluttering it up with subplots. How many subplots you have comes down to the specific needs of your story.

With the main plot and subplots determined, you can now figure out your major players in the story -- the characters that will be seen the most through the book. While you don't necessarily need names, you do need enough development of those characters to determine their motivations and how and why they are in the story. Characters have to logically fit into the story and shouldn't take the story too far from where you want it to go. Many authors create some kind of profile for their characters, but for now you just need a few basics: a name or some kind of designation (MC's Mother), the character's purpose in the story, and at least one motivation for him or her. Every character should have some kind of baggage. So consider what goals or conflicts each character could have, his or her emotional/personal/historical baggage, and how that character specifically fits into the story. You can either list these characters directly on the plotting form with all the information, or just list the character names on the form and create a list of character information on another page.

From these characters will come the character plots. The goals and conflicts of your characters will create very minor plots that may or may not have an influence on the main plot or subplots. These plots will add depth to your character, but are not to detract from any of your major plots. How many character plots you have will depend on how many major characters you have, but not all major characters will have or need a character plot. Some characters are simpler than others, even if they are major characters, and that's okay. These characters add color without adding complication. For the ones who do make life more complicated, however, use your notes to create minor character plots based on each character's goals, conflicts, and motivations. Make sure that these subplots will not become major plots or overwhelm your main story or subplots in any way. Think of character plots as "icing on the cake" or background color that adds depth without distracting from the main story.

Now you're ready to cover what I call "the Bits" on the Plotting Form. The Bits are not plots, but they do add to your story by making it more 3-dimensional. You can also develop early foreshadowing of sequels and set your goal for your finish line by developing the resolution to your story conflict. The resolution should give closure to your novel's main plot. Something happens and changes the nature of the m.c.'s conflict: s/he wins, s/he loses, the conflict changes focus, etc. In novels that will be stand alone, you want a final resolution to this conflict and closure to the story. In novels that are a middle book in a series, your resolution CAN change the nature of the conflict so the conflict of this particular novel's main plot is resolved, but possibilities are opened up for future books. For final books and stand alones, the resolution must clearly and completely end the conflict that created the story line -- the MC achieves his or her goal and gets what he or she wants or doesn't and never will. There's no in between or hedging; the story question of will she or won't she is answered once and for all.

With the resolution in place to give you a target for your novel ending, you can start to consider how your main characters will react and interact with one another. Not everyone will (or should!) get along, and that's a good thing. The biggest ingredient of your novels should be conflict, conflict, conflict! If there's no conflict, you may have a story, but it won't be an interesting one. Not all interactions will be because the characters don't like each other, but two people won't necessarily work well together just because they're on the same side either. Consider how your characters will relate and how their goals and baggage might conflict, then begin to list character interactions for the main characters - the characters that will be present throughout most of the novel. By limiting the interactions you list to these major players, you keep the book from becoming unwieldy and keep your focus on the people your readers are going to be the most interested in. Also keep in mind which interactions that are going to be the most obvious, even if they have no affect on the story line. However, keep in mind that this is the place to explore how each character will interact with the others and to write down his or her strongest interactions. These are NOT plots; they are a tool to help you with their personalities. For any minor interactions that are not as important to your characters' personalities and plot development that you still want to keep in mind, write something brief under Remaining Character Interactions. This is where the really little stuff gets lumped together. This is also a good place to list possibilities that you aren't sure you'll be able to work into your novel.

The "In Development" section is for novels that are part of a series but are not the last book of that series. If your novel is going to be a stand alone novel, you won't need this section. While you definitely want an overall plot that links your series, and an overall plot for each individual book, first books in a series often create the set up for the next book. New characters are introduced, the antagonist is down but not out, and there may be some kind of foreshadowing. All of this must be handled carefully, however, or your reader will feel you didn't really resolve anything. You want to pique interest in the next book, but have him or her feel satisfied with the current story. End all the main conflicts of the current story and don't open new ones. Keep any set up for the next book very light. If you are working on a series, your protagonist should win out over the antagonist, at least for the time being, but not have brought the antagonist down. Your antagonist should live to play another day . . . and in the next novel. If you do kill off the antagonist, you better have another baddie waiting in the wings for the next novel, and have had that new bad guy have appeared at least briefly in this one. All the subplot conflicts should be closed at some point during the novel, but the main plot waits till the end to resolve. If you close/resolve the main conflict too early, you have nothing left to write for the rest of the novel -- it signals the end of the novel.

The final section is Ending character Movements. Just like you have a destination in mind for your plotline, you should have destinations for your characters: where do your characters need to be at the very end of the novel? You want to know exactly where each character will stand at the end of the story, and the answer to this question is found in the subplots and character plots and their resolutions. There are two requirements that should be met when determining where each character will be at the end of the novel: the character plot must be resolved, even temporarily, for that character according to the same rules as the main conflict for stand alones and novels that are a part of a series; and the resolution should result in a change for that character. However, there are still several different ways for a character plot (or any plot) to resolve:

» The character could have achieved what s/he wanted all along and be happy with it. By the same token, the character could discover that having what you desire isn't always a good thing.

» The character could not have gotten what s/he wanted but realizes that s/he is much happier without it. Or the character could realize that s/he will never get what s/he wants and be very unhappy with that. Not all endings have to be happy ones.

» The character could be told in some way that s/he has to wait for a more definitive answer. A wait signal, however, is not usually the best way to go because it makes the reader feel your story is incomplete.

» The best ending is a life altering change in the character. The character can be unhappy with that change, but should see the necessity of it. And the conflict should be resolved with either a "yes, you get what you want" or "no, you can't have what you want."

Using the plotting format presented here does not give you your actual story, but it does allow you to think things through and decide what pieces will be a part of your story. For writers who can't write straight through a novel without planning, this may be an important step in determining what will work for their story and what won't and help them plan the sequence of events that will make up the story itself. Where you go from here will be determined by what kind of writer you are. My next step is usually an outline that uses the Plotting Form as its backbone. From there I start filling in the pieces that help connect everything. Other writers may be able to go right into the writing from here. However you use it, you will know your story better and can have confidence that the story has the elements it needs.