The HEA Cafe

CREATING A WORLD USING SUBPLOTS

Lecture #3

Cathy Clamp

Stepping away from contemporary romance for a moment (although it works equally as well in that subgenre,) one of the best things about subplots is the ability the writer has to create the world in which the main characters live.

Let’s go back to our cop, who’s running from the Mafia don. Except that the cop is actually a preternatural cop who’s chasing a Mafia don who’s a demon. Now, how can subplots relay the supernatural nature of the world the hero lives in? Well, how about if the hero’s cat that chases the bird through the house is really a kitty version of Cerberus, the guardian of the gates of Hades? Somehow, “feeding the cat before he goes to work” takes on a whole new meaning if he forgets. Likewise, if he got it as a kitten, the learning process of reading a cat food bag to try to figure out whether he is feeding the amount for the ONE body, or the THREE heads can drag the reader firmly into the alternate world. Just like in Harry Potter, when Hagrid is trying to raise an endangered (and forbidden) dragon, having RULES that the characters must follow in the world give form to the world.

The act of making the characters react to the circumstances as though they’re real (or completely unreal) makes subplots your best friend. Dialogue between characters and secondary characters is key to moving along the world building. When (from Lecture #2) the best friend winds up on the hero’s couch after a fight with the bride, the hero can warn him on the phone, “Well, you know Baby’s grown up a little since you were last here. She takes up most the couch now, and she doesn’t share well.” The best friend can then respond with a memory about how the three tongues nearly ripped off his skin when she was a baby, and does she still try to bathe everyone? Subplots can include discovering that “Baby” has learned how to breathe fire (”Wow. They didn’t mention THAT at the pet store!”) or that Baby can sniff out demons and is a pretty terrific watchcat.

The reader knows that the main plot is important, but they still desperately want to follow Baby’s story. With careful crafting, not only can you develop your background, but you’ll have the readers involved in your world—anxious to know the fate of the kitten. Whether or not the cat winds up saving the day, every bit of the subplot you braid back in needs to continue the “story in a story,” from buying fire retardant couch throws to the hero realizing he’ll never have to buy lighter fluid for the barbeque again. The subplot makes the hero more real, and hopefully more loveable. And hey, maybe the heroine is a “cat whisperer” that can teach the cat not to destroy things, or can hone the “demon-sniffing” ability. All subplots. All vital to the creation of the world.

Try to think of subplots as the “crisis that interrupts the crisis.” Every phone call is a bit of the main character’s reality being thrown in their face to complicate their life—to DEFINE their life. Work calls and the heroine has to pull a weekend shift. The hero’s sister calls and Dad’s in the hospital. All of these things happen in our OWN lives, and when you meet a new person it’s often what’s happening around them that defines who the person is. It’s been said that you haven’t really met a person ‘til you’ve met their family. It’s true and it’s not, but you do learn nuances that the person doesn’t reveal until they’re thrust back into their own past. Haven’t you ever noticed that if you visit distant family for a long period, like over the holidays, you start to fall back into old, familiar roles? The high-powered executive becomes the slave to the father’s whim, or the sweet woman who never raises her voice becomes a harpy around her mother. These are all subplots in the making—told from the perspective of the visitor, the second main character who’s observing the subplots.

So, that’s about it. Think about the character’s life. Create subplots that bring that life to the forefront. Let the reader get to know the characters through the circumstances they live in. And have FUN! Go grab some fireproof pot holders and make your own “Baby” so your reality can blossom.

BRAIDING SUBPLOTS TO CREATE A SEAMLESS WHOLE.

Lecture #2

Cathy Clamp

If you remember from the last lecture, our hero is a cop who is trying to stay alive long enough to both testify against a Mafia don, and be the best man at his friend’s wedding. Now, how does the writer go about braiding the wedding through the primary plot, and what does “braiding” mean, anyway?

