Word by Word

Practical insights for writers from Jessica P Morrell

NaNoWriMo Writers: plotting suggestions

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Nov• 01•18

A few suggestions:

  • Don’t edit–this is a first-draft mad dash.
  • Remember your story is essentially a problem that needs solving. Not your problem, the protagonist’s problem.
  • Keep asking yourself ‘what’s the worst thing that can happen next?’
  • Remember you’re sending your protagonist into new emotional and physical territory.
  • Start at least one subplot. This subplot should also complicate the protagonist’s goals.
  • Know your protagonist’s main emotional wound, sometimes called baggage in real life. How is it going to affect his or her ability to solve the story problem?
  • Allow the overall atmosphere and mood to creep into the story world.
  • Carry a writer’s notebook everywhere you go. You never know when a brilliant solution is going to appear.

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