Writing yourself out of a plot hole
We all fall into plot holes, and it doesn't matter how many books you've published, it still happens.
When I get stuck, when I don't know what happens next, when I know I'm about to make a major screwup if I don't stop and get some perspective -- the best thing I can do is talk to myself on paper. I get away from my desk and computer, take a notepad & pen, and go sit in my chair in the corner of my office. (I'll have to post a pic of my new "plotting chair" -- it's mucho comfy.) I've been successful in convincing myself that what goes on the notepad can stay on the notepad, meaning that I'm not trying to be brilliant, I'm just trying to figure out what happens next or where the heck I went wrong, and fix it.
By taking the pressure off of myself, I've found out some pretty cool things I didn't know about my characters and story. Hidden relationships between two characters that I never knew existed as well as events in their past. Questions also come to mind that need to be answered. I write these down and then explore different answers and options. And if you're like me, you know your characters really well; this could be the cause of your stumble in the first place -- you're trying to make them say or do something that simply isn't them. I ask myself, "Okay, Raine is in this situation. You know her. What would she do? How would she react? What would she say?" The answers to those questions can not only get you out of a plot hole, but propel you into a whole new line of thinking. Both are very good things.
Some of what's coming in the few weeks:
When I get stuck, when I don't know what happens next, when I know I'm about to make a major screwup if I don't stop and get some perspective -- the best thing I can do is talk to myself on paper. I get away from my desk and computer, take a notepad & pen, and go sit in my chair in the corner of my office. (I'll have to post a pic of my new "plotting chair" -- it's mucho comfy.) I've been successful in convincing myself that what goes on the notepad can stay on the notepad, meaning that I'm not trying to be brilliant, I'm just trying to figure out what happens next or where the heck I went wrong, and fix it.
By taking the pressure off of myself, I've found out some pretty cool things I didn't know about my characters and story. Hidden relationships between two characters that I never knew existed as well as events in their past. Questions also come to mind that need to be answered. I write these down and then explore different answers and options. And if you're like me, you know your characters really well; this could be the cause of your stumble in the first place -- you're trying to make them say or do something that simply isn't them. I ask myself, "Okay, Raine is in this situation. You know her. What would she do? How would she react? What would she say?" The answers to those questions can not only get you out of a plot hole, but propel you into a whole new line of thinking. Both are very good things.
Some of what's coming in the few weeks:
- How to keep a story believable
- Need inspiration? Look into your characters' pasts and air that dirty laundry. ; )
- Listen to your readers
- Keep the action going
- Real dialogue for realistic characters
- Say no to "info dump"
- Start with a hook, end with a cliffhanger
- Let every scene advance the plot
posted by Lisa Shearin at
8:11 AM
4 Comments:
I write conversations with my muse. He's quick witted, snarky, and, after letting me whine a while, my "muse" (who, by the way, currently looks an awful lot like David Tennant)vocalizes all of the writer's block things that I already know. It helps.
Only on a writer's blog could I post this comment without coming across completely crazy...
LOL. I always tell people that I'm perfectly normal -- for a writer. ; )
agreed we are a little odd, my muse is nocturnal i think, all amazing ideas come at two o clock at night, she currently looks like a medevil female knight hmmmm...
Rachel, my muse wakes me up at 3:30 in the morning -- I think they're most definitely nocturnal. Too bad I'm not. ; )
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