Children's Publishing Blogs - 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month blog posts

Home > All Blogs > Tag > 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month

What is JacketFlap

JacketFlap connects you to the work of more than 200,000 authors, illustrators, publishers and other creators of books for Children and Young Adults. The site is updated daily with information about every book, author, illustrator, and publisher in the children's / young adult book industry. Members include published authors and illustrators, librarians, agents, editors, publicists, booksellers, publishers and fans.
Join now (it's free).

Sort Blog Posts

Sort Posts by:

in
from

Suggest a Blog

Enter a Blog's Feed URL below and click Submit:

Most Commented Posts

In the past 7 days

JacketFlap Sponsors

Spread the word about books.
Put this Widget on your blog!

Are you a book Publisher?
Learn about Widgets now!

Advertise on JacketFlap

MyJacketFlap Blogs

Login or Register for free to create your own customized page of blog posts from your favorite blogs. You can also add blogs by clicking the "Add to MyJacketFlap" links next to the blog name in each post.

Blog Posts by Tag

In the past 7 days

Blog Posts by Date

Click days in this calendar to see posts by day or month

new posts in all blogs

Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Most Recent at Top [Help]

Results 1 - 9 of 9

1. Day Nine-- 3rd Annual International Plot Writing Month

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/9/2010
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: character transformation, Crisis versus Climax, telling a story, plot a story at the End, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Add a tag

Welcome all you dedicated writers committed to your craft! If you're just now joining the 3rd Annual International Plot Writing Month, scroll down to Day One and work your way back.

THE END: PART TWO

People who know me are not surprised I start at the End. I've always done things a bit backwards. But, I have three reasons for beginning this way:

The End never gets the attention the Beginning does. Writers often never even get to the End. They begin to stall out in the Middle of the story and end up running back at the Beginning, over and over again. Or, if they do get to the End, they've lost so much energy for the story, the End is vague and underdeveloped.

This paradigm echoes in other aspects of real life. Most of us live basically the same story over and over again. If we are brave enough to literally or figuratively leave everything we know (End of the Beginning), by the time things start to get messy -- which they have to in the exotic world of the middle-- we usually give up, turn a blind eye, stick our head's in the sand. We end up back "home," licking our wounds.

In stories, once the protagonist advances into the Middle of the story toward her goal, she does not have the option of turning back. (Note: there are no rules to writing.)

The protagonist is tough enough to go all the way into hell and face her biggest fear or her worst ordeal (the Crisis in the Middle). After that Crisis, she then makes the journey back to share the gift -- not running home crying, -- returning a victor. Where, in the End she faces the ultimate antagonist at the Climax, which often turns out to be herself.

(Please note: I'm using two different words to mark two different moments of highest intensity respectively:

Crisis, which occurs in the Middle at about the 3/4 mark in the story

AND

Climax, which occurs in the End (1/4) one scene or chapter before the last page of the entire story)

The Climax is the crowning glory of the entire story and, thus, deserves focused attention.

In real life, a person who

0 Comments on Day Nine-- 3rd Annual International Plot Writing Month as of 12/9/2010 9:41:00 AM

Add a Comment

2. Day Six--3rd Annual Plot Writing Month

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/6/2010
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: PLot Planner, Key scenes, beginning middle and end of a writing project, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, theme and character emotional development, r emotional development, Add a tag

If you're just joining us for the 3rd Annual PlotWriMo, also known as PostNaNoWriMo, we're about to enter the analyzation phase.

Wait... before you click away, I admit what we're doing here is not very romantic, especially if you've just emerged from under the spell of creating a new story. Still, what you do here for this month, rather than strip away, actually strengthens and builds your story's vital essence and clears a path for a dynamic rewrite.

Plot Writing Month works best if you start at the beginning. Scroll down to Day One and work your way back.

Use the new information and see it, rather than just read about it. Grab a few 3 X 5 white index cards and colored pens, and transfer the themes you jotted down at the top of the index card. In the main body of the card, draw a tiny PP -- tiny because it only has to fit 7 scenes maximum for now.

