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What's up people! I just finished a plot sequence for a book, Idk if it's a novel, novelette, or what yet, but the plot seems to have given me a compass. Question: How does plot structure play its part in your story? Do you jump in and plot later, or vice versa?

Personally, I never plot out a story. I just jump in and see what happens, though I do have a few ideas in mind as to what I want to happen. More often that not, what ends up happening is so far removed from what I had originally thought that I'm glad I didn't plan things - I find it makes for a far more natural, organic story.

Depends on the length of the piece. If it's a short story, it usually jumps into my fevered brain, ha ha, in one fell swoop and I only need to write what's there in the mind.

However, for my novels (2 published, 3rd in progress), they are too long and complex for me to write without some planning or outlining. I've found that I'm about average as novelists go -- I don't create a detailed plot ahead of time, but I do create a general outline that contains essential plot points. Some writers outline meticulously, some don't outline at all. I'm about in the middle of the pack.

The fact that i'm writing mysteries (modern private detective) means that I must have a good plot with which to entice and "mystify" the reader. This necessarily requires a more detailed sequence of events ahead of the actual writing word-by-word.

That said, I've often modified my story line as I've moved along, and sometimes even had to go back and revise earlier chapters.

I jump in with the idea that sparks the story. As it starts to take shape, I figure out what kind of story it is and get a general idea of what the conclusion will be. That usually spurs a brainstorm that leads me to take the time to make notes laying out some plot details - not an official outline, but ideas of what is to (or could) happen, getting safely written down so I don't forget them later when they're needed!

It sounds like majority rule is to plan slightly and kind of improvise the rest. I'm doing that now, having only structured a six point plot, and minor details. I have also started a character bio, and this seems to be a crutch in regards to creativity. Do any of you ever find it difficult to write compelling characters without a bio?

For longer works, I know where I am beginning and where I want to end up. From there, I have I list a few key points I want to visit and what I plan to accomplish; however, I am open to detours if they are compelling. The plot structure is bare-bones.

Like Modern Times, shorter stories don't have any plotting before hand. Instead, once I have an idea and a character, I try to walk around inside the character's head for as long as it takes for the story to deepen. I call this my percolating phase. When it is ready, I am usually able to pour out the story in one sitting. While it will still need some revision and editing, I usually find there is no need for heavy rewriting on these stories.

@KEW: Do you character bio for your longer works?

Plot is literally the hardest thing for me. What I end up doing is thinking of major points I wanna hit and then just throwing words against paper to get to where the story is going. Plotting a story is the longest part of it and in some ways the least fun part. I really enjoy making in-depth characters.

RILENTLISS wrote:@KEW: Do you character bio for your longer works?

Absolutely. I write a short bio of each major character. After all, I'm human, and I cannot remember each detail of a character. So I use that bio as a reference point. For example, if I were to say that my principal character, my private detective's ex-wife now lives in Denver, and then in a later chapter, she calls him from Boulder, that would possibly upset a reader. So I put all that info into the bio for subsequent use.

It's just good sense.

RILENTLISS wrote:@KEW: Do you character bio for your longer works?

I do, but not in the typical way. I don't lay out the bio first, filling in the blanks before I start to write. I do get a feel for the characters, just as I do for the shorter stories by going about my daily routine in their head, so to speak. (My kids hated when I was in my one character's head. She was a perfectionist. ). Then, I put down what I learn.

I have also skimmed through the questions on bio sheets to see if one of them triggers an idea. That is how I discovered where and how my aforementioned character met her future husband. I was glancing through the questions with him in mind and it asked if he had a scar. Immediately the scene (not included in the story but an important part of their backstory) came to mind.

I also like to run my characters through personality tests. I am particularly fond of enneagram testing.

I guess I am either a plotting pantser or pantsing plotter, depending on the day of the week.

-- 08 Apr 2014, 16:01 --

moderntimes wrote:

RILENTLISS wrote:@KEW: Do you character bio for your longer works?

Absolutely. I write a short bio of each major character. After all, I'm human, and I cannot remember each detail of a character. So I use that bio as a reference point. For example, if I were to say that my principal character, my private detective's ex-wife now lives in Denver, and then in a later chapter, she calls him from Boulder, that would possibly upset a reader. So I put all that info into the bio for subsequent use.

It's just good sense.

Right. I do have a Notebook (capitalized because I use Microsoft Notebook for it) for my stories. So, I add their facts and bios into there. This also helps since many of my stories (short and long) take place in the same community, or have ties to that community. Primary characters in one work may become secondary or tertiary characters in another. I need to keep them straight some way. Still, my method is more laid back than many writers I know, who plan out the minutia of a character before beginning. I think I would become bored quickly if I did that.

Thanks all. I'm working on a character bio for a dude in my story, but with every question I find myself asking myself how far back I should go. detail about a parent leads to another detail about how they met, leads to another detail etc. The overall experience is pretty rigid too. But moderntimes you do have a point, no sense in changing the details later in the book.

-- 12 Apr 2014, 14:00 --

@KEW: I like your way of getting in touch with your characters. Personality tests? I'm starting to feel like I don't take my characters seriously enough. Lol. Anyway, I'm interested to see how your characters turn out. Do you have any finished work I could read?

KEW, I've tried MS-Notebook too, and eventually just went ahead and used Word for everything. Regardless, yes, it's good to keep some sort of reference.

I'm especially careful of course for my novels (2 published, 1 in progress) because there are repeating characters, as with any series novels. My bios however are purely factual, not emotional, in that I don't keep notes about the characters' feelings, just their hard facts, such as when they were born, where they went to school, etc.