Blog Post #8

Exercise 3/5 I need to complete today in order to catch up. I can totally do this.

For those who need a refresher on the exercises, the post is here.

This exercise is about creating subplots. Basically, if you're writing a novel, you need subplots, or you'll rapidly run out of things to write about. Also, the more plots you have, the easier it will be to get to 50, 000 words (because lets face it, we'll need all the help we can get).

I'd gotten so behind on these exercises that I'd forgotten what my plot even was, which was a bit of a hindrance when coming up with subplots. So first I reviewed my plot.

Reviewing my plot did make me realise that it was a bit thin at points, and I'd really need to work to get through parts of the novel without subplots. They'll also help to make the main plot and the characters more interesting (hopefully).

I also found it helpful to think about novels I'd read, and figure out what their plots and subplots were. The article attached to the exercise was also extremely helpful, giving several examples of how to figure out what your subplots can be.

The other important piece of advice mentioned was that subplots should arise organically from the main plot. Otherwise, they'll look forced. They should also link to the main plot, and influence it in some way. This is great advice: my first subplot came from thinking about what happens right at the beginning of the main plot, and how I could weave that in later.

I've picked one major subplot for now, and outlined it. I've also realised that I've got two main plots, as such, which often switch between primary and secondary plot depending on what else is happening in the novel.

I also noticed that I don't have any romantic plot lines. Romance just didn't seem important to the main character's journey, although I might include a past romantic interest that becomes important to the main plot line somehow. We shall see.

I'm worried I'm going to forget to include these plots because they aren't included in the main plot I originally laid out. However, they'll hopefully relate to the main plot enough that I can go back and add them in.

I'm tacking the next exercise on the end here because it isn't really an exercise. It's just a quote, reminding writers to vary their sentence length. It's good advice. Although, honestly, during NaNoWriMo I often write paragraphs that are the same sentence written in five slightly varying ways, which probably isn't quite what Gary Provost was going for. But that's what editing is for, and I'll endeavour to make my sentences as musical as I can at that stage.