Well, consider how you braid hair. You have a main bunch of hair and two or three smaller bunches. By turning them in and through the others, you create a stronger, visually pleasing whole. In the case of the wedding, let’s say the best friend informs the hero he needs to get fitted for a tux, and tonight is the ONLY night the tailor can do the job. You can have the hero sneak in the back door of the tailor, parking blocks down and walking in the shadows to avoid the goons that nearly caught him finding a critical file folder or flash drive. Getting to the church on time might take on new meaning as the mob gets closer to finding him and/or the heroine. He might have to dive in the back door of the church when everyone’s waiting at the altar, or make progress calls to the groom so the poor guy doesn’t panic. This is subplot #1—survive to become the best man.

Then, maybe he has to referee a fight between the bride and groom so the wedding can even happen, and winds up with his buddy sleeping on his couch for a night or two–disrupting his planned night alone with the heroine. The fight, while a PART of subplot #1, actually can become subplot #2, because there might be more going on with the best friend than meets the eye. Perhaps it blends back in with the primary plot far more than the hero could have imagined. The bride might have a secret she’s been keeping, like maybe she’s the Mafia don’s favorite niece.

There can be other plots, too—family obligations like a weekly dinner with the heroine’s parents, or a sick pet that causes emotional angst. They are the “life threads” that make your people just like people you know in real life. The reader WANTS your characters to be just like real people, and the more bits and pieces of reality you can scatter in, the better your reader will like it.

If you discover you’ve gone several chapters into the romance without a “life” thread, you might consider a “plot complication.” This isn’t precisely a subplot, but still gives some beef to the character’s background or real life, and it wraps up quickly—meaning you don’t have to braid. It’s in and done with no fuss. You could have her get her nails done like clockwork every week and be so faithful about it that she nearly misses an important lunch with the hero. Or have him drop the coffee pot on his way out the door to work, and wind up missing the bus because he was sweeping glass. Or, have a bird fly in the window behind him as he’s sneaking in to avoid the car watching the house, and have the cat chase it all over the house . . . trashing the living room just when the bride is coming over to show him color schemes. Main plot blends into plot complication, blends into subplot. Etc., etc.

Weave things in and out to add complications. But always make sure the majority of subplots resolve themselves by the end of the book (e.g., the wedding has to actually HAPPEN, with the hero in attendance, for the subplot to have been effective.) Even if it’s just a lick and a promise for a plot complication, such as hiring a maid service and leaving the key under the mat . . . praying that the mob’s goons won’t find it. He can either be pleasantly surprised at a clean house just as the bride arrives, or horrified to find a dead maid in the living room. Your choice.

Tomorrow, we’ll discuss using subplots to actually CREATE your character’s world, ideal for alternate reality, paranormal, or fantasy.

I know the thread below this one suggested talking about the National conference this week, but I was already slated to do my workshop this week. But feel free to talk in BOTH threads. That’s what a blog is for…

 Lecture #1

THE CRISIS HAS TO INTERRUPT A LIFE

Cathy Clamp

Subplots are one of the most misunderstood and underused tools in an aspiring writer’s toolchest. If you look at the plot and characters as the hammer and screwdriver of the book, then the subplot is the torque wrench—a delicate tool that in the hands of a skilled user turns a book into a masterpiece.

So what is a subplot, and why is it important?

You’ll likely find a dozen different definitions of the term if you look on the web, but the basic gist is that a subplot is a secondary story inside the primary plot (a “plot within a plot”) that can stand alone. It’s also known as the “B” story or, in the case of a secondary subplot, the “C” story or “tertiary subplot.” A single-title novel often has multiple subplots which act as a foil to the main plot, support a theme, complicate events, or enhance character traits.

