The Writer's Guide to Plotting a Novel by Soule S. A

Author:Soule, S. A.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: FWT
Published: 2014-02-02T00:00:00+00:00

ROMANCE PLOT TEMPLATE

Romance is heavily character-based; the hero and heroine must have strong motivations for what they do, especially for why they fall in love. In a romance plot, the romance, or the developing of a committed relationship, is the primary storyline. The story ARC revolves around the emotional journey of the characters from strangers or friends/enemies to lovers and to a committed partnership.

Story World

Storyline (one sentence that sums up the story):

What is the overall story-world global problem?

In what time period is your story? (Current day, historic period, future, alternate reality, etc. Write down some things you know about the time period in which your story takes place and how that will affect the story and/or characters.)

Where does your story take place? (Town, country, planet, school, etc.) Jot down a general idea of the world in which your story takes place and how the world itself will affect the story and its characters.

Are there background or details about your story world that will affect the story and/or characters?

What season is it? Are there any weather events, climate, or holiday details that will impact the story?

PLOT QUESTIONS TO FILL OUT:

What is the story’s main theme (love is not a theme)?

Who is your heroine? What makes her sympathetic? What will the readers like about her?

Who is your hero? What makes him someone the readers can fall in love with?

What qualities make each hero and heroine heroic? Real? Sympathetic?

What is the initial problem that brings the hero and heroine together?

How does the inciting incident affect both hero and heroine?

What is the main dilemma (or villain), character flaw, or past experience that causes tension between the two main characters and threatens to keep them from being happy?

What forces them to stay in contact? Why can’t one of them just walk away?

What do they see in each other? What features about each one attract the other?

How do the characters resolve the big issues between them?

What makes the love between these two characters special?

What is the happy ending? Does one of them make a sacrifice? Do they compromise?

ACT ONE

Setup/Hook/Theme (Generally happens between chapters 1 – 3)

Introduce the hero, the heroine, and the villain (if you have an antagonist) and hint at the “fatal flaw.” Make the main problem your characters must overcome clear and establish what their initial goals are. Have a strong hook, and setup the romantic conflict (foreshadowing, instituting the stakes) the first scene should identify the exterior and/or interior conflict (i.e., unfulfilled desire), and setup the hero/heroine’s Ordinary World. Lastly, include hints at the story’s overall theme, such as: Sacrifices for love, or Love triumphs over fear/evil, or Opposites attract, etc.

The Meet-Cute (Generally happens between chapters 4 – 5)

A Meet-Cute is the event or scene where the hero and heroine meet for the first time or they are meeting again. This crucial scene has to have the key elements of both attraction and conflict. It should be clear that although these two people are attracted to each other, a relationship is not going to come easily.

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