Plot - the 4 Mover/Shakers of a good one!

I'm a writer of stories. I put people in situations, place a number of obstacles (life-threatening or otherwise) in their paths, and then travel with them on the journey of overcoming them (or not).
Besides the description of places and people and things to set the scene for my characters, the most important thing to get my story moving is plot. What happens to whom; where and how; when and with what...

When I consider plot, I look at a number of elements:
1. Credibility: As much as I like to shock and surprise, whatever happens to my characters must be credible. If my story is about a cat.... the cat cannot go up to someone and punch them. Cats just wouldn't do that. I know that sounds really stupid but I'm exaggerating the point here in order to get it across. So, keep it credible. Imagine yourself in your characters shoes and ask the question 'Would they do/think/say that?'

2. Tension: Whilst I'm a huge fan of scary stuff, and creepy things, I quickly get bored of what I call 'gratuitous tension'. This is where the writer includes bog standard, nail-biting stuff that simply isn't credible (there's that word again), simply in an attempt to keep anxiety levels peaked. Example: Girl on her own in a house, bad storm outside, its dark. Hears howling wolves. Goes outside to check it out.... Now, who in their right mind would do that? I've immediately lost respect for her; she's an idiot!

3. Pace: My aim on each page is to get you to read it and turn it. I want you to be desperate to know where the story goes and what happens. Years ago, books were filled with flowery descriptions of hills and dales for three pages just to get you to picture the scene your character was sitting in on her picnic blanket. Today, in the digital age we live in, everything is more immediate. We want a lot of stuff to happen and not all in the last few pages.

4. Hook: I aim to put one at the end of each chapter. Its the question that fills your heart with dread at the thought of what might happen to the hero/heroine. Its the sentence that raises doubts as to the direction the character is taking. One of my favourite authors, Peter James, is a master at the cliffhanger hook.

Make no mistake, I do not consider myself a literary genius. I have read people who write well; who pen classics and become famous for them. So, you've picked up one of my books and you're reading it.... what's going to hold you? As much as I'd love it to be the fluid individuality of my prose, that is highly unlikely to be what grips you.

I'm counting on it being the story...

A Scene is a Story

I enjoy a good movie just as much as anyone, but in addition to the entertainment value, I love seeing how they tell a story in each scene. A scene doesn't need to pick up exactly where a previous one left off. Nor does it have to give every detail - only those details relevant to the particular storyline. Our minds fill in the gaps in milliseconds anyway. It is all the scenes put together that tells the entire story, and each scene moves the whole story along in some small way (or big one).

It takes some concentration and imagination to get this right and for myself I can say, its a work in progress. Every time I do it, I get better at it (I think!).

With Sedgwick Green, I completed my beat sheet, and a broad outline of all 60 scenes (bare bones of the story). But I found that as I've started to write, the story has evolved and become more complex so I keep fine-tuning and then writing more, and then stepping back and fine-tuning again. I want to get each scene to move the story forward in a 'wow' way so my readers cannot put the book down.
The addition of a hook at the end of each scene (or most), I think I can add in on the rewrite when I have all the plot twists and turns worked out. Ideally they need to pull the reader forward to something that could affect the character in the future, or a consequence of an action - theirs or someone else's.

This way of writing is new to me, and I have yet to find my rhythm. At the moment its a discipline that I do everyday. I imagine that as the bits of the story come full circle in my head, it will flow easier. During the rewrite (after the first draft is complete), I'll fill in the areas where I need to conduct research or drill down into something more deeply.

3 Ways to get past Writer's Block

If (like me over the last few months) you procrastinate about flowing your stories/ideas/thoughts onto a page... its called Writer's Block. If, every single other thing/action has to have priority over your writing... that's Writer's Block. If, you promise yourself you'll schedule to do it when everything else is done, and you can only 'relax' when there is nothing else to cloud your mind...you have a case of Writer's Block.

It's not about getting everything ticked off your to do list before you put pen to paper ... nor is it about being in a position to to relax before you can be creative. You may be naturally gifted at writing or like 99,9% of us, you need to develop the skill.Anyone can develop a skill, its just takes perseverance. However for it to elevate it to an art form, you need to add passion.

So, if you have a yearning to write, love writing, can't live without writing, feel like your life is lacking something if you don't write.... then you have the passion and you can become a superb writer. Just stick with it.

Here are 3 simple ways to get past writer's block:

1. Schedule 10 minutes a day where you write freehand about anything that comes to your mind. For those ten minutes, do nothing else but write.

2. Carry with you a small book to capture ideas. As writer's, our brains are constantly firing with ideas. Jot them down in your little book.
3.  Breaks your story/book into baby steps. Create a broad outline of what happens where and when and to whom for the whole book. Then break this into sections. Then focus on the sections.  Now its not such an overwhelming task. See Larry Brooks site for tips.

Most important though, when I write, I feel great, I lose time, I am totally immersed in what I am doing. That's passion. Remember it, because it feels good.