What comes first plot or character?
It's a question that I often get asked when I give talks and readings and it's a difficult one to answer or at least to explain. The two are so interlinked that it is impossible to say, well for me at least.
The idea for the DI Horton novel I'm currently writing came easily; it is based on something I'd been told - more than that I can't say otherwise I'll give the game away. And beginning to turn the idea into a workable plot started well until about chapter six. Then I knew that before I could continue I needed to do more research and development on my characters. Until you have interesting characters then there is no plot, or it is weak or fizzles out. Why? Because characters drive the plot, it is their emotions and reactions that make the story. But you can't let them run around willy nilly otherwise your book would be wandering all over the place. You need a plot.
As you can see plot and characters often develop together or rather you can't have one without the other , a bit like that song, "love and marriage..." When I get stuck I always know it is because I haven't done enough work on my characters. So it's back to the paper and pencil to map out who they are, their motivations and personalities and how this drives them to do the things they do in the book. I find it all incredibly fascinating. Of course I do some of this research before starting the novel but at that stage, although the characters might look fully formed on the paper, I know they are not. For me they don't really come alive until I begin to put dialogue into their mouths, so I have to start writing the novel even though I might have huge gaps in the plot at that stage. Then, after a while, it's back to the plot again and more research on the characters, (the paper and pencil bit) before refining the plot and then continuing with the creative writing process on the computer screen. And, of course, in a crime novel you also need to make sure the clues and red herrings are all in place. But I'll leave that for another day. Back to the novel. Now if only I could work out who done it!
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Dale Estey says:
It Thickens
For me it is always plot first. My characters (who generally arise on their own) drag it into reality.
Rosy Cole says:
Readers ask impossible questions!
It depends on the kind of book. I've written stories where the plot definitely comes first. That's what readers of certain genres expect. It's not to say that characters don't have to be well-realised, but they are subserviant to the action in a brain-teaser or romance.
With THE WOLF AND THE LAMB (the first in a trilogy of biographical novels) the story is woven out of the experience of real people and that dictates everything. The character of Mary Cole is endlessly fascinating and hangs together remarkably well over several decades and the reigns of four monarchs, through a period of immense change and turmoil.
I can't 'claim kin' but I sometimes think it very spooky that I should have been attracted to her when my full name incorporates hers.
Brian McKee says:
Writer's depth of character influences their writing greatly
The tapestry that characters and plot weave are best when they form patterns which are true to the outer and inner realities of the story.
The biggest limitation on my writing is the depth of my own character. As a young man my stories were creative but had no depth. Only now that I've experienced some life am I able to dig deeper into the stories and relate some of the more subtle aspects of the plot and characters. My age also makes it easier for me to reign in the story and keep it realistic. I want to keep it from turning into an eighties prime time adventure program.
I keep pushing myself for more depth because I know that's the key to being a good writer. That's all I want. Everything else is unimportant.
What a great and thoughtful post. You inspire me. Thanks much!
Brian