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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

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ALLWRITEFICTIONADVICE
A D V I CEONCR EA TI V EWR I TI NG

SUNDA Y, 24 A UGUST 2014

HowtoMakeReadersCareAboutYourStory
Itsanageoldquestion.Howdoyoumakeyour
readerscareaboutyourstory?
Itstheultimategoalforwriters,tomaketheirreaders
careenoughaboutthestoryandcharacters,because
thatiswhatmakesthemreadyourbookandcontinue
readingrightuntiltheend.
Thereisntastraightforwardanswerforthisonesimply
becausethereissomuchinvolvedintheprocessand
lotsforawritertoconsider.
Itsnotreallyaboutthestory,perse,becausethestory
canbeaboutanything,andsoitbecomesasecondary
thing,butitshowthewriterusesthecharacterswithin
thestorythatmakesuscareaboutwhathappensand
thereforeitmakesuscareabouttheoverallstory.We
wantthecharacterstoreachtheirgoal,wewantthem
towintheday,wewantthemtosucceed,andthats
becausewecareaboutwhathappenstothem.
Howdowecare?
Firstly,youshouldwritethestoryforthereader,not
yourself.Thisisvitallyimportant.Itisnotyourstory.So
manywritersstillwritewiththeattitudeofwhyshouldI
careaboutwhatthereadersthink?
Theyshouldcare,becausethestorybelongstoyour
maincharacter,andultimately,toyourreader.Ifyou
writewithoutthereaderinmind,youwillfailtoengage
themandyourstorywillfail.Youarewritingforthem.
Sowhatelsecanwritersdotomakereaderscare?
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

A LL WR IT E FICT ION
A DVICE

IsBackstoryNecessary?
CreatingLastingImages
TrustYourMemories
ReadingYourMSSOutLoud
SortingFactfromFiction

WE LCOME T O A LL WR IT E

Soyou'veembarkedonyour
fictionwritingjourney.
It'soneofthehardestthingsto
docreateawhole,believable
worldforotherpeopletoenjoy,
especiallyifyou'renewto
writing.It'salsooneofthe
loneliestjobs,especiallywhen
thereisnohelporadviceor
support...sorightheretherewill
behandyarticles,examplesand
simplestepbystepguidesto
helpmakethecreativeprocess
thatmucheasier.

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S

Thisnewdeliciouslydark
anthologyisoutnow,witha
rangeofstunningfemalewriters
toscareanddelightinequal
measure.Iamprivilegedto
haveeightshortstories/poems
publishedinthisbook,soifyou
likeyourdamesalittledarkand
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Writersneedtocreatesomethingknownas
immediacy,rightfromtheopeningchapter,inorderto
persuadethereadertoinvestemotionallywiththe
story,sojumpingstraightintoalifechangingmoment
forthemaincharacter,orcreatingaterribledilemmato
introducethebasisofthestoryalwaysworkswell.

dangerous,thisisthebookfor
you.

NOW A VA ILA BLE ON

A MA Z ON

Immediacyiswhatconnectsthestoryandcharacters
tothereader.Inotherwords,readerswantamain
charactertheycansympathisewith,feelemotion
towardsordinarypeoplewhoarethrustinto
extraordinarysituations.Theyarenotspecialtheyare
justlikeyouandme.
Butthedifferenceliesinthejourneytheytake,the
overallstory,andwhathappenstothem.Andto
achievethatwehaveconflict.Allwritersshould
understandthefundamentalprincipleofconflictand
howitworks.
Characters+conflict=tensionanddrama.
Withoutconflict,thereisnotensionordramaoraction.
Thatmeansthereisnostorytotell.Andreaderslove
drama.
Conflictcreatesallsortsoftensionsandatmosphere,it
createsdramaticsituationsandthatmeansthereader
willwanttoknowwhathappenstothemaincharacter,
soconflictintheformofanantagonistandplentyof
dilemmashelptodrawemotionfromyourreader,it
makesthemsympathiseandempathisewiththe
charactersstruggles.Theybecomeemotionally
attachedtoyourcharacters.Andthatmeanstheycare.
Theotherthingtoconsideris:whatisatstakeforthe
maincharacter?Whatwilltheylose?Howwouldit
affectthemandthestory?Willtheprotagonistlose
someonetheylove?Willtheyloseafortune?Willthey
losetheirhouse?Theirjob?
Thehigherthestakes,themorechanceyourreader
willcareaboutwhathappensandtheseissueswilllure
thereaderintothestorybecausetheywillreadonto
seewhathappens.Theyhavetoknowwhathappens.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