Which of the scenes come quickly. With some tweaking and rethinking, do they link together by themes. Don't be surprised if the overall meaning -- that perfect thematic statement -- alludes you. It's there in the story. You just don't know the story well enough to distill a 45,000 word story into one pithy statement. Yet...

It will come. Whatever you focus your attention comes to you.

In the meantime, transfer to the index card with the tiny Plot Planner as many of the seven scenes as you know from yesterday. Continue exploring the themes as they appear.

The Beginning (1/4)

Does the Inciting Incident scene and the End of the Beginning scene, the first and last respectively in the Beginning, fit the criteria? Filled in, the scenes in consideration to the themes generated and paired with the Character Emotional Development plot line, reveal meaning. A shift in the protagonist's motivation rise the stakes of the story and starts a clock ticking.

The Middle (1/2)The Halfway Point and the Crisis fit at the middle of the Middle (1/2) and almost at the end of the Middle (3/4 mark). Determine how to make the Character Emotional Development dark night of the

0 Comments on Day Six--3rd Annual Plot Writing Month as of 1/1/1900

Add a Comment

3. 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Eighteen

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/18/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: revision, rewriting tips, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Add a tag

For those of you just finding us today, scroll down to Day Twelve for the steps to take and then work your way forward.

For those of you who are preparing for the next draft of your novel, memoir, or screenplay by following the day-by-day suggestions here, how did the read-through go?

I trust you found moments of brilliance. I'm sure you also found lots of clunky writing, passages that at one time made so much sense and now make absolutely no sense at all.

Whatever you found, be gentle with yourself. The first draft of anything is suppose to resemble vomit-on-the-page. The first draft is all about getting words on the page.

Now, take time to rethink your story.

The best way to begin is to reread the Beginning (1/4) and the End (1/4). Look for any connections to deeper meaning and make notes on how best to expand those connections. Search for opportunities to foreshadow in the Beginning what comes at the End.

Forget the Middle for now. The Middle (1/2) is the exotic or unusual world of the story world itself and territory of the antagonists which generally functions in its own unique way. However, the Beginning and the End need to link up. See what you can find.

Scroll down and recheck the list of scenes you created on Day Three. Of the scenes that read in the story, but were NOT listed, which ones can be cut altogether? Of the scenes that WERE listed, how many can be cut altogether?

Check the Plot Planners you created for the Beginning and the End. What scenes do you wish to include that you had forgotten earlier? Add those now.

Keep your focus on the overall meaning of the story while you analyze the Beginning and the End.

Good luck....

2 Comments on 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Eighteen, last added: 12/19/2009

Display Comments Add a Comment

4. 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Fourteen

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/14/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: revision techniques, Plot tips, Martha Alderson, plot whisperer, Blockbuster Plots for Writers, rewriting tips, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Add a tag

If you are just now joining us on this month-long journey of analyzing the plot and structure of the Dramatic Action, Character Emotional Development, and Thematic Significance of a draft of your screenplay, memoir, or novel, Welcome!

To gain the most out of this month, please follow along day-by-day, beginning at Day One (scroll down to find Day One and get started).

The Beginning

The work you did yesterday -- Day Thirteen -- creating a Plot Planner for the Beginning (1/4) of your story -- comes in handy today.

Every writer faces a multitude of choices, two of which are:

1) Deciding where to begin your story

2) Which Point of View to use.

Today we'll go over #1 -- Deciding where to begin your story.

One of the many benefits of NaNoWriMo is that it forces a writer to keep writing all the way through the first draft to the end. Without this sort of discipline, many writers end up creating a horrible habit for themselves -- the going-back-to-the-beginning syndrome.

NaNoWriMo writers often have less trouble cutting the typical 35-100 pages from their WIP because they haven't invested hundreds of hours of going back to the beginning and starting over again and again and again. That is not to say that cutting any of our work is ever easy, but it's easier if you have not invested umpteen hours and perfected every single word and sentence.

In other words, deciding which scene best starts the story often includes the realization that major cuts are in order.

