Writer Unleashed

#100: Five Common Plot Problems You Can Avoid


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Ever feel like no matter how much time you spend on your plot, your story’s just not coming together?

Maybe you're generally happy with your structure, but when you go to break down those story beats, all you find are a lot of plot holes.

And now you’re overthinking everything, wondering how your characters and scenes work within your plot.

In this episode I’m sharing  5 common plot problems and what you can do to fix them, or avoid them completely.  This will help you know what’s relevant in your story,  what you can cut, and what you can develop more deeply. 

We’ll explore:

  • How to define your central story problem from which every other event will spin;
  • How to build and intensify your plot;
  • The internal change your character is forced to make, and why she/him resists it;
  • The missing causal factor that moves your plot forward, and;
  • How to up the ante so that your ending feels simultaneously surprising and inevitable. 

Episode Website

Also Listen To:

Episode 69: How to Create Plot Continuity With Character Thought

Write. Revise. Finish. The Emerging Writers Academy is where fiction and memoir writers get the support to do all three - with a community that's doing it alongside you. Spots close January 15. Learn more at nancipanuccio.com/writer.


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Writer UnleashedBy Nanci Panuccio

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