FebruaryFemmesFatalesThe
Book

WIS E WOR DS ...

Writingislikebeingmarried
youhavetoworkhardat
maintaininghappinessand
equilibrium,butinvariablyone
alwaysendsupinthedog
house.

A BOUT ME
A J HUM PA GE
UNIT E DK INGDO M

I'vebeenwritingfor
over25yearsand
startedoutinthe
publishingindustry.I've
publishedarticles,studyguides,
poems,flashfiction,short
storiesandanovel.Ialsowork
fulltimesoI'mALWAYS
working.
V IEW MY CO MPL ETE PR O F IL E

BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Howwillyourcharactersovercomesuchhighstakes?
Willtheycompromise,willtheysacrificesomething,will
theydosomethingmomentous?Willtheychangeasa
person?
Thinkaboutitweallhavesomethingtolose.So
shouldyourcharacters.Andthatswhatmakesuscare
becausethecharacters,too,careaboutwhat
happens.
Anotherimportantthingthatmakesthereadercare
aboutthestoryisthecharactersyoucreate.Theyhave
tobelikeable,almostreal,people.Asalready
mentioned,theyshouldbepeoplewecanconnectwith
becausetheyareordinarytheyhavefaultsandflaws,
andtheymakemistakes,justlikeus,buttheyhave
beenforcedintoasituationandhowtheytackleitand
overcomeitbecomestheirsandourstory.

NowavailableonAmazonKindle
UKandUS

BLOOD A ND GUT S
A NT HOLOGY

Aherodoesnthavetobeheroictomakethereader
likethem.Theyarehuman,andthatmakesthem
vulnerable.Suchvulnerabilitiesmakeusconnecttothe
character.Whatthosevulnerabilitiesareisdowntoyou
asawriter.
Onethingtoremember:charactersshouldneverbe
perfect,becausepeopleinreallifearenot.Thereisno
suchthingasperfect.
Lastly,relatablethemeshelpmakethereadercare,
too.Andthatsbecausereadersfacethesamethings
inreallife.Wecanrelatetoloveorhate.Wecanrelate
toforgiveness,orlackofit.Wecanrelatetodeathand
life.Wecanrelatetopainandloss.Wecanrelateto
justiceandretribution.Allthesethemeshavetouched
thelivesofprettymucheveryoneinsomewayor
another,sothethemesinyournovelwillhelpthe
readerconnecttothestory.

YOUASCAREDYCAT?Now
availableatAmazon

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S S T OR IE S

Withalltheseaspectsinplace,youshouldhaveno
problemismakingthereaderwillcareaboutyour
charactersstory.
Tosummarise:

http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Thestoryisforthereader,notthewriter.
Createimmediacyconnectwiththereader.
Createconflict=tensionanddrama.
Makesuretherearehighstakesforyourmain
character.
Createbelievable,likeablecharacters,peoplewe
canrelateto,peoplewhoarenotperfect,but
peoplewhohavetheirownvulnerabilities.
Relatablethemeshelpyourreaderconnectwith
thestory.
Inessence,whyshouldthereadercareaboutyour
story?Becausetheyretheoneswhowillreadinand
enjoyitandcomebackformore,timeaftertime.
VisittheFeardomclickthepic

Nextweek:Howmanycharactersinastoryistoo
many?
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S UN D A Y, A UG US T 24, 2014
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S T YLIS H BLOGGE R A WA R D

