McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Plots, roller-coasters, and mountains
prophet224:
Something Starbeam said in another topic got me thinking.
So wisdom says, rightly so "Don't build a roller coaster with only one hill." Basically as we plot, we want a series of growing struggles. If you look at your classic quest fantasy story, plot build-up (plaque build-up? I wonder if plot build-up can be cured with brushing<G>) tends to look more like a climb up a mountain with a slide on the other end.
Anyway, in my main project I have two split story lines - a space battle and a ground battle. They split off about... maybe 30%-40% in. There are a few extremely minor ups and downs before that, but I mean extremely minor, including a fake.
So basically the story is:
Prologue -> Intro -> Background and Setup -> Short plot fake and build -> Split plotlines -> 2-3 rise and fall sets per plotline -> Climax for each.
This means a good number of things are going on, but is this an 'out'? In other words, if there are six climax/fall sets plus two real climaxes, with much of one plotline being solid action without as much background as the other side, is this cheating?
How far into your story are you before you start hitting plot points or crises? Technically for me it is right away in the prologue, which sets up everything else, but I'm not counting that one.
Kali:
My current WIP sort of works like a backwards roller coaster.
Ok, y'know how in roller coasters there's a big hill at the beginning, then some smaller hills, somewhere in the middle there's a loop-de-loop, then some hills, and then you're at the station trying not to barf up your chili cheese fries? My WIP's like that, inreverse. Only hopefully without the nausea.
There's a minor conflict that's 3/4ths resolved (they were attacked, survived, but have no idea who attacked them, that kinda thing), a slightly bigger conflict that's 3/4ths resolved, an even bigger conflict that's 3/4ths resolved, then a plot loop-de-loop, a decent-sized resolution, then a couple of minor half-resolved conflicts and finally one last conflict and a huge resolution and you're at the station.
prophet224:
LOL - Yeah, that's about what I was thinking as far as the roller-coaster model.
How do you feel about split plot lines?
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: prophet224 on October 01, 2010, 11:42:40 AM ---How far into your story are you before you start hitting plot points or crises?
--- End quote ---
Depends on the story. Partway through the first sentence, in the thing I've just finished. (Not quite "Ford Prefect hit the ground running" but close.)
Starbeam:
--- Quote from: prophet224 on October 01, 2010, 11:42:40 AM ---Something Starbeam said in another topic got me thinking.
So wisdom says, rightly so "Don't build a roller coaster with only one hill." Basically as we plot, we want a series of growing struggles. If you look at your classic quest fantasy story, plot build-up (plaque build-up? I wonder if plot build-up can be cured with brushing<G>) tends to look more like a climb up a mountain with a slide on the other end.
Anyway, in my main project I have two split story lines - a space battle and a ground battle. They split off about... maybe 30%-40% in. There are a few extremely minor ups and downs before that, but I mean extremely minor, including a fake.
So basically the story is:
Prologue -> Intro -> Background and Setup -> Short plot fake and build -> Split plotlines -> 2-3 rise and fall sets per plotline -> Climax for each.
This means a good number of things are going on, but is this an 'out'? In other words, if there are six climax/fall sets plus two real climaxes, with much of one plotline being solid action without as much background as the other side, is this cheating?
How far into your story are you before you start hitting plot points or crises? Technically for me it is right away in the prologue, which sets up everything else, but I'm not counting that one.
--- End quote ---
The basic plotline you're describing is, to me, very reminiscent of how Star Wars stories tend to be set up. I don't think you have to worry too much, because different types of stories, as well as different POVs, will end up with different plotlines. You're plot will look different from mine because yours, from context, sound like a multiple third POV sci-fi/space opera where mine is a first POV urban fantasy. Both of which will differ from a traditional fantsay plotline.
I can't exactly say how my plot looks because I haven't stepped back to be able to look at it in terms of peaks and valleys. Plus my draft so far is very rough, to the point where there are lots of scenes in white rooms with invisible characters. Oh, and the plot point/crises thing? First sentence.
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