Why is it so hard to develop a plot



Let’s dive into an explanation on why developing a plot is so hard. First you have come up with the plot problem and plot ending, both are hard to do. Next you need a series of plot events that will connect the inciting event with the climax. These events are the journey the reader will take when she reads your story.


Consider a blown-up balloon filled with air (almost an infinite number of nitrogen and oxygen atoms). With a marker, you make an X on the upper left side of the ballon. This is the inciting event. You make a second X on the lower right side to indicate the climax.

Here is why creating a plot is so hard. Each atom inside the ballon represents a possible plot event. There are almost a really large number of atoms which means a really large number of events. That means there are a really large number of possible paths that can connect the two points on the outside of the balloon. And you have to pick the small number of events that make a believable path through the balloon.


I often come up with a path only to discard bit because, upon reflection, I realize the path is silly or not logical and I wont be able to write a believable story using those plot events.

 

Generic plot

Let’s leave the balloon problem aside and move on to develop a generic plot path for a story.

  • Step one: Hero recognizes the plot problem.
  • Step two: Hero makes an effort to solve the plot problem and fails.
  • Step three: A second and more serious effort also fails.
  • Step four: A third desperate attempt ends in a disaster.
  • Step five: A do-or-die attempt follows.
  • Step six: The hero succeeds (or not).
  • Step seven: Validation (what does the hero get?)

In a short story, these steps could become the scenes in the story. In a longer work, each step could be a several chapters. What's the point of all these successive failures? To jerk the reader around emotionally. As the protagonist repeatedly fails, the tension increases and the characters' emotions become stronger. The tension and the emotions affect the readers and keeps them turning the pages.


One last word of advice: Don’t mistake a story outline for a plot. They are not the same.

 

This content was taken from my Beginner's Guide to Planning a Story.

You can download a free copy of the Beginner's Guide Starter Kit here.


Originally published on 8/4/26