SAT URDAY,16AUGUST 2014

WhatMakesaBadWriter?
Weveallbeenbadwritersatsomepoint.Beingabad
writerisallpartoftheritualofbecomingagoodwriter.
Everyonestartsoutabadwriterandbecomesagood
writerovertime.(Goodwriterswillalsoknowthatgood
writingisntformedinstantlyittakesyearsof
practice).
Buthowcanyoutellabadwriterfromagoodone?
Howdoyouknowifyouareabadwriter?
Themaindifferencewithgoodwritersandbadwriters
isthatgoodwritersarealwayslearning,always
developingandarealwaysopentofeedback.Good
writersknowtheirlimitationsandtheirskilllevels,and
theyrealwaysstrivingtobecomebetterthebestthey
canbe.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

BLOG A R CHIVE

2015(8)
2014(46)
December(2)
November(5)
October(2)
September(4)
August(4)
HowtoMakeReadersCare
AboutYourStory
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Badwriters,however,areadifferentbeastaltogether.
Badwritershavenorealgraspoftheirlimitations,they
presumetoknoweverythingthereistoknowabout
writing,withouttheexperiencetobackitup.Butevenif
theyhavethreeselfpublishedbooksonAmazon,it
doesntmakethemanexpertonfictionwriting.Itjust
meanstheyhavealongwaytogo,becausebeinga
goodwritercantakeyears,evendecadestoachieve.

WhatMakesaBadWriter?
SelfpublishorTraditional?
EverythingYouEver
WantedtoKnowAbout
Subplots
July(4)
June(4)
May(5)

Onlybadwritersassumetheyhaveasuperiorlevelof
writingexcellence.Goodwritersneverassumeit,they
earnit.

April(3)

Also,badwritersdontunderstandtheconceptof
constantlyeditingandrewritingandtheneedtopolish
to(almost)perfection,somethingthatsrequiredbefore
itentersthepublicdomain.Mostsimplydonthavethe
patienceforsuchthings.

January(4)

Goodwriters,ontheotherhand,willreadthroughand
edittheirworkseveraltimestoeliminateerrorsandplot
flawsandtheywillhavethepatiencetodosountilthe
workistrulyready,untiltheyhaveaqualitypieceof
work.

March(5)
February(4)

2013(49)
2012(48)
2011(50)
2010(32)

T WIT T E R

YoucanfindmeonTwitter:@AJ
Humpage

Badwritersdontneedtogothroughallthis,theyre
alreadyexcellent.
Thisisturnleadstothearrogancefactor.Thereis
nothingmoreunbecominginfictionwritingthatawriter
whoisarrogantandhasanattitudetogowithit.More
oftenthannot,thosewhoarehaughtyand
overconfidentaresimplynotasgoodastheythink.And
moreoftenthannot,thisnotionisprovenwithwhat
theyactuallywrite,simplybecausetheiregohas
overshadowedanyexistingrawtalent.
Goodwritersknowthatperfectionisnotattainable,but
thenextbestthingis,sotheyalwaystrytoachieve
this.Atthesametimetheywillacknowledgethatno
oneisperfect.Thatswhytheyarealwayslearning,
becausewritingisaconstantlyevolvingprocess.They
knowthattobebetterwriters,theyhavetolearnand
evolve.Thatshowweallbecomenotjustgoodwriters,
butgreatwriters.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

