For Writers Who Want to Create Absorbing, Page-Turning Books That Hook Readers from Page One!

How do you create a plot that leaves readers wanting more? Look no further - here are all the tips and strategies you'll ever need!

From the home office of Marg McAlister
11.19 am, Friday.
 

If you're struggling to come up with a feasible, well-constructed plot and wondering if there's some secret to plotting that's eluding you... I'm really, really glad you've found this page.

I know where you're coming from. How many times over the years have I felt despair at the need to 'come up with a decent plot'? The answer: too many to count! Sometimes I've wrestled with it for months. Sometimes (with a deadline looming) I've had to snatch a plot from thin air with only hours to spare!

The good thing is, all this experience has given me a fine appreciation for what does and doesn't work with plotting. And - here's something that might make you smile with relief - I know that you CAN come up with a plot in just a few hours if you really have to!

How Do I Know?

Let me share an experience with you. On this occasion, I had agreed to write a short children's book, and I was getting very close to the deadline. I'd been busy with lots of other writing, as well as marking student assignments, and I knew that I had to come up with something before the weekend was out. (I wouldn't have let things go down this close to the wire if I'd been writing a longer book for adults... but I'd written a number of books for children, and knew I could work fast!)

Anyway, by Sunday afternoon... I still had nothing. To make things worse, I was expected at a function at four o'clock on Sunday afternoon at the local Surf Club. Reluctantly, I went along - but vowed to myself that I'd take a walk along the beach and not go back to the gathering until I knew what I was going to write about!

Hacking an idea out of my brain was akin to chipping away at a hunk of marble with a paperclip. I ended up sitting on a rock staring out to sea, saying to myself: "Quick, quick. What do kids always like to read about?" Magic, I decided. All right then, I was going to write about magic. What sort of magic? A witch? Some thing that was magic? What?

At this stage I suddenly remembered a present I'd been given a couple of years previously. It was a cap - a corduroy cap, which used to belong to a very highly regarded writer and teacher of writing. When he died unexpectedly, his wife gave me the cap and said, "Here. When you're having trouble writing, put on Gary's thinking cap!"

I watched the waves breaking on the shore and thought: Pity the hat's at home in the cupboard and not here! Then, bingo - I had it. Just like that. I would write about a magic hat.

A magic hat. Who owns the hat? I asked myself. Where did it come from? Suddenly, the ideas started to flood in. I decided that the main character, Jake, would have to have the hat for school... why? Because they were going to have... um... a 'hat' day, for some reason. (Not an Easter Bonnet parade, I decided. Something different.) Perhaps the main character could have trouble coming up with a hat because his mother was visiting her sick sister, and Dad was looking after the kids, and he didn't have time to make amazing hats... and so it went on.

In the end, the desperate hero grabbed the tattered old hat off the scarecrow next door and lo and behold, it turned out to be a magic hat, which could be any sort of hat the hero wanted it to be.

There were a few other plot elements, and I introduced a 'ticking clock' (Jake had to return the hat to the scarecrow by sunset or he and the hat would disappear forever) and before I knew it, I had not only an idea, but also a plot. All of this happened in about half an hour. That book became Mad Hatter's Day, published by Rigby (now under the umbrella of Harcourt).

Can YOU Create a Plot in Less Than An Hour?

Yes, you can.

By that I mean that it's possible. I can't guarantee that you'll be satisfied with the plot, or that it will be the one that you'll eventually use... but I can show you how it's done! With the aid of the "One Hour Plot" recipe you will have a plot ready to go - one with all the necessary elements in place. This works for books for adults and books for children.

The good news is that even if you're not happy with your first effort, you can repeat the process with another idea. Eventually, you'll find a plot you can work with. That sure beats sitting there staring glumly at the screen for weeks or months, not knowing what to do!

Work With Your Strengths

The key to being able to plot easily and quickly is to work with your strengths. That means you should sit down and think about the kind of writer you are.

• How do you get ideas?
• How do you process ideas?
• Are you the kind of writer that works best from a 'mind map' or from a detailed outline?

You have to understand your own personality and your optimum way of working. If you try to plot your book according to some arbitrary set of rules that someone has imposed on you, you're probably heading for failure. What you'll get in this e-course is a method of plotting that suits YOU - a system that you'll be able to use over and over again.

But... how can I be sure that this will work for you?

All I can say is that I'm basing what I say not only on experience, but on feedback from THOUSANDS of students that I've tutored over the years. (Here's a thumbnail sketch: I've written 5 distance education courses (on writing) for major educational institutions; published over sixty books; tutored thousands of students; published well-regarded writers' newsletters and hosted writers' websites for ten years... I figure I've learned a trick or two to pass on!

