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Plotting the Middle with the Hero’s Journey
The middle of a novel is one of the hardest places to plot. The set up is easy to imagine and the climax, of course, has to be exciting and emotional. But the sagging middle–how do you handle it? The Hero’s Journey is one of the most useful of the 29 plot templates because it…
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Searching for a Scene
Today, I am searching for a scene. I am in the dreaded sagging middle of my WIP and know that I must keep the action very high. Every start I tried this morning included too much narrative, not enough action. In other words, I don’t yet have a scene. But this unfocused writing is helping…
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Midpoint Crisis: Plotting
Starting a new novel, I always try to look at the structure of the plot, but this time, I’m especially looking at character issues, since that’s my weakness. A Story of XXX becomes a Story of ZZZ It’s always that tricky second act that’s hard. The actions for the beginning and ending are easy, especially…
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Revising the Outline
When do you start revising your novel? I start by revising the first draft of my novel’s plot outline, synopsis or treatment. Revise Early and Late As soon as I’ve written the first sketchy outlines of a novel, I’m revising. I’m looking for many things: Does the climax resolve the setup? Are the main characters…
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Power Abs for Novels
Power Abs: Fixing the Sagging Middle of Your Novel This is part of a series, 30 Days to A Stronger Novel One of the hardest things about plot is to keep the middle from sagging. The opening is full of action, and the ending brings all the plot elements together into a big scene. But…