Plotting

Now, if any of you know me, you know I'm not so big on the plotting thing. I like the story to unfold organically and allow the characters lead me. I like to be in their head and let them do the talking so I can react the way they would. Sometimes it works...

But it's like pulling teeth, let me tell you. There are times they'll go halfway through the piece then dig in and say "no thanks, I'm done now". Is this because I'm not providing them enough stimuli or does it feel artificial? I know Jane must go with John, but she's a bit stubborn, a lot independent, and wants none of that. She's not going to act against her nature to make me happy, and when I force the issue, well, she gets stilted and doesn't give me much to work with.

John's worse, because, well, he's a man yes, but more important, he's an alpha man who has more important things to do than deal with some woman and her accompanying baggage. He's got his own problems (saving the world type of problems) and can't risk being distracted by Jane. Inevitably, he'll have to swoop in and save her from her own mistakes while the bad guy gets away. Are you kidding? No thanks, he's got better things to do.

(By the way, my character's aren't nearly this extreme in their views though it's kind of close.)

So the romance is about forcing them to make time for each other. It's about creating believable adhesion that will keep them with one another - whether emotionally or physically - without providing too many outs. Of course they'll want to refuse and scream and kick me, but I'm going to ignore them and do what I believe is best for them in the long run no matter how taxing the journey.

And therein lies the problem: the journey, the progress, the story within the story.

This probably seems like a silly statement, but the truth is a lot of effort goes into He meets Her, they spark, they fall apart, they come back strong, something bad happens, is resolved, and they live happily ever after. Yes, that's the gist of every romance (with a few more ups and downs in between) but what about the scenes are going to lead them to this place? What will make them confront their issues, not only with each other, but within themselves, as well?

Thanks to some wonderful girls at Savvy Authors, I stumbled upon Larry Brooks's site StoryFix.com, where I was provided the most helpful outline ever! Since I'm doing this rewrite - and of course second guessing everything along the way - I started filling out his checklist to esure I had all the parts to make the car run.

You know what? I think I have every nut and bolt in place this time, but it's nice to see the truth. Try this outline yourself, then tell me what you think. I'll probably never start something new without it again. No joke. I already saved it the computer.  :)

~Hetal