New writing series: Subplots!

This entry is part 1 of 7 in the series Subplots

I asked you what you wanted, and the #1 writing series choice was subplots! So today I’m kicking off our next writing series!

subplots series. Photo by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

A subplot is a part of a story that shows some sort of progress, growth or change, but isn’t the main plot of a story. A few examples of subplots include:

Jenny’s life (especially away from Forrest) in Forrest Gump
Ron & Hermoine’s romance in the Harry Potter series (one of dozens of subplots!)
Tom’s affair with Myrtle in The Great Gatsby
Katniss’s “romance” with Peeta and somewhat Gale in The Hunger Games
The plot of individual, single episodes of Burn Notice and other serial TV shows

None of these stories constitute the main plot of their stories: Forrest Gump’s life, Harry Potter’s battle against Voldemort, Gatsby’s obsession with Daisy, surviving the Hunger Games, getting back Michael’s life as a spy, etc. And yet they’re still vital to the story (in varying degrees) because they influence the main plot.

Subplots can be really tricky! You have to show enough of them to understand what’s going on, you have to make sure they’re intertwined with and thus vital to the story, and yet somehow you need to balance them so they don’t overwhelm or contradict the main action of the story.

No wonder we want to learn how to do them well!

Coming up in the series:

Types of subplots
Balancing the subplot and the main plot
How to know when the subplot should go
How to make a subplot vital to the story

Previous posts on subplots: Elizabeth S. Craig’s secret sauce: subplots

Other writing series:

Learn the best way to outline your next successful novel with the free PDF of The Plot Thickens (mwahahaha)	Really get into your characters’ heads for voice that pops with the free PDF Guide to Deep POV
Creating conflict: Draw your readers in and keep them reading: proven tools & techniques—no gimmicks!To get the free PDF, just share the automatic message via one of these social networks, using the buttons below: Why pay with a Tweet, Facebook or G+?