In romance, a good subplot involves the main characters, rather than dealing only with secondary characters. Romance subplots often involve family, friends or work, hobbies, health or finances. The hero/heroine either has direct impact on the events of the subplot (solving a problem) or the events impact the hero/heroine (make the goal of the plot more difficult.) They frequently deal with obligations that came about BEFORE the opening of the book. This is the sort of subplot that helps create your character’s world. When I say that, I mean that an author not only has to figure out what the characters are going to do in the book, but how they survived to be their age BEFORE the book starts. They had experiences, just like you did. If the plot of the book is the crisis that interrupts their life, then what life DID THEY HAVE before the plot was thrust upon them? Now, most of this will never make the printed page. But you have to know it all the same. I try to have one “life” subplot occur for each main plot thread. Who was the last person on your MC’s (main character’s) caller ID when the book opens? His/her mother? Best friend? Harassing bill collector? Does s/he pay the rent on time? Hate the boss at work? Have pets? Etc., etc. Real people have to live in the book, or the readers won’t want them to succeed in getting through the plot to either get back to their life, or away FROM their life.

For example, let’s say your romance hero is a cop, and he’s hiding from a Mafia don who he’s going to testify against just as soon as he can find all the evidence. But he’s also agreed to be the best man at a friend’s wedding. The wedding’s been planned for a year, which is long before your book opens. Being a stand-up guy, he can’t just back out because his professional life sucks rocks at that moment. So, he might dread each phone call that starts with, “We need to get our tuxes fit tonight.” or “Don’t forget about the wedding party dinner on Wednesday. You’re giving the toast.”

What does this subplot add to the book? It tells the reader that he’s a really good friend, because he’s unwilling to back out of his obligation so close to the event. It says the hero is willing to risk danger to satisfy the debt to his friend. It says that despite being willing, it’s STILL a nuisance and is a “bang head into wall” moment each time. It adds some comic relief to lighten the mood at critical moments. Most of all, the subplot shows the reader much better than simple dialogue that your hero is an Alpha-type, but has the CAPABILITY to fall for the heroine. He has the depth to handle the emotion of love.

Tomorrow we’ll talk about ways to braid the subplot(s) into the main plot so it looks seamless.

Good Morning everyone,

As many of you know, RWA (Romance Writer’s of America) held their national conference in Dallas last week.  So this week, I’d like to ask those who attended a few questions for those who couldn’t attend for whatever reason.

1.  What’s your strongest memory of the event?  Paint it in words for us.

2.  What piece of knowledge did you pick up that you think we all HAVE to know to succeed in our writing careers?

3.  What was the funniest thing that happened at the event?

4.  What Marketing trends did you hear about?

5.  Would you go the the conference next year?  Why or why not?

The final book in Lyn Cote’s Harbor Intrigue series ! A free gift for you!
 

First, the last novel in my series, “Harbor Intrigue,” Dangerous Secrets, will be on sale in stores and online on July 10th.

Here is what Romantic Times Magazine had to say about Dangerous Secrets:

 ”4 ½ Stars—Fantastic, A Keeper!

When book store owner Sylvie Patterson’s visiting cousin dies under suspicious circumstances, her life–and lives of those around her–become fraught with peril.  State homicide cop Ridge Matthews is suddenly in the picture to take his ward, 12-year-old Ben, to military school.  But Ben has wormed his way into the hearts of Sylvie and her father and may be in danger.  Thus in Dangerous Secrets by Lyn Cote, Ben’s future is put on hold while they try to solve the mystery.  Don’t miss this intriguing read that will keep you guessing.”
 

(Dangerous Season and Dangerous Game precede Dangerous Secrets, but each is a standalone story, but set in the same community, Bayfield and Ashland Counties of WI.)

To purchase online, go to: www.booksbylyncote.com/LIS.html  

Second, A FREE GIFT FOR THE FIRST 50.

In celebration of Love Inspired’s 10th anniversary, my publisher has sent her brochures which include two (2) one dollar ($1) off coupons for any one Love Inspired and one Love Inspired Suspense good from now until December 31, 2007. I will send one of these brochures to each of the first 50 people who request one. Just go to my website (www.LynCote.net) and click Email Lyn and e-mail me your snail address. I will send you one. (And will never divulge your email or snail address to anyone else!)

I feel honored that I was a part of the first 10 years of Love Inspired Romance. And I’m happy to share this offer with you.

Lyn Cote

www.LynCote.net