Tuesday's Writer's Tip More on Saving the Plot #MFRWauthor #BWLPublishing #Plot

Now some more hints about saving your plot. Since you've already looked at Who, When, Where, What, Why and How it's time to move on.

Each book has what are called significant events. First there is the meet. This very much belogs to romance but also to other genres as well. Think of a mystery. Perhaps the crime committer and the seeker don't meet in person but there is that moment when they become aware of each other. The same applies to other genres of fiction.

There are scenes of discovery - these are ones that advance the plot. Adding depth to the story. Crisis scenes bring the problems to a head and are needed to keep the story blowing. There is the black moment when the hero, hroine, villain find they have come to a point where all seems to be lost. This scene is one that must be played out to the full. This scene is followed by the Climas where the character ahs either given up or has found a different way to obtain their goal. The final scene is the resolution. Girl gets the boy and they are happy. Detective finds the criminal and solves the case. The space ship is saved. There are many kinds of resolutions.

Another thing you need to address when revising is the Vital Idea. Thi is a theme and a general one such as Love conquers all. The love of money is evil. I'm sure you can think of many others. Allof the major characters in the story must touch on this element. I wrote a book about Obsessions ruling people's lives. Each of the characters ahd some kindof obsession. The heroine was obsessed with never wanting to be in a relationship with a controlling man likeher dead husband had been. One of the characters is obsessed with revenge for something he believes happened. One is obsessed with drugs. Anotherwith a particular man. The book was fun to write.
Reactions is another place to look at your story and correct. Every action brings on a reaction. You must make these reactions true to the character and strong enough to make the reader believe.

Remember the goal set at the opening of the story can change. Sometimes sticking to the initial goal makes the story fall flat.

You also need to check if there are subplots in your story. These must be resolved before the major plot comes to a conclusion. Don't leave something hanging in the air.

The finl thing is the conflict. Are they strong? Does the internal conflict march with the external one or are they in opposition? The latter makes for a strong story. The internal conflict is often based on a secret the character fears will be revealed.

So keep these things in mind when you're revising and remember a Plot Is Just A Plan.