The Plotting Roadmap

 

Now that we have three chapters written of our story, I wanted to flesh out the plot to the end so you could see where we want to go.  One of the voices asked me – do you always write a story by “the Seat of your Pants?”  Uh, NO.  I hate that, actually, because it gets me all blocked and wandering the house in a fog.  I like having a plan, a roadmap. 

 

In my workbook: From the Inside/Out: discover, create and publish the novel in you, I have a plotting roadmap template – and of course explanations of each step in the journey and how to determine them.  If you want deeper explanations, you can either pick up the book, or search the archives because we covered all these elements last year during our Year with a Hero. For our purposes here, I’ve decided to post my notes that I took for each step so you could see how the journey progresses.  It’s REALLY rough…but at least you can see my thinking and how it progresses…

 

Tomorrow I’ll post the synopsis – [with commentary] you can then see how I took each step in the journey and worked it into the synopsis.

 

 

 

ACT 1

Life –

Kenzie – award ceremony

Luke – his father’s birthday party… has to rescue nephew

 

Inciting Incident –

Kenzie – fire – and she has to get away from possible stalker

Luke – Kenzie shows up – and he mistakes her for reporter –

            Reporter shows up and tells him that he owes her?  It’s not enough to have the

Magazine article – needs to stage a sort of Veterans day event (she’s the chairperson).

He has to keep kenzie under wraps…His cousin doesn’t know he’s living at the old hunting

Cabin

 

            The Big Debate —  He doesn’t want to hang out with Kenzie – she’s conceited and

Annoying…and doesn’t know the woods (and I think she represents everything he hated

About the industry). – -shallow…

            But – she is willing to help him with the event…

           

Noble Quest – She is trying to figure out what she wants to do – produce or act.  She has lost her way – she wants to change the world. 

He has to keep her safe…but most of all, he wants to be a man his father can be proud of…and even more than that, be a hero in his own eyes…which will me, eventually, telling the truth about his past.

Also – he will need to protect Kenzie…and that starts by keeping anyone from knowing she is here.

 

 

ACT 2

            Meet the Girl (Subplot Story begins)

            She is in the woods – he has to stay in his camper back at HQ…

                        She is truly afraid…

 

 

Denial –

            she’s a diva…she hates his cabin, and everything she does to fit in turns out bad.  Worse, she gets lost in the woods.  Clearly she’s more difficult to take care of than he imagined. 

            She can’t talk to Greg, her cell phone doesn’t work, and frankly, she thinks she’s being  punished…maybe this is what her future looks like. 

 

            Y in the Road –

            Maybe he should just send her packing…especially when her bomb threat is in question…maybe she’s staging the drama herself to promo her movie.

            She wonders if he can really protect her…maybe he doesn’t think she needs protecting..?

 

Disappointment  1–

            He takes her to town…and someone takes her picture…the media knows she’s there.   He feels like he’s in a noose again…he feels like people are going to find out about his past.  Maybe he even struggles with his previous addiction.…and that he’s so tempted to go back there…

            And, he’s apparently become her new ‘boyfriend’ –or something to make him be back in the papers…which is bad because…he fears that someone from his past might still be looking for him.

            She is being played as a diva who staged her own injury…her career as a producer, and even an actress is at stake.  Kenzie truly enjoys Luke’s company, and sees all he’s done for her.  She knows he has secrets and doesn’t want him to have to betray them for her.

 

            Y in the Road: He agrees to tell the true story if the media will leave her alone.  Likewise, she agrees to give an exclusive it they leave him alone.

 

 

Destruction –

            Someone is really after her – a warning is left on their doorstep, and they don’t know who it is from.  He starts to think maybe he caused this – that it is someone from his past.  Also, his emotions get in the way – he’s starting to like her…which blurs his judgment….He flees with her into the woods…

 

             

ACT 3

 

           Taste of Death – his belief that he can just live quietly – that old soldier just won’t die…but then the old demons rise..he’ll never escape the past…

           Her belief that she really understood the pain of others….she has to live it to be truly empathetic.  And maybe God has called her to sacrifice…not just talk about it.

 

Devastation – His nephew and sister are taken hostage by the real bad guy – or rather, woman, who wants Luke to tell the truth about what happened in Mexico. 

 

Help! – Point of No return –  He either has to face the past, or run again…And she has to put her money where her mouth is…not just talk about changing the world, but really doing it, despite the cost.

 

 

Overhaul/Epiphany –

He realizes he has to face the past, become the person he doesn’t want to be…in this case, reveal that he might have been a coward…might have left his friend behind.  But also that a hero is showing up every day to do the right thing – one moment of fear doesn’t have to brand his entire life.

 

 

           Storm the Castle – Tells the truth to the media…

 

Perfect Ending! – Luke and Kenzie discover that God has put them together to break them free of their dark places…and together they are stronger than apart.