Tag: Inspiration for writing plots

What’s the Plot Point?

What's the plot point?

What’s the plot point you can develop from this photo? You take it anyway you want–humorous, scary, poignant, suspenseful. In the comments, tell me your inspiration. Here’s mine.

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Somehow the woods look deader in March than in the fall. Maybe because all the fall color has been washed away in the winter snows. And with the overcast skies threatening spring snow or sleet, the woods appear even deader, if that’s a thing, on the day of the spring equinox.

Hitching the straps of the backpack, I head down the trail. Grandma said The Man with the White Umbrella can always be found on this trail on this day, when the boundary between the two worlds is equal and easy to pass from one to the other.

There he is, up ahead, his white umbrella startling against the lifeless browns and grays.

I break into a jog, my loaded backpack bumping my spine.

I have to reach him. Before he disappears for another six months.

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For more prompts for plot ideas, click here.

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Writing Fun with Plots

Writing fun with plots

How do you have writing fun with plots? Check out my suggestions below.

Fun Ideas for Plots

  • Play with the rules of a genre. What if the couple doesn’t end up together at the end of the romcom? What if the mystery isn’t solved?
  • Place your characters in a different genre. For example, if you’ve written fantasy stories, take the same characters and write about them in a contemporary, realistic story.
  • Underdog story. I love underdog stories. Create the under-est dog story you can think of, stacking the odds against your MC as high as you can.
  • Ridiculous quest. Create a quest with a ridiculous objective and then see how many absurd obstacles you can place in the characters’ path.

Fun Ideas for Plots within Your WIP

These ideas are to inspire you when you are working on a story that you can’t take a break from but would still like to have some fun while working on it.

  • Your MC loses something critically important.
  • The least likely character helps your MC somehow.
  • Your main character’s (MC) closest friend betrays him or her (I know that’s not fun for your MC, but betrayal is a powerful plot twist and can be fun for the writer)
  • Make your MC more vulnerable.
  • Your MC sees another character in a new light.
  • A hidden piece of family history is revealed. I’ve had fun with this one because my mysteries are built around my MC’s immediate and extended family.
  • Turn a plot point upside down. For example, my amateur sleuth gets a critical clue from cranky Old Man Whitaker. What if I have him lie to her? Or she gets the clue from her friend instead. What if her friend lies to her? Another example is your MC’s goal in the story. What if he or she achieves it in the middle of the story and it doesn’t accomplish what the MC thought it would?

For more ideas for writing plots, click here.

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Plots Points for NaNoWriMo

Plot points for NaNoWriMo

Need plot points for NaNoWriMo? Now that NaNoWriMo is more than half over, you may be running out of inspiration, especially when it comes to plot. For me, keeping a plot fresh is the hardest part of writing. Below are some suggestions to reignite inspiration as you head toward your goal for NaNoWriMo.

Let settings suggest plots twists.

A chase in a blizzard is different from a chase in torrential downpour. Shadowing someone in New York City is different from shadowing someone at a county fair. When you delve deep into a setting, the unique qualities of it will suggest plot points.

Let characters’ personalities suggest plot twists.

Do you have a character who doesn’t bother to filter her comments? Let that habit kick off a plot twist. An introverted character who keeps a secret could serve a similar purpose.

Fight stereotypes

If you have a cheerleader, make her a nice one. How would that change your plot? Turn your main character’s best friend–the quirky one with all the best lines– into an antagonist. Give your teen MC one parent who actually understands him. Fighting stereotypes can freshen your writing and produce potential plot points.

Have the main character lose something critical or gain something unexpected.

In my novel, A Shadow on the Snow, my teen detective Rae Riley is an amateur photographer. Shortly before her mother died, she gave Rae a camera. The camera is stolen during the story. That theft added so much to the plot.

Still need plot points for NaNoWriMo? Click here for more inspiration.

What do you do when you need fresh ideas for plot?

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NaNoWriMo Prompts for Plot

nanowrimo prompts for plot

My previous post was to encourage you to let your imagination soar during NaNoWriMo. My prompts for the month will help you with this task. First I have NaNoWriMo prompts for plot. Below are suggestions to bring propulsion to your plot if you find it bogging down.

  • Your main character makes a new friend.
  • Your main character makes a new enemy.
  • The antagonist makes a new friend or enemy.
  • Your main character loses something critical.
  • Your main character finds something unexpected, either helpful or harmful.
  • A friend reveals an unexpected trait. (This can be tricky because you want to surprise your reader, not shock them.)
  • Your main character discovers a new virtue or flaw. (This is especially believable if you write YA.)
  • Your main character does something he thinks is good but it turns out to be bad and vice versa.
  • The antagonist does something he thinks will hurt someone and it turns out to be good for that character.

Since I write mysteries, I’ll list some prompts to help you if you find difficulties with your mystery plot.

  • Your main character loses an important clue.
  • The first main suspect becomes a victim of a crime.
  • Your main character begins to suspect a friend or relative of the crime.
  • A friend or relative of your main character comes under a threat.
  • Officials make an arrest, and your main character thinks they have the wrong person.
  • If your main character has an ally, the two characters fight and go their separate ways, at least for a while.
  • A key witness changes her story.
  • People in authority pressure your main character to drop the investigation. Or to solve it quickly.
  • Your main character is injured. (Be careful with this one. If your main character is too seriously hurt, the focus of the story shifts to the injury and slows the pace. I read a mystery where the main character suffered so much from a concussion throughout the book that pretty soon I had a headache.)
  • A chase of some kind, to rescue someone or gain a clue.
  • Your main character tails someone, which can turn into a chase.

For more NaNoWriMo prompts, click here. What suggestions do you have for kick-starting a stalling plot?

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What’s the Plot Behind This Face?

what's the plot behind this face?

The county fair wrapped up recently in my part of the Buckeye State, so when I scrolled onto this photo, I was intrigued. The young man is upset and thinking something over. What’s the plot behind this face?

The music blaring from the speakers on the midway grows faint as I watch them. Tyler is almost a coat for Addie. He’s hanging all over her. She seems to like it. I think.

She sets aside the BB gun, and smiling, moves away from the game, weaving through a group of middle school kids.

Tyler drapes his thick arm across her thin shoulders. Addie giggles.

But is it because she likes it or because she doesn’t? How can a guy tell?

They stroll behind the Ferris wheel.

“Andy.” My little sister tugs on my arm. “We want more money for tickets.”

“Here.” I pull every bill from my wallet. “When you and Mark are done, wait by the bumper cars for me.”

“Where are you going?” asks Mark.

I point at the Ferris wheel and head for it, breaking into a jog.

For more plot prompts to inspire your writing, click here. Over at Writer’s Digest, find 25 plot twists and prompts.

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