Once the shock and resistance fades, look over the Beginning scenes you plotted out yesterday. Compare those Beginning scenes to the End scenes you plotted on Day Eight.

The fact you have completed at least one draft of your story gives you an advantage. You know what the Climax of the story is.

The dramatic action in any story forces the character to transform over time. At the Climax of the story, the character is able to do something she was unable to do at the Beginning of the story. She needed to go through every other scene in or

0 Comments on 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Fourteen as of 1/1/1900

Add a Comment

5. 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Nine

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/9/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Crisis versus Climax, telling a story, plot a story at the End, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, character transformation, Add a tag

Welcome all you dedicated writers committed to your craft! If you're just joining us, scroll down to Day One and work your way back.

THE END

People who know me are not likely to be surprised I start at the End. I've always done things a bit backwards. But, I have three valid reasons for beginning this way:

The End never gets the attention the Beginning does. Writers often never even get to the End. They begin to stall out in the Middle of the story and end up running back at the Beginning, over and over again. Or, if they do get to the End, they've lost so much energy for the story, the End is vague and underdeveloped.

This paradigm echoes in other aspects of real life. Most of us live basically the same story over and over again. If we are brave enough to literally or figuratively leave everything we know (End of the Beginning), by the time things start to get messy -- which they have to in the Middle -- we usually give up, turn a blind eye, stick our head's in the sand. We end up back "home," licking our wounds.

In stories, once the protagonist advances into the Middle of the story, she does not have the option of turning back. (Note: there are no rules to writing.)

(Please note: I'm using two different words to mark two different moments of highest intensity respectively:

Crisis, which occurs in the Middle at about the 3/4 mark in the story

AND

Climax, which occurs in the End (1/4) one scene or chapter before the last page of the entire story)

The Climax is the crowning glory of the entire story and, thus, deserves focused attention.

In real life, a person who suffers a Crisis either goes back to the "tribe" to share her triumph and help others learn from her life, mistakes, awakening -- her Climax. Or, in real life, she can turn away from the challenge and remain unchanged, thus, never reach the Climax. Just because we survive an ordeal does not always mean we are transformed by it.

In stories, however, the character undergoes a transformation. Therefore, the protagonist must face her greatest antagonist at the Climax in the End, be it an external person or an internal fear.

The Climax determines every scene that comes before or leads up to the Climax. Once you know the Climax, you know exactly which scenes to keep and which scenes you've written that need to be cut or revised so that they point thematically to the Climax.

Does the Climax of your story rise to the greatest intensity of the entire story?
Think of your story as energy. Does the Climax deliver an energetic impact?

CHARACTER EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Some people believe that we incarnate in the world to hea

0 Comments on 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day Nine as of 1/1/1900

Add a Comment

6. International Plot Writing Month -- Day Seven

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/7/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: PLot Planner, Martha Alderson, plot and structure, winter solstice and writing, writers guide through the holidays, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, holiday guide for writers, Add a tag

Today, your assignment, if you choose to say yes, is to carry your Plot Planner index cards and a pencil or pen with you everywhere.

I see you standing in line at the post office and the grocery store serenely grateful for the wait because it allows you more time to ponder your story. I see you waiting in the dentist's office or in thick traffic with your eyes up and to the left glazed over as inspiration fills you. I see you unplugging from negative thoughts about that nasty brother-in-law coming for dinner and plugging into your story instead.

Story is all about character transformation. How has your protagonist been transformed by the Dramatic Action in the story?
What is your story really saying? What do all those words you wrote add up to?
Your story is a reflection of a truth. Not necessarily true for all time, but true for the story itself, and likely for yourself, too. What is the deeper meaning? The truth beyond the physical?
How do the secondary plot lines support the major plot line thematically?
How do the secondary character's journey mirror the protagonist's journey?
Does the setting support the theme?
What elements in the Beginning (1/4) echo back in the End (1/4)

Jot down whatever comes to you on the back of your Plot Planner.

