ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

How to Plot Your Story

Updated on June 25, 2021
I Am Rosa profile image

Rosa Marchisella is the author of the gripping "Touch of Insanity" series and the bone-chilling novella "The Greatest of Books."

Building a Foundation

No matter what techniques or style of story plotting you use, there are some basics that need to be covered to ensure your writing experience flows smoothly from start to finish. You need to establish the theme and tone, your setting, characters and story arc.

Besides the obvious task of setting a solid foundation before you tackle writing, story plotting will provide you with a clear reference during the writing process to keep you on track.

Theme and Tone

First, take a few minutes to establish what kind of story you’re going to tell and, more importantly, how you’re going to tell it. To do this, you need to figure out your theme (the story’s main idea) and tone (the feeling or atmosphere you’re trying to create). One or two sentences for each is sufficient.

Do Your Homework

Remember to do your research before you start writing. Otherwise, you might discover information that will derail your story and require a major re-write.

Setting

Defining your setting will help make it more real to you, which in turn will help you make it more real to your readers.

For stories set in our world, things like era and location will help determine the history, culture, politics and general religious views of the inhabitants.

For fantasy and science-fiction, it is vital to clarify these things, plus clothing style, magic, technology, races, weapons and armour, local customs, flora, fauna, and anything else unique to the story's reality.

A story bible comes in very handy. I even include drawings, doodles, and pictures cut out of magazines to give me visual examples and inspiration.

Characters

Your characters drive your story. The more you know about your characters, the better.

Besides their name, age, gender, and basic description, character details for your protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) should include:

  • Physical Aspects like movement style, speech patterns, and mannerisms.
  • Internal Aspects such as mental state, ethics, morals, and values.
  • Background Details that includes familial relationships, important events, and hobbies.
  • Motivational Considerations which encompass strengths and weaknesses, goals, fears, wants, and motivations.
  • Story Oriented Details in the form of conflicts (internal and external), and the changes they will undergo throughout the story.

Less detailed character write-ups should also be done for anyone who has a role in moving the story forward.

Some actors create a detailed character analysis for their roles. This process can be valuable to writers, as well. I have created an in-depth Character Sheet you can download for free. Use as much or as little as you need to help you flesh out your important characters.

Character Analysis Sheet

My Character Sheet is available as a free download to help you flesh out your important characters.
My Character Sheet is available as a free download to help you flesh out your important characters.

Story Arc

Every successful story follows a the same simple formula:

  • Set up: The introduction of situation, protagonist(s), antagonist(s), conflicts (internal and external), and the event or decision that initiates action.
  • Action: Attempted solution, failure to overcome, and actual solution.
  • Conclusion: The resolution of conflicts and wrap up.


Remember how much you plot and how you do it depend on what works best for you.

I put together a Plot Line Checklist which is available to download for free. It includes each section of story plotting as outlined in this article, as well as detailed lists of what is important for basic character development and story arc formula.

Plot Line Checklist

Download my free Plot Line Checklist to help keep yourself on track.
Download my free Plot Line Checklist to help keep yourself on track. | Source

Free Software to Help Authors Organize

Programs like Scrivener or the free alternatives like yWriter are excellent word processor and project management tools to help you stay organized and on track.

Scrivener Screen Shot

Screen shot of Scrivener's cork board setting
Screen shot of Scrivener's cork board setting | Source

© 2014 Rosa Marchisella

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)