A gripping plot – six ingredients to make your novel unputdownable

There are good novels and then there are the kind of novel you can’t put down. Whether we’re aiming for a traditional publishing deal or planning to self-publish, if we want our novel to find a readership it has to belong to the latter group.

Now, some of this is about our writing personality – our voice and style - but a lot of it is about having a gripping plot.

So what makes a plot gripping? Is it luck, or having a “bestseller mind”? Is it some kind of mysterious gift?

Well, yes, some writers have an instinct for creating a plot that grabs you from the start and won’t let you go until the last page. But in fact, what they are doing is instinctively employing these six techniques, which any of us can learn and apply.
 

1. Give the main character a goal

It’s easy, when life is throwing rocks at your hero and they are in a dire situation from page one, to ignore the question, what do they want?

Navigating a difficult, interesting or challenging situation isn’t enough to grip the reader; your hero must also have a desire – a goal – we can identify with. It’s this goal that is the engine of our story; it drives everything.

As soon as we know what the main character wants, we’re hooked. All too often I see well-written manuscripts with believable characters and interesting situations tank because the main protagonist doesn’t have a goal that really matters to them. If there’s ONE BIG RULE of compelling plotting it’s this: your protagonist must want something and want it badly, and you must stop them getting it (or failing to) until the end. This works – and it is the ONLY thing that works.

2. Make the plot challenge the protagonist sufficiently to create suspense

For a plot to really grip us we need to wonder not only whether circumstances will allow the hero/heroine to triumph, but also whether s/he has the grit/wisdom/courage/heart to do so.The situation needs to challenge your character in the place they are most personally vulnerable – and challenge them hard. We need to be on tenterhooks waiting to see if they can muster the inner qualities to grow and triumph.

A gripping plot is always an internal story, not just an external, circumstantial one.

3. Make the stakes high

The goal, the danger, the situation must all be of grave importance to the protagonist.The equation here is simple: we will care to the same extent they do (as long as we understand why it matters), and we will feel suspense to the same extent they do.

4. Make sure the protagonist’s motivation is always clear

No cheating – we have to understand and 100% believe the reasons for each choice they make, each action they take. They may not be good reasons but the character has to believe they are.

Our plot will swim or sink depending on the reader’s belief in the motivations that drive our protagonist’s actions. And this doesn’t just go for the protagonist; all the characters’ must have clear, believable reasons for everything they do, even (or especially) any villains or antagonists.

5. Make sure every chapter or major scene moves the story forward.

As you plan or improvise your plot (depending on your approach) it’s essential that every single chapter or big scene moves the plot forward – no informative diversions, no anecdotes, no side plots unless, by the end of the scene, something has happened that changes the course of the story, even if only slightly.

So how do we know if a scene moves the plot forward? It needs to shift the situation so as to affect the likelihood that the hero/heroine will achieve their goal. Or reveal a major piece of information that relates to their pursuit of their goal.

Anything else will make the reader lose interest.

The golden rule of plotting is this: if a major scene doesn’t affect the likelihood of the protagonist achieving their goal, delete it.

6. Build toward a knock-out climax

Even if you don’t like to plan a novel in advance, it’s worth making sure you are heading for a final, massive challenge that will test your protagonist to his or her limits. This is the climactic drama that will show us whether, when the chips are down, they have what it takes. It must be dramatic, tense, suspenseful, whatever that means for your particular genre.

The climax should be great. Nothing less will do.

These six ingredients are all you need to build a compelling plot that will hook the reader from the start right until the end.

However tempting it is to neglect one or more of these ingredients, don’t allow yourself to do it. You’ll be glad you stuck to these crucial principles of plotting when you see you have a novel that sells!