FOLLOWE R S

S UBS CR IBE T O
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Abadwriter,however,willdismisstheneedtolearn.
Theyalreadyknowallthereistoknow.Theydont
realisethattobeabetterwritertheyhavetolearn.
Haveyoueverreceivednegativefeedbackthatmade
yougetangryanddefensive?Theansweristhatweall
have.
Whatwewriteandhowwewriteitwontbelikedby
everyone.Goodwritersacceptandunderstandthis
concept.Butbadwritersdontunderstandthisatall.
Negativefeedbackismetwithevenmorenegativity
andsometimesthesewriterswillbecomeinvolvedin
onlineargumentswithotherwritersorengageinemails
withthosewhomayhaveofferedthenegative
feedback.Itsextremelyunprofessional.
Thisleadstothatotherbignegativeforwritersthe
dreadedrejection.Goodwritersacceptthattheyare
notperfectandthatrejectionsareapartofthewriting
process.Theywillalsotakeonboardthefeedbackand
commentsinaconstructivewayandtheywillexamine
wheretheycanimprovetheirworkanddeveloptheir
writingskillaccordingly.
Badwriterswont.Theywontseerejectionasan
opportunitytoimprove.Theywontseethepositivein
it.Theywillthinkitsapersonalattackonthemanda
rejectionoftheirgenius.Theywillbecomeangryand
defensive,evenpetulant,andthatarrogancewilljust
grow.
Ifyoucannotcopewithrejectionorcriticismofyour
writing,thenunfortunatelythatmakesyouabadwriter.
Anotherthingisthatbadwritersdontunderstandthe
conceptofprofessionalism.
Andthatbringsmetothesubjectofsubmittingworkto
agentsandpublishers.Thegoodwritersamongstus
willpayvitalattentiontotheguidelinesofthepublishing
houseortheagentsrequirements,becauseguidelines
arethereforareason.
Abadwriterwillignoretheseguidelines.Thenobody
cantellmewhatIshouldandshouldntdoattitude
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

Posts
AllComments

MOS T POPULA R A R T ICLE S

Chapter&NovelLengths
Justhowlongshouldachapterbe?
Whatsthebestlength?And
doesanovelhavetofitintoa
setamountofwords?Theseare
justtwoo...
Flashbacks
Whatisaflashback?Flashbackis
oneofthoseusefultoolsthata
writercanusetoenhancea
story.Itenrichesand,ina
sense,nourish...
Subplots
Imoftenaskedbynewwriters
howsubplotsshouldevolve.
Somewritersfindsubplots
difficulttogettogripswhile
othersareputofftry...

WOR K S OF A J HUMPA GE

http://ajhumpage.blogspot.com
ThrillersChillers'n'Killers

SHA R E IT

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

wontwashwithpotentialpublishers.Ifyoucantbe
botheredtofollowinstructions,thendontbotherbeing
awriter.
Lastly,thenewphenomenonofshamelessself
promotionhasbecomeanuisance.Thepesterpower
ofselfpublishedwritersisntendearing,itsannoying.
Andthelookatmeandmyfantasticnovelconstant
promotiononeveryavailablemediumwontwin
readers.
Goodwriterspromote,buttheyalsoengagewith
potentialreaders,theyaskquestions,theyanswer
questions,theyhaveopendiscussionsabouttheir
writing,theyusethelikesofTwitterorFacebook,
Goodreadsorwritingforumstonetworkandsocialise
andgenerateinterestinaproductiveway.
Whattheydontdoisselfishlyspamthehelloutof
everyone.Andthatspreciselywhatabadwriterwilldo.
Badwritersarenotbotheredaboutnetworkingor
socialisingorengagingindiscussionsabouttheir
writingorindeedanyconstructivefeedback.Theyjust
wantthesales.

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Ultimately,abadwriterisonethatdoesntlistenand
thereforeneverlearns.So,areyouoneofthem?
Nextweek:Howtomakeyourreaderscareaboutyour
story.

