How to Plot (For Better Stories)

Susan Sullivan, Odyssey Class of 2005

I think my plotting process is very similar to Stephen King's. He describes it as an archeological dig where you unearth the story bit by bit, not always knowing what exactly it is that you're digging up and hoping to heck that you can get it out of the ground in one piece without any parts missing.

I'd love to be able to outline an entire novel before writing it, but I've learned the hard way that I can not force a square peg into a round hole as much as I might like to to. I wind up just spinning my wheels and feeling anxious and frustrated when I go against my natural process.

I often know a little something about a work before I start writing it, but there are a lot of missing gaps. I might know the beginning and end, but not the middle. Or I might think I know the end but in the process of actually writing it, the course of the story evolves into something different than what I originally envisioned.

I find using David Morrell's Plot Talking method helpful during all phases of writing. Essentially I ask myself questions before, during, and after about the characters, their motivations, possible tangents and sub-plots, pretty much anything and everything story-related. I keep post-it pads and pens throughout the house and as I get an idea, I jot it down and slap it on the wall, then collect them when it's time to write. I also write notes and questions in the manuscript as I'm writing so that I don't have to try to find them later in a heap of notes and papers or among my many Word Files.

I make interesting connections and discover quite a bit as I go along. This part of the process reminds me of my experiences with acting. I learn about my character as we go through rehearsals, not before we begin rehearsals. Because acting is reacting, it's difficult to react when there's nothing to react to yet. And I find I don't really "know" my character until I have her costume. Then it all falls into place. So, as I'm writing, the characters' clothes and the setting details can lead to interesting discoveries and new characters can pop on the scene and audition for a part, characters I never would have even dreamed of during the outline phase (if I outlined).

Outlining in great detail for me is like playing with wooden soldiers. I'm on the outside looking down on a world and what plot I might come up with from this method feels about as wooden as the soldiers I'm maneuvering.

However, when I have a loose idea of the story, but then start writing it with only a general idea of the ways things will go, I feel like I'm taking on an acting role and getting inside the characters, and this is where I discover character motivations, reactions, and personality traits, and what ultimately leads me to the plot. So, while I may not use everything I write from this method, it feels real and organic and the characters feel like real people to me perhaps because I've gotten under their skin.

So, to sum it up, I'm more of an organic, mystical writer than a methodical outliner.