Plot is a Four-Letter Word
© 2003, Wendy Webb

      We were always taught that using four-letter words was a bag thing. Real bad. You could go blind, go to the underworld, or worse, be estranged from the grandmother, who hasn't opened a window since 1948, for using these tainted words. There is, however, one exception: If you don't use plot, you will find your story in some editor's circular file, or jammed under an uneven table leg. So it's up to you. A potential sale, or blindness in a house that smells of stale lilac or lye.
      I thought you'd see it my way.
      And in the interest of avoiding sealed windows, I'll henceforth call plot by its components: The 7 story points. All stories must have these components or they can't be called stories. It's a rule. No one asked me. And while some stories don't necessarily reflect the components clearly, look closely because they are there. In fact, a good exercise might be to read a handful of stories and identify the points. Then read your own work and see if you can find all seven. No, huh? Well, well, well.
      So here they are. An explanation of each follows.

1. hook
2. problem
3. backfill
4. complication
5. action
6. dark moment
7. resolution

      The hook is the "grabber." The opening sentence or sequence that makes the reader want to continue with your story. The book can be one sentence, or it may be a paragraph, that draws the reader in and compels them [her] to turn the page and read on. Here are some hook examples:

My name is Johnny Hale. I'm thirty-six years old, stand fie feet eleven in my socks, and am, so to speak, naked at the moment and talking into the dark. (John Cheever, "The Housebreaker of Shady Hill")

Besides the neutral expression that she wore when she was alone, Mrs. Freedman had two others, forward and reverse, that she used for all her human dealings. (Flannery O'Connor, "Good Country People")

What might be called the first imitation of strangeness occurred at the railroad station. (Shirley Jackson, "The Beautiful Stranger")

      The problem is the situation the protagonist faces either form internal and/or external fores. Foreshadowing might make an initial appearance here.
      The backfill is information the reader needs about the protagonist, the situation, and the setting. This should be revealed sparingly, as the story dictates, through action via the protagonist and others, and throughout the story. Don't impress us with all your research, or jam the information in one talking head sequence. Foreshadowing works here as well.
      A complication is when the character gets into trouble trying to solve a problem, which leads to:
      Action, which is what the protagonist does as a result of the complication.
      The dark moment occurs when events have gotten worse for the protagonist and there are even more problems developing. Avoid the old Batman TV series "Before I kill you I'll tell you my entire plan" approach, or I know of an entire community of unopened windows that will have your name. And address.
      And finally, there is the resolution where the protagonist prevails (or doesn't) because of resources that were available (and revealed to the reader) all along. The character must change in the resolution.
      As a side note, you might discover that some of the best writing includes the hook, problem, and a bit of important backfill, all within the first sentence or even paragraph or two. Witness "The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury.
      Simple, huh? If you have the 7 story points in your story, then you are well on your way to having a story. But don't take my word for it. Here are two other opinions on the matter of plot:
      Novelist and short story writer Jack Massa talks about character and plot working together in that a story begins with an opening situation or story problem. The characters respond to it with an objective or goal in relation to the story problem. This objective generates internal and external conflict, and the protagonist is tested and changed by the conflict. Eventually, a solution is worked out, and the reader is left with an impression or effect, which is equal to the story's single purpose.
      Brad Strickland, author of 14 novels and 60 short stories, uses characters to develop ideas and plot. He says:

  • Create a character.
  • Discover the character's greatest problem.
  • Have the character try to solve the problem.
  • Get the character in trouble while trying to solve the problem; new problems arise.
  • Repeat steps 3-4 until the character finally success or fails.


    •       So now you know. There are many, many ways to skin a four-letter word, but only one way to avoid editors' circular files and uneven table legs. Read a story for pleasure, then go back and study it. Identity the 7 story points. Then, turn your attention to your own work. You might be surprised at what's there.
          Or what isn't.