This e-course - like the others that we offer or are planning - has been designed to get you up and running quickly without taking months of your time. It has also been carefully planned to fit in with you and your specific needs. You have the option of sending in an assessment task once each week for feedback - or you can use the Analyze It! Task Analysis Sheets to cast a critical eye over your own results.

This is a great 'safety net'. Even though each task (if you opt to take advantage of the feedback) need to be completed during the week of the related Plotting modules, if for some reason you don't get around to sending one in, you can relax knowing that you will receive a really useful tool for self-assessment. A tool that can be used over and over again!

MORE ABOUT THE
SPOTLIGHT ON PLOTTING
e-Course!

How is the Course Structured?

Length of e-course:

• 5 weeks (Monday week 1 through to Sunday week 5)

Content of e-course:

• 5 Plotting modules, one delivered each week. Each module will cover a different aspect of plotting your stories.
   
• A set of exercises for each module to help you master the content taught.
   
• 5 Assessment Tasks: one to reinforce each week's lesson content. You may choose to send this in for critiquing or use the task analysis sheets delivered the following week to assess your own performance.
   
• 5 Analyze It! Task analysis sheets - one for each module. Use these to check your own performance and understanding for the e-course tasks or to build your plot for future stories.
   
• End-of-Course Summary Sheet - this handy 'plotting cheat sheet' will be an essential tool for any story you want to write.

The Content of Each Plotting Module

Plotting Module1:  An overview of the plotting process, and tips on how to work with your strengths to make plotting your story easier for you

	What is a "plot"? What do you need to know before you start?
	How do you get started on your plot?
	Different plotting styles - why something that works brilliantly for another writer may work against you
	Tips on finding your individual plotting style
	Common plotting mistakes - and how to fix them! (You can save yourself hours of frustration if you know what to avoid)
	How much of the plot you should have in place before you start (this may surprise you!)
	The pros and cons of complex plots
	The pros and cons of simple plots
	What readers like... what editors like... what YOU like!
	Six time-savers to use when building your plot
	The One-Hour Plot - how to 'force' a plot even if your brain is mush!

 

Plotting Module2:  The role of the outline/synopsis - how it can save you time both now and later

	Why you need an outline or synopsis
	The 'working synopsis' - why this gets a huge thumbs up
	Essential tips on writing a synopsis - how to make it easy (yes, REALLY!)
	What you want versus what editors want
	What a synopsis is NOT!
	Chapter by chapter? Or scene by scene? The answer will send your productivity soaring!
	Hitting the high spots - how to intrigue yourself as well as the editor

 

Plotting Module3:  Plotting the short story - some useful tips; Raising the stakes in your novel - how this makes you stand out from the crowd

	Can you write a short story without a plot?
	Developing a short story from a premise
	"Mapping" your short story
	What are 'stakes' - and why are they important?
	Putting yourself in the plot - a good idea or not?
	Why character motivation is so important for your plot
	The stakes when your story opens... leave yourself room!
	Raising the stakes - how do you make the stakes both believable and irresistibly exciting?
	The essential factors for plot development
	Achieving balance - how to moderate your novel's pacing for effective storytelling

 

Plotting Module4:  Subplots! How to create them; how to weave them in and out of the main plot

	What IS a subplot?
	How to choose the best subplots for your story
	How you can avoid ever having to worry about a 'sagging middle' in your story
	The characters in your subplot - 'who' and 'why'
	What to do when a subplot threatens to run away with your story
	What to do if the subplot is more interesting than the main plot!
	Tying up loose ends - how to resolve plot and subplots at the right time

Plotting Module5:  A-Z of Plotting...and an invaluable troubleshooter

	A super-useful A-Z reference that you can turn to for answers whenever you get stuck
	Nifty professional strategies that will add zing to your plot
	A must-have checklist for assessing whether your plot is in trouble
	Strategies to fix a shaky beginning (OR one that's too strong)
	Workable 'fixes' for problems in the middle of the story
	How to fix the plot that fizzles out (you'll love these ideas)
	Structural edits - how to view the overall structure of your story and understand how small changes can make a big difference
	Why some plotting has to be done after the story is finished
	A few last words - a roundup of the most essential tips
	Looking ahead: what you've learned that will help your next book

It's very likely that you have already have a plotting problem that's been driving you crazy for quite a while. Rest easy... by the time you finish this course, you will have enough 'killer tools' in your writer's toolbox to plot a whole series of books!

