In this third and final part of his three-part series, Leon Conrad, author of Story and Structure: A complete guide shares some thoughts on how to move from story structure to plot pattern from his practice as a writer and story structure enthusiast.
Walking the writer’s path: Plot patterns
When inspiration manifested in my imagination as a strange character, I had no idea what it would demand of me. Our first meeting was unexpected. The character I saw looked straight through me. Our second meeting came about because he knew I’d seen him, and he knew I could release him from the burden of ages. The problem was that I wasn’t willing to do so.
All I had to do was close my eyes, invoke his presence, and he’d appear. But I wasn’t ready. How could I kill someone who was so clearly a part of me?
He’d left me dumbstruck, with a dilemma to resolve, a story to write that I was unable to finish. The answer, when it came, emerged from a growing realisation of a way forward informed by an exploration of the story structures involved.
The sequence of events was clear – but flexible. There could be sub-plots. If there were to be any, then I knew exactly where in the sequence of events they branched off, where they came back to, and because I was aware of the shape of the main plot, I also knew exactly how they would need to relate and connect to the unfolding of the story as a whole. Not only the ending ( ), but any ( ) event could be uplifting or tragic. Structure also made me aware of how I needed to shape the reader’s journey. And that meant spinning a bit of suspense into the mix.
The answer, when it came, however, wasn’t at all what I expected. You see, I never expected to come face to face with something that couldn’t be put into words – I’ve dealt with things that are difficult (almost impossible, even) to verbalise – and then there are the transcendent, awestruck silences when, faced with the ineffable, you’re left speechless, soundless, wordless, expressionless, yet fully aware of the immense cosmic harmony, of a sense of order beyond good and evil; concord and discord. Story structure helped me find my way to this point – and helped me find a way of going beyond it.
It was time.
I closed my eyes; invoked his presence. The moment came to rest in a feeling of heavy lightness. The few rags and elements that bound him together swirled him back into being, fluttering and rippling, they swung him round to face me, slowing and settling. He paused, then approached.
To make the story work in the telling, I knew I shouldn’t reveal too much too soon.
In the moment between an in-breath
