Developing Plot

 There are three main ways of developing plot: Work from a first line and discover plot as you go along Plot backwards from the turning point Or borrow a plot from a fairy tale, historical story, folk tale, religious story, or other common narrative. Read the article “Bat Boy Escapes!”Preview the document Now you will practice method two with this activity. The crisis now becomes: Bat Boy leaves the hospital. Answer the following questions and upload your Word Document when finished. What has to happen for him to reach this point? Hit by a car -who hit him? What was he doing? What’s at stake for him in leaving? What does he want or desire more than anything? How does he in part cause his own problems? What has to change for him to be able to leave? What’s his internal conflict (story happens within the character)? How does he overcome his fear/problems? What’s the minimum number of scenes needed to show this change? Note: Which story would interest you more: A man standing in his back yard gets hit by a falling tree branch and is injured. A man, trimming the tree in his back yard, cuts off the limb he’s standing on and is injured. Problems are more interesting when caused in part by the character. Conflict comes from within the character. Victims are boring. (Cinderella could just tell the prince she’s the girl he met at the ball, but she doesn’t. Why not?) David Gerrard said, “When the hero recognizes ‘I’m the problem’ he also recognizes the corollary: ‘therefore, I’m the solution.’” (Cinderella changes when she comes down out of the attic, faces her fear of her stepmother and her desire to keep herself hidden, and lets her inner princess come out.)