Plotting Workshop Notes (Or, The Girl Who Lived.)

(Cheryl being introduced.)

Yes, the homework that had me quaking in my rain boots was worth it. It didn’t kill me… I survived!

Here are a few teasers from the workshop I attended last Saturday by Cheryl Klein, editor at Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic) and continuity editor for the last 3 Harry Potter books. (Squee!)

Cheryl was brilliant and witty and gave us all so much to think about, my brain will be exploding for several days. She also had several copies of her book for purchase, which you may buy here.

*Plotting = Compulsions Vs./ Obstacles. (True whether a picture book, novel, screenplay.)

*Think about Drivers – Who or what is driving the action, the climax?

*If you don’t have change, you don’t have plot.

*A good story has both Action Plot (External) and Emotional Plot (Internal).

*Finally, I loved this quote so much, I shared it with my husband: “It doesn’t matter if your lead character is good or bad. He just has to be interesting, and he has to be good at what he does.” – David Chase, Sopranos creator/writer

If you ever have an opportunity to hear Cheryl talk on bookmapping or plot, jump at the chance. It’s money well-spent. I’ll admit, I was nervous going in, and it was intense. But Cheryl is incredibly encouraging and sprinkles her talk with delightful backstory about working with some beloved authors (Lisa Yee, Elizabeth C. Bunce, Francisco X. Stork, Sara Lewis Holmes). All the attendees walked away with handouts/ links galore for analyzing our own manuscripts and/or beta-reading others. Which I will utilize soon. (Looking at you, Laura.)