Patterns in Plots is featured at eclecticwriter.blogspot.com as Tuesday's Writer's Tip #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Writing #patterns #Plot

 Plots and patterns go together nicely. No matter if you're writing a story with an action plot of a mind plot, there are patterns. Learning the patterns helps make the plot easy to follow. Actually a plot is like a road map leading the characters in a certain direction. Now they may react in physical ways or in mental ways but they need to follow the patters to reach the goal.

A number of my writer friends are confused about plot and so often they go off on tangents and stick mainly to the characters. This makes for great sketches but not a story. learning how to establish and follow a pattern shapes the plot and shows the characters to advantage.

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Tuesday's Writer's Tip - More on Patterns - For Contrast #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Writing #Patterns #Contrast

 Just what is meant by using patterns for contrast. The best way to explain this is to show the same character in similar scenes. Show the first scene with the cnaracter acting in a way that is less than heroic. Then show a similar scene with the character using the elements from the first scene suchas setting, the problem but having the character act in a way of redemption. Such as when writing a scene in a juvenile story where the main character does something that brings harm to another character. The second scene mirrors the first except the main character aides the other instead of harming hi. This is used by many writers. Dicken's Scrooge is an example. Go and read the story again and see how the scenes mirror Scrooge's actions but with redemption in the second similar scene.

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Tuesday's Writer's Tip - Patterns in Stories #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #writing #patterns #Stories

 As you read stories by other people look for the patterns in their work. There are many. There can be parallel plot lines where it seems as though there are two stories being told but somehow there is a connection between the two stories. I've used this in amny of my fantasy stories. There are also incidents that are shown like the opening scene being repeated perhaps with a variation in the final scene. I used this in one of my stories where the heroine arrives by plane as is supposed to be met. Instead she finds a phone call with directions as tohow to find her way to the place where the herolives. The final scene is also with her return and her landing at the airport to recieve a message. The twist is when she reaches the car rental area, the herois waiting for him. The  final scene mirrors the opening one. As you're writing, look at the incidents in your story and try to find ways to subtly connect them.

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Tuesday's Writer's Tip - Patterns in Books #MFRWAuthor #BWLPublishing LTD #Patterns #Books

There are many patterns fictional works fall into but I'll talk about four of the most common ones. Knowing the pattern you've chosen for your book can help as you plan the fictional journey for your characters.

The steady progression. In this version, the story gradually unfolds. Beginning with the introduction of the characters, setting and time. At the start the real meat of the story isn't shown but is gradually introduced. Background is woven in along with hints about what the characters will face and discover.

The spiking pattern. In this version the story rises to a high pean and then descends into a deep valley. The spikes show the main characters facing some kind of conflict. This can be physical or mental or a problem the character or characters must face. The valley shows the characters coming to grips with the decisions made. Each peak is higher than the last and the valley may be deeper or shallower. until the characters reach the end. Often this means a final dramatic scene, ending with a satisfactory ending to the story.

The roller coaster pattern. Here the tension begins with the first scene and continues until the story reaches a high peak. Then the story moves rapidly down to the ending giving the reader little time to do more but keep turning the  pages.

The circular pattern is one that's hard to accomplish. The final scene must echo the opening scene. Maybe not being completely the same scene but one that reflects like a mirror showing the same feelings and emotions as the opening scene. There may or may not be a happy ending but the ending must be satisfactory.

Wednesday -- On Plot -- Using Patterns

Plots often involve patterns and patterns can be repetitions. This doesn't mean using the same word over and over or showing the same seene again. We've all seen stories where some action is repeated again and again, like the eating or restaurant scened that really add nothing ot the story but seem to be there to add words. Maybe in days gone by the author was paid by the word and there could be some markets that still use this process but those kind of repetitions slow the story down. People want to see things happening.

So how can repetition of a pattern work. This can be done by choosing an article in the room where the scenes occur or a bit of dialogue that will remind the reader of what has happened before in that room. A repeated emotion also does the same thing.

Patterns are connedtions of one scene to the next. Often this means the same characters and sometimes not. There can be a pattern that's a repetition but with two different characters occurring in the same space or with the same emotions.

Many times in the repetition scene something changes. Maybe it's knowledge for the character or characters. Sometimes the repetition scene has a different outcome.

So build patterns with care and show how each scene in the story is connected to the next one by a clever use of repetition.