To proclaim International Plot Writing Month in December and not mention the holidays is like standing mute in a room filled with angels and trolls. In our zeal to capture the holidays just right we run ourselves ragged. Part of this impulse is running from the darkness as the days turn shorter and shorter. It echoes back thousands of years to our fear that the failing light would never return without our intervention.

Fitting in writing time becomes more and more impossible as we await the rebirth of the sun and as the year winds down. Instead of fighting what is, I invite you to continue analyzing your stories instead. The work you do this month will make next month's rewrite a breeze.

Think of the work you do this month as your holiday present to yourself. Think of International Plot Writing Month as your writer's plot guide through the holidays....

Next week we start in on the End of your project (the final 1/4 of the total pages or word count. If you haven't already, write the Climax today. It doesn't matter how vague -- read: inspirational, or how awful -- read: creative, just get something on paper.)

Enjoy!!

Oh, and remember -- no reading your manuscript. Not yet.....

(If you are joining us for the first time, please go to Day One and work your way back. Welcome.)

1 Comments on International Plot Writing Month -- Day Seven, last added: 12/8/2009

Display Comments Add a Comment

7. 2nd Annual Plot Writing Month -- Day Six

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/6/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Key scenes, beginning middle and end of a writing project, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, theme and character emotional development, PLot Planner, Add a tag

If you're just joining us for the 2nd Annual Plot WriMo, we're about to enter the analyzation phase. Wait... before you click away, I admit what we're doing here is not very romantic, especially if you've just emerged from under the spell of creating a new story. Still, what you do here for this month, rather than strip away, actually strengthens and builds your story's vital essence and clears a path for a dynamic rewrite.

Plot Writing Month works best if you start at the beginning. Scroll down to Day One and work your way back.

I'm following along using a rough draft of mine to do the assignments for the 2nd Annual International Plot WriMo. Because I do better when I write it and see it, I grab a few 3 X 5 white index cards and colored pens, and transfer the themes I'd jotted down to the top of the index card and draw a tiny PP -- tiny because it only has to fit 7 scenes for now.

Five scenes come quickly. With some tweaking and rethinking, seven of them link together by themes of betrayal and forgiveness and love. Still, the overall meaning -- that perfect thematic statement -- alludes me. It's there in the story. I just don't know the story well enough to distill a 45,000 word story into one pithy statement. Yet...

It will come. Whatever you focus your attention comes to you.

In the meantime, I keep the index card with the tiny Plot Planner of 7 scenes close by and continue exploring the themes as they appear.

The Beginning (1/4)

The Inciting Incident scene and the End of the Beginning scene, the first and last respectively in the Beginning, fit the criteria perfectly. Though it is only now, when I fill the scenes in with consideration to the themes I generated and paired with the Character Emotional Development plot line, do I understand that, with a shift in the protagonist's motivation, the stakes of the story rise and the clock starts ticking.

In this new light, the story fills me with energy and I look forward to writing of the next draft... at the end of the month, that is. There are many other elements still left to consider.

The Middle (1/2)

The Halfway Point and the Crisis fit at the middle of the Middle (1/2) and almost at the end of the Middle (3/4 mark) work though now I see how I can make the Character Emotional Development dark night of the soul cut deeper thanks to how universal the theme of forgiveness.

The End (1/4)

The scene before the Climax and the Climax both fall at the End portion of the Plot Planner takes on more meaning thanks to the exploration into the Character Emotional Development plot line in relationship to the theme of redemption.

Don't push the theme. It will come. The theme is there whether you figure it out or not. It's just if you know it, the common thread can give you focus and keep you on track. (Plus, a thematic significance statement comes in handy at those holiday parties when your friends ask you what your

1 Comments on 2nd Annual Plot Writing Month -- Day Six, last added: 12/10/2009

Display Comments Add a Comment

8. International Plot Writing Month -- Day Three

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/3/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Blockbuster Plots, rewriting tips, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, scene versus summary, revision techniques NaNoWriMo, writing scenes, Plot tips, Martha Alderson, Add a tag

If you are just joining us, welcome! Begin at Day One and work your way here.