AJ Humpage
Author and artist

PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S A TUR D A Y, A UG US T 16, 2014

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SAT URDAY,9AUGUST 2014

SelfpublishorTraditional?
Therehasbeenalotofdebaterecentlyaboutwhether
anauthorshouldgodownthetraditionalpublishing
routeorwhethertoselfpublishthroughthelikesof
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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AmazonorCreateSpace.
Whatevertheauthordecides,thesetwoprospectsoffer
differentprosandcons.Thereisacertainelementof
thequalityofwritingandprestigewithtraditionally
publishedbooksthatisnotyetpresentwithself
publishedbooks,somanyauthorsstillpursue
traditionalpublishing,despitethelureofbecomingself
published.
TraditionalPublishing
Despitewhatthenaysayersmightthink,traditional
publishingisstillverystronganditisstillimportantto
writers.
Findinganagentisusuallythestartingblockformost
writerswishingtolookforthetraditionalpublishedpath.
Otherssubmittheirworktopublishersdirect,whether
largepublishinghousesorsmallindiepublishers.
Itcanbealong,drawnoutprocesstogetonthat
publishingladder,soanywriterwhowantstopursue
traditionalpublishingmustbepatient,determinedand
shouldgrowaverythickskin.
Pros
Traditionalpublishingoffersprestigeandacertain
amountofquality.
Thereisawiderdistributionofsaleablebooks
andthereforeanexpectationofmoreexposureor
publicity
Manypublishersofferanadvancetheamount
variesdependingonhowwelltheythinkyour
bookwillsell.
Theyeditthebook,polishitandprovidethecover
artworkforit.
Theauthormaybeexpectedtoparticipateina
fewmarketingdrives,muchofthemarketingis
providedbythepublisherbecausetheyhavethe
advertisingpower.
Itcouldhelpyoutobecomeawellknownauthor.
Cons
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Itsextremelyhardtobreakinto
Ittakesanythingbetween12monthsto18
monthsfortheworktobepublished.
Theyhavealotofpoweroverthewayyourbook
shouldbepresented,especiallywithcover
design.
Theymaymakesomechangestoyourwork,
includingchangingthetitle.
Ifyouhaveanagent,youhavetopayAgents
fees.
Youmayendupwithfewerroyaltiesthanyou
expected.
Manyfirsttimeauthorsmakeverylittlemoney.
Publishersrarelymakemoneyonfirsttime
authors,andsoonlyproduceshortprintruns
becauseofthecostofmakingandprintingthe
books.
SelfPublishing
Selfpublishingcanmakeanauthorofanyone.And
thatisnotnecessarilyagoodthing.
Thisplatformallowsanyonetowritesomethingand
publishit,regardlessofexperienceorknowledge.For
manywriterswhohavestrugglesforyears,itisvery
alluring,becausefinallytheyhavesomethingtangible,
theycanpublishtheirworkandcallthemselvesan
author.
Thedrawback,ofcourse,isthattheemphasisisonthe
wordeveryone.Andunfortunately,noteveryauthor
canactuallywritetoastandardthatwouldbe
consideredacceptableinthetraditionalsense.The
quality,atpresent,isextremelydirebecauseauthors
justhaventtakenthetimetolearnaboutcreative
writingandallthatitentails.
Writersmusthaveadetailedknowledgeofthecraft
howtostructuresentences,howtodeliverdialogue
properly,howtousethecorrectgrammarandsyntax,
howtobalancenarrativeanddescriptionwithdialogue,
howtoweavesubplotsandthemes,howtomanagea
plotfromstarttofinish,howtocharacterise.Andthose
arejustthebasics.Mostselfpublishedauthorsdont
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

understandmorecomplexconceptssuchas
foreshadowing,symbolism,metaphor,layering,
flashback,correctexposition,tensesandPOV.
Mostimportantlytheyhaventlearnedhowtoevenedit
theirownbooktoapublishablestandard.Anyself
respectingauthorwhoissupposedtobegoodat
writingshouldbecapableofthis.
Thisiswhyover80%ofselfpublishedbooksare
writtensobadlybypeoplewhodontknowhowtowrite
anddontunderstandthebasics.
Pros

