2014 Your Year to Write a Story with a Plot

Fall 2013, I cracked open a six-pack of local, organic brown eggs to find four double-yolks. If I cook, which is rare, I cook breakfast, which means I've broken open plenty of eggs in my life. Not one has ever had a double yolk. This day, four had double yolks.

Since then, wonderful new pairings have come into my life. Each one brings plot benefits to you in a variety of settings:

1) Jill Corcoran and I created the 1st ever online, live Plot Whisperer Workbook Workshops.
The first workshop in the series: Pre-Plot 4-week workshop SOLD OUT!
We have three spaces available for:

• February Plot the Beginning to the Middle 
• March  Plot the Middle to the End
• April Deepen Your Plot 

Sign-up for all 3 Plot Whisperer Workshops and save $100.00! Plot from Beginning to End

Yesterday, Jill, following her passion, added a 4-week Picture Book Workshop, filling quickly.

Each plot workshop is designed for writers who benefit from: learning about story concept and plot, assigned homework, accountability, constructive feedback on your plot and concept, learning from other writers in a live, video chat format.


2) Jordan Rosenfeld and I met through friends over lunch in late summer. We both commented afterwards of experiencing one of those wonderful kinship sensations, like we spoke the same language. I read her novel Forged in Grace and fell in love with her writing. I wanted to write a plot book on scenes. Jordan wanted to write a scene book on plot. Writer's Digest just offered us contracts for Deep Scenes!

I dreamed of another plot retreat since my terrific host up and moved to the other side of the country. Jordan and I met up at Mt. Madonna in the Santa Cruz mountains and Deep Plotting Writing Retreat resulted.

Two more double-yolk pairing are meeting, matching up, connecting and joining together...

Write with a plot or story plan.
 ~~~~~
To familiarize yourself with the basic plot terms I use:
1) Plot your story step-by-step with the help of The Plot Whisperer Workbook: Step-by-step Exercises to Help You Create Compelling Stories

2) Read The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of Story Structure Any Writer Can Master named BEST BOOKS FOR WRITERS by Poets and Writers.

3) Refer to The Plot Whisperer Book of Writing Prompts: Easy Exercises to Get You Writing for writing prompts for scene #1 to the very The End, one prompt at a time.

4) Watch the Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. Scroll down on the left of this post for a directory of all the steps to the series. 27-step tutorial on Youtube.

For more tips about how to use plot in your novel, memoir or screenplay, visit:

Blockbuster Plots for Writers
Plot Whisperer on Facebook (we hope you "like" it)

Plot Whisperer on Twitter

Plot Whisperer on Pinterest 

***** Knowing what to write where in a story with a plot reinforces daily writing practice and allows for more productivity in your writing. Whether writing a first draft or revising, if you falter wondering what comes next in a story with a plot, follow the prompts in The Plot Whisperer Book of Writing Prompts: Easy Exercises to Get You Writing.

Today, I write.

Writers Block

I don't believe in writer's block.

From my own personal writing experience and from all the writers I've worked with, I've come to believe that writer's block is more aptly described as a writer who does not know her story well enough.

Rather than succumb to the feeling of blockage and to learn more about your story, writers spend time outlining and/or pre-plotting, tracking scenes and/or creating a plot planner. Often, such strategies help to stimulate ideas and the writing begins flowing again.

Another strategy is research. Whatever time period your novel, memoir, screenplay covers, every writer benefits from researching for just the right details and exploring a broader range of what was happening during that time period historically, politically and with fashion and trends and fads. Often this sort of research stimulates ideas for scenes and the writer finds herself writing again.

Caution for all strategies -- use them until you are inspired to write and then give up the strategy to write. Employ the same strategy again when your energy flags and you feel "blocked." Plotting and tracking and researching are secondary to writing.

Use any of the above strategies or any you have found helpful to roll the boulders out of your way and you'll find yourself achieving your long term goal of finishing your story.

To familiarize yourself with the Universal Story and the basic plot terms in the above blog post:

1) Read The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of Story Structure Any Writer Can Master (Now also as a Kindle edition)

2) Watch the Plot Series: How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay? on YouTube. A directory of all the steps to the series is to the right of this post. 27-step tutorial on Youtube

3 Watch the Monday Morning Plot Book Group Series on YouTube. A directory the book examples and plot elements discussed is to the left of this post.

For additional tips and information about the Universal Story and plotting a novel, memoir or screenplay, visit:
Blockbuster Plots for Writers
Plot Whisperer on Facebook
Plot Whisperer on Twitter