Holly Lisle's
Create a Plot Clinic
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- We Need Your Help iv
- Introduction: What Is Plotting (And Why Is It So Hard?) 3
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- Plot Is... 3
- Where Plots Are Born 4
- A word of warning on dealing with the subconscious 6
- How Plots Grow 7
- The Seven Basic Plots (Plus A Mermaid) 9
- Plotting Is A Process, Not An Act 10
- How To Use This Book 12
- Section I: Plotting Before Writing 20
- Structures 22
- How Many Plot Cards Will I Need? 22
- Usual Novel Word Counts 23
- Figuring Average Scene Length Wordcounts 23
- The Number of Scenes You’ll Need Is... 23
- The Three-Act Structure 24
- Character Structure, Single POV 28
- Character Structure, Multiple POV 29
- Cliffhanger Structure 31
- Organic Structure 32
- Timeline Structure 34
- Mixing It Up 36
- Section II: Tools—When Things Are Going Well 38
- Plot Tools, and Why There Are So Many 39
- Tool 1: Question 41
- Tool 2: Twist 46
- Tool 3: Cliffhanger 51
- Tool 4: Character 56
- Tool 5: Line-For-Scene, Take One 61
- Tool 6: Conflict 68
- Tool 7: Language 72
- Tool 8: Culture 78
- Tool 9: Map and Terrain 82
- Tool 10: Throwing Stuff Against A Wall 86
- Tool 11: Theme and Concept 91
- Section III: Tools—When Things Go Splat 99
- Tool 12: Awake—Timed Writing 100
- Tool 13: Awake—Word Games 104
- Goosebumps 104
- Pong 108
- Chase Your Tail 111
- Tool 14: Awake—Drawings 114
- Tool 15: Awake—Cards 119
- Tool 16: Awake—Making and Doing Things 129
- Tool 17—Chop Wood, Carry Water 132
- Tool 18: Awake—Bore Your Muse 136
- Tool 19: Asleep—Dream Journal 141
- Tool 20: Asleep—Dream Blackmail 146
- Section IV: Plotting While Writing 149
- Fix an Existing Project 151
- Dance With the One Who Brought You 158
- Rethinking Plot Points 158
- Changing Characters 163
- Changing the World 164
- Changing the Crisis 165
- Plotting the Ending 169
- Section V: Plotting While Revising 176
- No 177
- Line-For-Scene, Take Two 179
- Conclusion 187
- Coming Soon To Shop.HollyLisle.Com 190
- About the Author 191
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Early Reader Comments
"Your book is downright brilliant, a real blast! Over the weekend I finished the stalled plot for ‘Styngard 3′, the plot for a new thriller and another one for a science fiction novel. 43 hours in 2.5 days."
Richard Norden
"I surprised the heck out of my Muse over the weekend with the techniques in your book."
lizb
"Four words: this book is great. I have no idea what exactly it was in the book that did it, but after I did a read-through, something went *click*, and I got 27 line-for-scene cards done in fifteen minutes. That’s a lot more scene ideas than what I had in the last year or so I’ve been trying to start my series! I got the plot for the first book in order, and I’ve been actually thinking about it almost constantly, instead of when I’m really bored. I’m already getting solid ideas for the next few books."
michelem31
"I was a little scared by how well it worked for something so simple. Amazing." Zink Johnson
"I can’t even begin to explain how useful the first tool (questions) has been for me. Thank you so much. You are the first person to explain how to relate with Ms. Muse in a way that made sense to me."
heatherwrites
You can read the first tool, Questions, in the May/June Issue of Vision, A Resource For Writers--a free bi-monthly writing e-zine edited by Lazette Gifford. (links open in new window)
Reader Reviews
These aren't solicited reviews; they're writers who have blogged about using the book. All reviews open in a single new window--you can click through them and only close one window when you're done.
Don't Miss the Companion Books in the Clinic Series
Create A Character Clinic
Are editors telling you that your characters won't let them put your manuscript down? Are readers saying they stayed up all night reading your story?
If you answered "No" to either of those questions, I can help.
Create A Language Clinic
Invent good names for your worlds, characters, and places--in fifteen minutes.
Create a complete working language--or just the parts you need for your story.
Add depth to your worldbuilding.
Discover new concepts your characters think and use--that don't translate into English.
Change the way you look at the way we all communicate.
All in about five hours. Create A Culture Clinic
Create religions and philosophies, governments and lifestyles that are different than your own, that work together, and that feel real. Avoid cliches. Begin using your new culture in your writing....
All in about five hours.
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