Commit to Just 5 Weeks of Focusing on Your Plot - and Develop a Whole New Approach That Will Make Plotting Easier Now... and in the Future!

Here's how it works:

	As soon as you sign up for the SPOTLIGHT ON PLOTTING e-Course, you will immediately be able to download Bonuses #1, #2 and #3 (see below). (Bonus #4, the Plotting Cheat Sheet, will be sent to you when you complete the course.) Bonus #1, your Pre-Plotting Questionnaire will help you understand your 'best plotting approach' before the e-Course starts. You will also be sent a general introduction to the course and the due dates for Weekly Tasks. Note that the e-course runs over a specific time frame. (No assessment tasks will be accepted outside the due dates - but you WILL have the Analyze It! Checklists as a 'safety net' if you miss a deadline or opt not to send in a task for assessment.)
	This is a 5-week e-course. It begins on Monday of Week 1 and finishes on Sunday of Week 5.  Each Plotting Module is sent out via email on Mondays. Each module will be in the form of a PDF document, as an attachment. We use PDF format because it can be viewed on either Macs or Windows computers, and gives a high quality result when printed.
	Each Assessment Task for that week's module is due 14 days after the module is sent out, by 9.00 on Monday morning. (This will give those who work during the week the opportunity to work on their tasks at weekends.) You should aim at sending it on Sunday evening (or sooner) - but at any rate, so that it arrives by 9.00 am Monday. Remember, you do not have to send in a task - the decision is yours. When each new training module is sent out, it will be accompanied by the Analyze It! Checklist for the previous week's task.
	The Analyze It! Checklists are provided as a self-assessment guide. You can use this if you choose not to send in a task - or if you miss the due date - and to analyze all future plots.
	The End-of-Course Plotting "Cheat Sheet" is sent out on the final day of the e-course. You will find this invaluable to have at hand when you are plotting any story.

Be the Owner of a Definitive Guide To Plotting that You Can Print Out, File and Keep as a Handy Reference Forever

You'll find that a lot of the information you absorb as you're working your way through this course will 'stick' - but what you'll really appreciate is having a practical, organized resource on plotting that you can come back to whenever you get stuck. (Because you will get stuck again - but from now on you won't worry: a few minutes of browsing will help you work out how to fix it!)

If ever you are ready to tear your hair out trying to figure out a 'fix' for a plot that just isn't working - stay calm. Make yourself a cup of coffee (or a herbal tea, or whatever floats your boat), open up your "Spotlight on Plotting" Course Modules and your handy Analyze It! checklists and take a deep, calming breath. Then start reading. In no time at all, you'll understand how you can go about applying first aid to your ailing plot. THAT is worth more than gold!

It would feel fantastic, that's how it would feel! (Enough to make you want to go and sit at your computer instead of avoid it!)

However... that's just the course. Let's talk about those bonuses we have for you. Writers need all the help they can get, right? ;-)

Here are our super bonuses for e-Course participants:

	Bonus #1: Pre-Plotting Questionnaire  What questions do you need to ask yourself to find out your unique plotting style? How can you prepare so that during the e-course, the plotting process flows? This pre-plotting questionnaire will let you do a lot of the spadework before you start. You'll be surprised at what a difference this makes!
	Bonus #2: Useful Resources for Plotting Your Story  A 62-page manual of great resources for writers to help you get your plot just right - website links and support articles that will get you off to a great start.
	Bonus #3: Time Management Tips  This fits in nicely with the work you'll be doing with the pre-plotting questionnaire - being the master of your time makes a big difference to the amount of work you'll get done. This e-books sells for $9.95 in the Writing4Success Club bookstore.
	Bonus #4: A Plotting "Cheat Sheet"  You'll love this one. As soon as the course is finished, you get this handy plotting 'cheat sheet' - it's so easy to measure your ideas for a plot against a set of criteria before you get in too deep! (Delivered at end of course)

Ready to Sign Up...?

It's time to take the step that you've been waiting for - enrol in your intensive SPOTLIGHT ON PLOTTING e-course now! For just $195 you can provide yourself with the tools that help you come up with a gripping plot that makes readers want to turn pages... not just for your work on progress, but for ALL your stories!

I really hope you are one of those who is ready to take the opportunity to learn how to build lively plots for your stories and books! I look forward to working with you over the 5 weeks of the e-course.

Warm regards,

Marg McAlister

Your e-course info sheet will be sent as soon as you confirm your email address (check your email inbox after signing up, and click on the 'confirm' URL (link) that we send you.)