Selfpublishingmeansthatanyonecandoit.
Becauseitisdigital,therearenocostsinvolvedin
theactualpublishingofanebook.
Authorshavecompletecontrolofthecreative
process.
Authorscontrolwhatpricetocharge.
Authorscandecidewhatcoverarttheywould
like.
Publicationisalmostinstant.
Itmakesiteasyforauthorstogobackandapply
changestotheirbooks.
Itofferslargerroyaltyrates(butonlyifthebooks
sellinthefirstplace).
Cons
Becauseanyonecanselfpublish,thepotentialto
floodthemarketwithpoorlywrittenrubbish
increasesandtherebydamagesthereputationof
publishingingeneral.
Thenumbersofselfpublishedauthorsis
increasingdaily,meaningtheselfpublishing
marketisalreadysaturated.
Anyartworkorprofessionaleditingcomesata
cost,providedbycoverartistsandeditors.
Notalleditorsareexperiencedinediting,and
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becausetheywantyourmoney,theywillnot
necessarilytellyouthatyourbookisrubbish.
Fewauthorsmakealivingfromit.Thereturnsare
minimal.
Authorshavetodoalltheirownmarketingand
publicity.Itrequiresaconstantpushandtakesup
alotofanauthorstime.
Itsextremelyhardtogetbooksintobookstores,
andevenifyoudid,dontexpectwonderfulsales.
Aswithmostthingsinlife,thereareprosandcons.
Whetheranauthorwantstogodowntheself
publishingrouteorthetraditionalroute,eachone
shouldbejudgedonitsownmerits,butitisworth
rememberingthatA)peopledonotturnintowriters
overnightandB)noteveryonecanwrite.
Ifyouaredeterminedtoselfpublish,thenmakesure
thatyouhavewrittensomethingofsubstantialquality,
thatyouunderstandthefundamentalbasicsofcreative
writing,youvespentafewyearsatthecraftandhave
abasicgraspofthecomplexitiesinvolvedincreatinga
novel.
Ifyoudont,youllbeoneofthecountlessauthors
churningoutunreadablegarbage.
Ifyouwanttogofortraditionalpublishing,thenmake
sureyouvewrittenthebest,welledited,polishedpiece
offictionpossible,otherwiseyoumayfindthegoing
verylongandarduous.
Nextweek:Whatmakesabadwriter?
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S A TUR D A Y, A UG US T 09, 2014
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T UE SDAY,5AUGUST 2014

EverythingYouEverWantedtoKnowAbout
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Subplots
Ivetouchedonthesubjectofplotsinthepast,butlots
ofpeoplehaveemailedaskingtoknowmoreabout
them,sohereseverythingyouneedtoknowabout
them:
Whatarethey?
Thefirstthingtoknowisthattheyrenottheenemy.
Thesubplotisasecondaryplot(thinkofitasamini
plot)tothemainstory,anadditionalstorystrandthat
alsorunsparalleltothemainstory,orisinterwoven
withthenarrative.
Subplotsmustalwaysconnectandrelatetothemain
story.Theyplayasupportingroletothemainstory.Its
nousehavingasubplotaboutcharactersthatonly
brieflyappearinyournovel,becausetheywonthave
beeninthenovellongenoughforthereadertocare
aboutthem.Thesameistrueifyouhaveasubplot
aboutsomethingthathasabsolutelynothingwhatever
todowiththestory.Itwontmakesensetothereader,
anditwontmakesensetothestoryasawhole.
Whydotheyhappen?
Subplotshappenbecauseofthemainstory,not
becauseitmightbeagoodideatoaddinsomething
thatistotallyunrelated,oryouneedtofillthestorywith
extraunwantedpadding.Theyshouldariselogically
andorganicallyfromthemainstory,sotrynottoforce
themotherwiseyoullendupwithsomethingthatis
contrived.
Sometimestheyemergenaturallyduringwriting,which
couldbeanythingfromthesituationsthecharactersget
into,thebackstory,thecharacters,aflashbackoreven
thetheme(s).
Sometimesweknowbeforewestartthenovelthat
theremaybeoneortwosubplots,wemayhavesome
ideaswhattheyare.
Whatstheirpurpose?
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Subplotshavemanyfunctions.Primarilytheyarethere
tomaintainthereadersinterestandtoalsomovethe
storyforwardbyrevealingeithernewcharactersornew
informationwhichispertinenttothestory.
Theymaybeusedtoaddadditionalobstaclesand
problemsforthemaincharacterthesubplots
generallyinvolvesextrastufftheprotagonisthastosee
toandyetstillbeabletoreachhisorhergoalbythe
endofthenovel.
Theyalsohelpwithcharacterisation,allowingthe
readertoseethemaincharacterinadifferentway,
withrelationshipsandsituationsetc.
Anotherthingtoconsiderwithsubplotsisthatthey
layerandhelpbringnumerouselementstogether,
collectivelywovenintothefabricofthemainstory.
Theyenrichanovelwithcontextandcomplexity.
Doingthiswillmeanthatthereaderwillthenbecame
partofthedeepeningstorythroughbecausetheyare
privytonewparallelstorylines,whereasyourmain
charactermaynot.Thiscanaddsuspenseandtension.
Anotherreasonwritersusesubplotsistoallowthe
readerabreakfromthemainthrustofthestory,so
theycanbreatheandreflectonwhatshappenedsofar
beforereturningbacktothemainthread.
DoIhavetohaveone?
No,youdonthaveto.Therearenorulesthatsayyou
needone,butitjusthelpsthestoryoverallifyoudo
haveoneortwo.Theydoenrichthestory.
HowmanycanIhave?
Somestorieshavejustonesubplotothershavetwoor
three.Cleverandcomplexnovelsmayhaveuptofive
subplots.Again,therearenorules,justcommon
sense.
Writersmustrealisethatthemoresubplotsthey
incorporate,however,themorecomplexthewhole
storygetsandthemoreheadachesitwillcausetrying
tokeepthemfromwildlyunravellingintoabigmess.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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Onetothreesubplotsismorethanadequate.
WhatSubplotsshouldneverdo

