1. 5 Signs of a Strong Novel Plot
Do you have a strong novel plot?
Use these 5 signs to identify weak points in your book
and avoid common mistakes
many writers make in crafting their story.
You put a lot of time and energy into planning your story
and developing a strong plot for your novel.
However, it can sometimes be a challenge to know
whether or not your plot is weak
– especially if you have already started writing.
If you’ve ever asked the question:
what makes for a good novel plot,
hopefully this article
will give you some answers.
Here I will share
the 5 signs of a weak plot in your novel with examples.
Hopefully
this will help you identify
whether the plot of your novel has any weak points.
2. The 5 Signs of a Strong Novel Plot
When you know
what makes a good story and a strong plot for your novel,
you are better prepared to do the important steps
in the novel writing process effectively.
Knowing these 5 things
will save you a lot of hassle
before you write out a bunch of scenes
that will end up
being cut out during the revision process!
These 5 signs of course aren’t a guarantee
that you’ll write the world’s greatest story
– but it can help you get on the right track
to make sure your plot is strong
and will keep readers captivated and interested in
what is going on throughout the entire book.
Strong Plot Sign #1: The Stakes Are High
Strong Plot Sign #2: The Events Are as Realistic as Possible
Strong Plot Sign #3: Everything is Consistent
Strong Plot Sign #4: Every Scene Contributes to a Common Goal
Strong Plot Sign #5:
Your Readers Don’t Have to Work to Understand the Story
3. Strong Plot Sign #1: The Stakes Are High
We already know a good story needs conflict.
Without conflict,
there is not much to tell other than a boring tale of perfection.
However, just having a conflict
isn’t typically enough
to leave your readers on the edge of their seats
wondering what might happen next.
High stakes
is an expression
that means an activity
which is high-risk and dangerous.
It’s a gambling term
– and your novel
should be able to convey that your characters are risking a lot
in order to resolve the novel’s main conflict point.
Example of a High Stake Scenario
Let’s imagine for a moment
that we have a book
about a teenage boy in high school
with a big math test coming up in a week.
4. Passing a math test
probably doesn’t seem like a big deal – until you raise the stakes.
What does the character have to lose
if he does not succeed?
-What if failing the math test
means losing his college football scholarship
and forever ruining his chances of playing professionally?
-What if he fails the math test
and he gets grounded for a week?
-What if there is a serial killer on the loose
and all of the murder victims
so far have been high school students with poor math grades?
See how these different scenarios
can alter the stakes?
With these examples
you can see
if the boy gets grounded for a week that’s not really a lot to lose.
However,
if he ends up being chased by a math-obsessed serial killer
or loses his college scholarship – now that is a lot to lose and risk.
Ultimately, it will be up to you as the writer to determine
what the stakes should be for your characters.
Here’s What You Need to Ask Yourself While Writing:
5. -What is the motivation for the character’s goals?
-What are they risking to achieve the goal?
-What will happen if they fail?
Asking these questions
can help you raise the stakes
and make sure
it really matters whether or not the conflict is resolved.
Having high stakes builds tension in your novel,
and keeps the story line moving.
The higher the stakes,
the more vulnerable and relatable your main character will be.
The more significant
the consequences of particular actions of your characters,
the more likely your readers will be intrigued to keep reading.
Your readers should always be wondering:
“What happens next?”
6. Strong Plot Sign #2:
The Events Are as Realistic as Possible
One of the biggest mistakes many writers make
is they conveniently fix the problems
and make things happen too easily for the characters.
When something is difficult,
you won’t meet a mystery stranger
who swoops in and saves the day
by just randomly flying overhead in a helicopter
to rescue your hero from the side of a cliff.
This just doesn’t happen,
and your readers aren’t going to buy it either,
even if they are well aware it’s a fiction novel.
Instead, think about what is more realistically possible.
Let your hero fall, get hurt,
and try to survive in the wilderness for two weeks
until finally
discovering a dirt road
that leads to a small town
where there are other people
who might be able to help them.
Using scenarios
which are more likely to be realistic
makes your characters stronger
and easier for your readers
to connect to your story.
If it’s not plausible,
it’s time to reconsider
what would be the most likely outcome for a specific event.
7. Strong Plot Sign #3: Everything is Consistent
One of the biggest mistakes
you might notice in a book
is that there are inconsistencies
throughout a novel.
Sometimes
these inconsistencies are minor details,
such as a character’s physical traits
or a description of a location.
Sometimes
these inconsistencies are huge gaping flaws
in character development.
For example,
in one scene your character is loving and sweet and kind.
In the next scene
they have developed a selfish, angry and arrogant attitude.
Unless your main character is Dr. Henry Jekyll, this is not good!
These things don’t add up for readers, and they can weaken your plot.
When you are going through revision process of your novel,
it is very important to look for these little inconsistencies
that can cause confusion in your readers.
Start by interviewing your characters
with character development questions.
Make a novel outline. Look for the holes.
