Plot Consultant

How to Turn a Lackluster Middle into Page-turning Excitement

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A writer revising the rough draft of a novel stalls in the middle. Here he finds some quirky, secondary characters. One character has the potential to become a "romance plot" suitor. He also discovers a couple of magical and mystical settings. Several subplots of enchantment are revealed. Various minor characters populate the middle and… not much excitement. Appraising the long, dull corridor spanning the entire Middle, the writer despairs. He wants help in amping up the tension and …

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Benefits of a Solid Concept and the Art of Pitching Your Story

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Summer means Writers Conferences and pitching your story. You find yourself sitting at lunch next to a literary agent. How quickly and compellingly do you draw her into your story? How intriguing is your concept?When friends ask what your story is about, rather than drone on about every single plot point, learn how to rattle off a pithy pitch that sends even people overhearing you begging for more.Think of the concept and pitch as the seeds out of which grow action and characters …

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Pre-Plotting Made Simple

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The following 5 steps for pre-plotting made simple:  1. Brainstorm ideas: Rough Sketch the 4 Energetic Markers on a Plot Planner 2. Test Concept Ideas for Feedback 3. Interview Your Main Characters 4. Write a Transformational Statement for Protagonist 5. Fill in Scene Ideas on your Plot Planner Contrast Beginning and End Exotic Middle World of the Antagonists 6. Write For more: Read my Plot Whisperer and Blockbuster Plots books for writers. ~~~~ Need …

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Cause and Effect Scene by Scene

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Cause and effect within and between scenes allows you to seamlessly lead the reader to each major turning point by linking the cause in one scene to the effect in the next scene. This sequencing allows the energy of the story to rise smoothly.If the sequence breaks down, scenes come out of the blue, and your story turns episodic. The reader, in turn, becomes disconcerted.A story is made up of scenes with a clear dependence on each other. Conflict in a scene represents the motivating cause that …

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Emotional Elements of Plot: Stories that Last Evoke Emotion

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  Dramatic action creates the pace of a story and determines the level of story excitement. The thematic significance reveals the meaning of the piece.  An emotional connection is fused between the reader and the story through the character emotional development. Not simply how a character develops and transforms physically and intellectually, outfoxing and out-thinking and out-performing an antagonist, readers feel an emotional connection through the development of a character’s emotional …

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