Theyshouldneverbeforced,neverthrow
somethingintothestorybecauseyouthinkthe
storyneedsit.
Theyshouldneveroverwhelmortakeoverfrom
themainstory
Theyshouldneverleadawayfromthemainplot
andbecomelostinaseaofcomplexity
Theyshouldneverincludestuffthathasnothing
todowiththemainstory
Theyshouldneverbeaboutperipheralorwalk
oncharactersthatmakenoimpactonthestory
arc.
Theyshouldneverbestandalonestoriesthey
havetohaveaconnectiontothemainstory.
Theyshouldneverbeusedaspaddingtofillyour
storyout.Iftheydonthavepurpose,dontuse
them.
Remembertoresolveallsubplots
Themostimportantthingyouneedtodowithany
subplotistoresolveitbytheendofthenovel,
otherwiseyouwillleaveyourreaderwonderingwhat
happenedtothequestionsthatthesubplotposedby
beingthereinthefirstplace.
Thereisnothingworsethanfollowingasubplotandnot
knowingwhathappensattheend!
Makesurethatyoutieupthoselooseends.
Tosummarise:

Subplotsmustconnecttothemainstory.
Subplotsmusthappenforareasonandmake
sensetogetherwiththemainstory.
Subplotsshouldmovethestoryforward.They
shouldenrich,supportanddeepentheoverall
story.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_08_01_archive.html

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2/23/2015

AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2014

Subplotsshouldrevealinformationaboutthe
mainstory,thesituationorcharacters,which
readersshouldbecomeprivy.
Subplotsshouldkeepyourreaderinterested.
Subplotsmustalwaysberesolved.
Thereshouldideallybenomorethan23
subplots
Somepeopleviewsubplotsasdifficult,otherssee
themasachore,whenthey'reneitherofthesethings.
Asubplotaddstotheenjoymentofthestory,the
readercanbecomeimmersedinallthedifferent
threadsyoucreate,theywillappreciatethereismoreto
thestorythatfirstmeetstheeye.
They'renottheenemy.Instead,usesubplotstoyour
advantage.

Nextweek:Selfpublishortraditional?
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T TUES D A Y, A UG US T 05, 2014
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