Today, make a list in order of all the major scenes or events you remember writing (don't go back into the manuscript to locate the scenes and/or events. Remember: no reading yet).

That's it for today. We are complying the materials we need for the rest of the month.

For more on scenes development versus summary, go to:

Scene versus Summary

Scene Organization

When a Scene Just Won't Do

The Zen of Plot Twists

0 Comments on International Plot Writing Month -- Day Three as of 1/1/1900

Add a Comment

9. 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day One

By: Martha Alderson, M.A., on 12/1/2009
Blog: Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: NaNoWriMo, Dramatic Action, character development, rough draft, revision techniques, Martha Alderson, plot whisperer, draft two, 2nd draft, rewriting tips, 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Add a tag

Welcome to the 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month

Today begins a month-long opportunity to craft a draft of your writing into a story.

If you participated in NaNoWriMo, first take time to congratulate yourself! You've done what many have talked and dreamed of doing -- you've written an entire story from beginning to end. Celebrate!

Next, craft the project into a coherent piece worthy of publication.

During December, take the steps needed to analyze what you've written and brainstorm for an effortless draft two in January '10.

Revision your project before actually rewriting the manuscript. (This also works for writers without a first draft. Whether you merely have an idea for a story, a few chapters or scenes, just tweak the assignments to make them work for wherever you are in the process.)

Everyday this month, I'll provide plot tips and tricks and inspiration.

No writing required.

Following are a couple of caveats for our month together:

1) Do NOT show anyone what you've written so far. The first draft of any writing project is considered the generative phase. At the end of the generative phase, a writer is often faced with a manuscript full of holes and missteps, confusion and chaos. This is part of the process in that editing and/or an unbridled internal critic in the generative phase risks stifling the muse, which often results in stagnation.

Your first draft is a fragile thread of a dream. You know what you want to convey, well, maybe and sort of. Few writers can adequately communicate a complete vision in the first draft of a story, especially when writing by the seat of your pants. Allow others to read your writing now and you risk losing energy for your story and becoming overwhelmed by the task ahead of you.

2) Do NOT read what you've written. I know, I know. You're anxious to read your hard work. However, the longer you give yourself before actually reading your first draft, the better. If you read your manuscript now, you're still close enough to the work that you'll automatically fill in the gaps. Give yourself distance first. This allows you to read your work more objectively later.

Let's get started!

By now, you know who the protagonist of your story is. Stories are about character transformation. The character who is transformed by the dramatic action in your story is your protagonist. Fill out the following for your protagonist. If the major antagonist in your story is a person, fill out the following for that character as well. If you have more than one point of view character, fill out the form for that/those characters, too.

CHARACTER EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROFILE

Character’s name:

Dramatic Action Plotline
Overall story goal:
What stands in her way:
What does she stand to lose:

Character Emotional Development Plotline
Flaw:
Strength:
Hates:
Loves:
Fears:
Dream:
Secret:

Good l

1 Comments on 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month -- Day One, last added: 12/3/2009

Display Comments Add a Comment

<<	April 2024					>>
Su	Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa
	01	02	03	04	05	06
07	08	09	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27
28	29	30

You are not logged in

Register Now (it's free!)

Log in to JacketFlap

What is JacketFlap

Sort Blog Posts

Sort Posts by:

Suggest a Blog

Enter a Blog's Feed URL below and click Submit:

Most Commented Posts

In the past 7 days

Recent Posts

(tagged with '2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month')

Recent Comments

Recently Viewed

JacketFlap Sponsors

Spread the word about books.
Put this Widget on your blog!

MyJacketFlap Blogs

Blog Posts by Tag

In the past 7 days

Blog Posts by Date

Click days in this calendar to see posts by day or month

Writer Blogs

Agent Blogs

Publisher Blogs

Editor Blogs

Librarian Blogs

Bookseller Blogs

Reviews Blogs

Illustrator Blogs

News Blogs

Industry Blogs

Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: 2nd Annual International Plot Writing Month, Most Recent at Top [Help]

Results 1 - 9 of 9

How to use this Page