Putting It All Together

Over the last six weeks I’ve provided eight different exercises for building a plot outline. Why so many? Every person brainstorms in a different way. Some exercises are geared toward specific genres. Most full length novels contain a major story idea plus several subplots and each subplot might require its own plot building exercise. There are many reasons why a writer might want to use more than one exercise to build the plot outline for their novel.

Hopefully, you have chosen a couple of exercises from this blog to help you with the task. Now it’s time to put it all together.

What if a potential novel was centered around a hero story, but contained a murder mystery and a budding romance? The novelist might want to complete all eight exercises. Merging the multiple subplots and story lines into one coherent point-by-point outline may seem overwhelming. Below I’ve offered one possible way to combine everything into a three-act structure. Once the exercises are merged, eliminate duplicate plot points and reorder them into chronological order. Then group the plot points in to chapters and voila! You have a completed, detailed plot outline and you’re ready to start writing your novel for Nanowrimo 2016.

I wish everyone the best of luck as you attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days.

I will be taking the next four weeks to work on my own Nano novel. In December I’ll be back with a new blog series on finishing, marketing and self-publishing your Nano novel. Happy writing, everyone!

The Interlaced Outline (Note that bulleted items represent scenes)

ACT I

• Stasis (from Watt’s 8-point)

       Ordinary World (from Hero's Journey)

       Exposition (from Freytag's Pyramid)

 

• Hook (from 3-Act)

       Call to Adventure (from Hero's Journey)

       Limited Awareness of Problem (from Hero's Inner Journey)

       Trigger (from Watt's 8-point)

       First Conflict Introduced (from conflict & resolution table)

       Define the Crime (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

       Woman Meets Man (from Romance Formula)

 
• Refusal of the Call (from Hero’s Journey)

       Increased Awareness (from Hero's Inner Journey)

 
• Backstory (from 3-Act)

       Motivation for Attachment (from Romance Formula)

       Reveal Initial Clues (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

       Establish the Setting (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

 
• Resistance to Change (from Hero’s Inner Journey)

       Romance Conflict (from Romance Formula)

       Meeting the Mentor (from Hero's Journey)

       Introduce the Sleuth (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

 
• Trigger (from 3-Act)

       Crossing the Threshold (from Hero’s Journey)

       The Quest (from Watt's 8-point)

       Couple Is Torn Apart (from Romance Formula)

       Rising Action (from Freytag's Pyramid)

       Overcoming Fear (from Hero's Inner Journey)

       Discover the Victim (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

  

• The Belly of the Whale (from Hero’s Journey)

       Committing to Change (from Hero’s Inner Journey)
       Start the Investigation (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

ACT II

• Crisis (from 3-Act)

       The Road of Trials (from Hero’s Journey)
       Second Conflict Introduced (from Freytag’s Pyramid/conflict & resolution table)
       Establish Mystery Conflict (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Experimenting with New Conditions (from Hero’s Inner Journey)

       Reveal Facts about Suspects (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Meeting with the Higher Power (from Hero’s Journey)

 

• Disappearance of Suspect(s) (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

 

• Critical Choice (from Watt’s 8-point)

        Establish Urgency and Consequence of Not Solving Mystery (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
        Couple is Drawn Back Together (from Romance Formula)

• Preparing for Major Change (from Hero’s Inner Journey)

       Struggle (from 3-Act)
       Temptation (from Hero’s Journey)
       Third Conflict Introduced (from Freytag’s Pyramid/conflict & resolution table)
       Increase Number of Suspects (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Big Change with Feeling of Life and Death (from Hero’s Inner Journey)

       Provide Answers Based on Physical Evidence (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Ordeal, Death and Rebirth (from Hero’s Journey)

       Reveal the Sleuth’s Background (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
       Establish Sleuth’s Personal Investment in Solving the Mystery (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
       Couple Is Torn Apart (Again) (from Romance Formula)

• Epiphany (from 3-Act)

        Reveal Hidden Motives and Secret Relationships (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
        Clarify Significance of Earlier Clues (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
        The Sleuth Reveals the Results of the Investigation, but Has Not Completely Solved the Mystery (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
        A New Perspective Is Shown (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Couple is Drawn Back Together (from Romance Formula)

       Resolve Second Conflict (from Freytag’s Pyramid/conflict & resolution table)

ACT III

• The Plan (from 3-Act)

       The Sleuth Revisits the Case from the New Perspective (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

        Reveal the Chain of Events Which Precipitated the Crime (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

        Resolve Second Conflict (from Freytag's Pyramid/conflict & resolution table)

        The Sleuth Begins to Understand What Actually Happened (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

        The Sleuth Weighs All Evidence and Information (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

 

• Climax (from 3-Act/Freytag’s Pyramid/Watt’s 8-Point)

        Reward/Seizing the Sword (from Hero’s Journey)
        Accepting Consequences of New Life (from Hero’s Inner Journey)
        The Sleuth Finds Proof to Substantiate his/her Theory (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
        A Confrontation Occurs Between the Sleuth and the Perpetrator Where the Mystery Is Solved (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Ending (from 3-Act)

       Justice Is Served (from 12-Chapter Mystery)

• Falling Action (from Freytag’s Pyramid)

       Refusal of the Return (from Hero’s Journey)
       Reversal (from Watt’s 8-point)

• The Magic Flight (from Hero’s Journey)

        New Challenge and Rededication (from Hero’s Journey)

• Rescue from Without (from Hero’s Journey)

       Final Attempts with Last Minute Danger (from Hero’s Inner Journey)

 

• Resurrection (from Hero’s Journey)

 

• Resolution (from Freytag’s Pyramid/Watt’s 8-point)

       Resolve all Outstanding Conflicts (from conflict & resolution table)
       Crossing the Return Threshold (from Hero’s Journey)
       Resolve All Conflicts that Change the Sleuth (from 12-Chapter Mystery)
       They Reconcile Their Problems (from Romance Formula)

• Master of Two Worlds (from Hero’s Journey)

       Mastery (from Hero’s Inner Journey)
       Couple Makes a Commitment (from Romance Formula)

• Freedom to Live (from Hero’s Journey)

       New Stasis (from Watt’s 8-point)

All of the brainstorming exercises described in this blog series can be found in my Scrivener template on Google Drive at https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzGNFy181nZiM0J5TGI3WXJyUkE/.

For non-Scrivener users, Personal Noveling Assistant (PNA) pages are at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0BzGNFy181nZiczA2aGJrTnN1X2c/.

For more about my stories, check out my author page at http://www.amazon.com/author/lauraewrites/.