Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Favorite Plot Devices



What’s your favorite plot device? Maybe you like stories with a red herring thrown into the mystery? Or perhaps you like dramas with a convincing femme fatale?

One of my favorite plot elements is to run opposite characters into one another. Any situation where you can force two people who don’t really like one another to have to work together usually provides great tension. Everything from the characters in Pride and Prejudice to Star Wars use some element of throwing opposites at each other.

So what plot devices do you like to see? A talisman object in a quest, i.e. like Tolkien’s One Ring? Or maybe you prefer something more subtle, such as a film noir character who should be a bad guy, but does good things?  

8 comments:

  1. Opposites is a good one! There are so many I like, it's hard to pick just one!

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  2. I like anti-stereo types. And foreshadowing. LOVE LOVE LOVE Foreshadowing :)

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  3. I used yours in both of my books, especially the first one.

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  4. I love it when a character (particularly the protagonist) turns out to be someone they're not, whether their true self emerges through betrayal, discovery by another character, etc.


    The Golden Eagle
    The Eagle's Aerial Perspective

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  5. I write about plot devices every week. There's so many, it's hard to pick just one. If I were, it would be making your solution the problem. :)

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  6. I'm with Krista- foreshadowing is the best.

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  7. I have a lot of favourite plot devices. I like surprise twists and unexpected endings. And I like foreshadowing.

    Btw...I will be emailing you the last chapter which I have kind of changed (not completely, but the changes are visible) later in the day.

    How are your rewrites going?

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  8. Awesome plot ideas! Now to get each of them into my story...I always enjoy a challenge:)

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