Subplots

JENNY: After a commenter on Argh (hello, Jinx!) mentioned that we were talking in writing wonk shorthand too much, I have resolved to be more specific. So . . .

A subplot is a minor, simpler plot that in some way intersects with and supports the main plot.

The Central Conflict

Traditional story is a battle, a struggle that builds and ends in a climax.  That struggle is called conflict, and it’s the engine for your plot, so it’s important to know what the main conflict is and how to identify or construct the one in your book.

Here’s where this conversation started:
Bob’s 2007 Protagonist/Antagonist post is here.
Jenny’s 2007 Protagonist/Antagonist post is here.
Jenny’s 2007 Central Conflict post is here.

Jenny

I’m pretty pleased with the Conflict posts we put up fourteen years ago. Turns out the basic theories of fiction don’t change that much (hello, Aristotle). So, I’d rather talk about how identifying that central conflict can be a tool to focus a story.