3 Questions to Help Solidify Your Plot

Whether it’s your first book or eighth, all writers can struggle with plot. It’s the backbone of the story, and more than likely one of the most central parts of a book. If you’ve got an idea for a novel but are struggling with collecting your thoughts and turning that idea into a story, look no further than these 3 questions that’ll have you reigning in ideas to help craft your story. 

This is the method I used when I first started writing and still continue to use with every book I’ve written. As I explain each question, I’ll be referring to an example story idea, used only for the sake of this post: “I want to write a story with a teenage boy in it. His name is Bailey. I want him to be deaf and have powers to manipulate sunlight. He’s in school, doesn't have friends and keeps to himself.”

Now, with all of that said, let’s begin!

1. What is the PROBLEM?

The “problem” in a plot is what usually drives the story along. Something happens, either on a large or small scale, and naturally, if there’s a problem, then someone has to fix it (perhaps your main character!). Determining the problem is crucial to the story. 

For my [example] novel idea, I envision the problem centering around the teenage boy in my story, who is the main character. Perhaps his light powers are acting odd lately. Maybe someone wants his powers to be used for evil. Maybe his powers are needed to keep the school running, but this is a secret only he knows. 

As you can see, coming up with a problem may take a little creativity and a lot of thought of how it might affect the main character (as well as others), but don’t worry. Always remember to brainstorm freely, and have fun while you’re doing it, when you’re thinking of an issue to drive your novel forward. Problems are everywhere and can revolve around anyone, though it should connect to your main character in some way. 

Moving forward, let’s say the problem of my novel is: “Bailey’s powers have been exposed at school.”

2. What is the SOLUTION?

Who would want their powers exposed? Not me, thank you. But for someone like Bailey who likes keeping to himself, that’s literally his worst nightmare. From this, naturally the solution would be somewhere along the lines of keeping his identity hidden as much as possible. 

In my experience, thinking of solutions comes easier than thinking of problems because the purpose of a solution is to fix the problem. Let’s say Bailey’s official solution is to disappear from the school, his hometown, everything. Next, I’d need to think of some questions: how would Bailey disappear? 

And that leads into the final question: How will Bailey get to that solution? What will he have to overcome?

3. What is the OVERCOME?

As mentioned, the overcome is what your characters need to accomplish in order to move away from the problem and reach the solution. For me, planning this step requires you to look at your characters and see where they need to grow; find something that tests them. Planning your plot can overlap with character arcs and/or development—in my experience, they usually do. 

Back to Bailey: he keeps to himself and has no friends, but in order to disappear he needs help from someone. Because I’m me, I want his help to be from the girl who sits behind him in class. Her name is Annie, and she has ties to an organization that could make it as if Bailey never existed. But in order to get to that organization, let’s say Bailey must first befriend Annie & keep his powers under control because she unknowingly enhances them, making it harder for Bailey to conceal his identity while he searches for a way to disappear. 

But befriending Annie will be a struggle for Bailey because he doesn’t know how to make friends. He doesn’t know how to control his powers when she’s around. He doesn’t know how to take the attention from the general public. All of this is the ‘overcome’ for the plot, but it overlaps with Bailey’s personal development→Once the public knows about him, he can’t just stay beneath the radar like before. He needs to learn to be brave, and through that he’ll realize he can make friends. He can control his powers. And maybe…he’ll find that disappearing isn’t what he thought he wanted. 

You see? I clearly added more to the overcome and the overall story, but it was these 3 questions that got me there. I could use all three again if I wanted to write in another storyline in Bailey’s story: what problem would result if Bailey’s powers couldn’t be handled? What would be the solution to handling them? What would Bailey [or maybe Annie?] have to do to get to that solution? 

To conclude, don’t be hard on yourself if the plot doesn’t come together right away, especially if you’re a new writer. It takes time and lots of daydreaming, but you will get there. There are guides, videos, and blogs (including mine!) scattered throughout the internet that can help you write the book of your dreams. 

Remember: baby steps. You’ll get there. Don’t you worry. 

Until the next blog…

~Morgana LeVaine