8. Strong Plot Sign #4:
Every Scene Contributes to a Common Goal
I know as a writer
it’s easy to get distracted sometimes from your original plot
and the goal of your characters.
However,
if you have scenes in your novel’s plot
that do not contribute to the overall theme
or goal of the primary climax point,
you are only weakening your plot.
While you might think adding
a few “side scenes” here and there add interest,
they actually can cause the reader to lose focus
and become distracted from the main plot line.
Trust me when I say a distracted reader is NOT a good thing!
Instead of a strong plot, you get a weak and watered down story.
When you are revising your work,
it’s very important
that you make sure
you do not lose sight of what actually contributes to the story.
Anything that is a distraction
or is not critically important to the main plot
should be cut.
Sad as it may be to cut these scenes,
your writing will be stronger because of it.
Which leads me to the next point
for what makes a strong novel plot.
9. Strong Plot Sign #5:
Your Readers
Don’t Have to Work to Understand the Story
Most people read for leisure and fun.
Reading
is a way to shut our brains off
from the usual daily grind.
Some would even suggest reading
could be considered
a form of mindfulness and meditation.
Reading a book
means I don’t have to think
about what I will cook for dinner,
what time that appointment is next week,
the 9 bazillion things on the to-do list
or speculate on how to solve the universe.
It gives my brain
a very much needed break
to turn off the world.
Unfortunately,
something that happens frequently
is that I pick up a book,
and before
the end of the second chapter it starts feeling like work.
I have to re-read several parts of the book.
I am not “getting it” on the first try.
There is a real amount of mental labor required.
10. Books I Couldn’t Finish Reading:
The Whole Thing Together
I didn’t really have any expectations for the book
or even know what it was about.
Apparently,
I made a very big mistake:
I didn’t read the book teaser on the inside cover first.
I all too innocently just opened up the cover and started reading.
This was definitely a big mistake.
Because before even the end of chapter 1,
I was desperately trying to understand
this whole character list
and figure out where the story took place:
Lila – Not positive, but I think this is the mother
Ray – The main character, I think – at least the beginning is from his point of view
Quinn – sister?
Mattie – sister?
Sasha – a half sister? step sister? third sister once removed? Not really sure
Grandpa Harrison, deceased
Uncle Malcolm in Mexico
A biological grandmother who was adopted
Robert? Is this the father or a brother?
Charlotte
Of course,
I don’t know
if any of the details above are actually accurate,
because
the way it was all pieced together was so confusing.
11. Sadly,
there are probably characters
missing from my hashed together list above.
I learned only after re-reading the chapter
there actually was not a character named Charlotte,
but my brain
somehow picked it up as being a person
because
the book makes a reference to E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web.
And Uncle Malcolm lived in New Mexico, not Mexico.
At that point,
I decided to read the cover description
for some sort of clue
on what the story was about.
Apparently,
we have two families who share a common house,
but they are not related in any genetic way.
Sad to say, but I abandoned ship.
I’d like to say I finished the book, but I didn’t.
I stopped
after the mentioning of grandmother’s adoption papers,
because
I was already way too confused
to want to have to do
the work of trying to piece together
a confusing adoption for dead grandparents.
12. If I have to re-read a chapter
to understand something
that is unnecessary work
and a waste of my time as the reader.
I am sure
this novel likely
would not pass the #4 test on this list either,
but I never even got to that point
to get past the first scene.
This book is the perfect example of the type of book
that is TOO MUCH WORK to read.
Apparently
we also missed that memo
on main vs. supporting characters.
I do however give my daughter
a lot of credit for being able to finish the book.
I appreciated even more that
she took the time
to explain this crazy mess of characters and people
and even drew me a diagram to explain it all.
13. Here’s a Handy Rule to Follow:
If your readers at any point
need to re-read a chapter
to find clarity
or rely on a flow chart, map, chart, family history tree
or other type of diagram to understand your book,
your book is way too complicated.
Your novel
is only as strong as your reader’s mental energy levels.
Most readers have lives outside of the world of books.
They go to work,
they have families of their own,
and they have responsibilities and stress in their personal lives
like every other human being.
There are already so many other things
demanding energy
– your book
is not supposed to be one of them.
Keep it simple.
Your book
should have maybe 5 characters
that we know by name.
The rest are just like ants on a sidewalk.
We can make note of the ants in our story,
but we definitely.
Don’t need to give each ant on the sidewalk
a name and a backstory.
14. Writing a novel doesn’t have to be hard.
And you don’t have
to even get a strong novel plot perfect
on the first try.
In fact,
it’s very realistic to know
you are going to make these mistakes as a writer.
I look back at
some of my early novels
I wrote in my teens and cringe
because
all of these mistakes are present in most of them.
The good news is,
with experience,
you will get a LOT better
at avoiding these common mistakes.
Your novels
will start to pass the “is this a strong novel plot test”
– and then,
once you have a few good novels in the hopper,
you are ready to start seriously consider
publishing and marketing yourself
as an author.
