20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)

Rating:
Summary: Unique idea, a great guide to own, but falls a bit short
Review: '20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them' is a well thought out idea that falls a little short in it's delivery, but in the end saves itself through originality.

The first chapter, titled 'Invisible Fiction', sets the mood for what's to come. The author expresses his opinions on plots and the many forms, how they all originate from a top three to be broken down into a 'top 20' for easier following. Chapter two, ' The Lowest Common Plot Denominators', discusses building tension through opposition, the three sections of a story (beginning, middle, and end), and other crucial things a plot requires to stay alive. Chapter 3, 'The Strong Force', is short in length, basically informing the reader what a 'character driven plot is' versus a 'plot driven' one.

Chapter four, 'Deep Structure', focuses on themes and moral arguments, while chapter five, 'Triangles', is an interesting, unique way to see characters and how they interact with each other.

After this, we finally begin the '20 plots', each divided by chapter. Each goes through all three 'acts' of the plot (again: beginning, middle, end), ending with a checklist to recap all that has been learned.

The wrap up chapter, 'Parting Shots', reminds you that the book is not a guide etched in stone and that rules are made to be broken. It's also stated that many times a plot is a mixture of two or more basic '20 Master Plots'.

At 232 pages, this book covers quite a bit. I was enthused as the sections, and recognized many of the 'patterns', but was left wanting in other areas. The information was useful, but if you read it straight through, many of the plot types repeat the same thing and it becomes redundant and dull. Also, some held examples of other novels and stories to illustrate what the author meant. I loved this; it enabled me to get a firmer grasp on things. Unfortunitely many of the plots don't have as many examples, or none at all, and I missed it when they did.

Wrapping up, this is a great resource guide for writers. If you have trouble with plotting, pick this up for a reasonable price. Heck, even if you don't, still pick it up for there are things out there you may not know about yet. On the downside it wasn't the most interesting thing to read, was a bit redundant, other times not being consistent enough.




Rating:
Summary: The Best
Review: As an author and writing teacher, I've looked at other books on master plots and found them very wanting. This one , however, is dynamite. I found multiple ways to use it - it helped clarify in my mind what kinds of plots I had used in the past to write my novels, it gave me ideas for master plots I hadn't yet tried and it gave me a window into several courses I plan to teach in the near future, one on plotting and one in memoir, where I plan to challenge the students to find the master plots in their life stories.Tobias' ideas on just what the master plots are make sense, unlike many other books on the subject, plus he offers the reader lots of original insights into how these plots work, what the "rules" of each plot are and how to look deeper into the themes within each plot. Helpful prompts and checklists at the end of each chapter make this a natural for any aspiring writer who wants to work on plot, or any writing teacher who wants to clarify the subject for students of any age. This one's going in my Best Books shelf!

Rating:
Summary: Good primer for plot development
Review: I have no problems with writing narrative or dialogue, and can sometimes create interesting charcters. But I always get stuck on plot. And without plot, one's novel will run out of steam very quickly. Well, maybe yours won't, but mine always do....

That's why this book is good. Twenty plots, each described in some detail, with examples from film or literature, the three dramatic phases (beginning, middle, and end), and final checklist.

While I do not agree with the author opinion that these 20 master plots constitute a definitive list, this is still an excellent primer and starting point.

I especially found the short final checklist right at the end to be very useful. Thinking up answers helps one to clarify where one's story is going.

On the downside, a complex and well-written novel will take many twists and turns, it will not just have the simple 3-fold structure recommended here. An interesting story will also combine several of these plots and themes; if you use just one you will end up with a very cliche'd story. And I am still not decided on Tobias' view that even so there should only be one major plot.

To sum up, not the whole story in writing plots by any means, but an invaluable edition to any fiction-writer's library.

Rating:
Summary: Most excellent book for the aspiring amateur novelist
Review: If you've looked inside the book yet then you've noted the twenty master plots that are exposed in this book. So I won't list them here.

For each one there is an example, an analysis of the example and a three-act structure for using the plot. There is also a checklist at the end of each plot so you have some idea what you should be doing to develop this plot in a successful manner.

eg plot 3 the pursuit: the checklist is
* the chase is more important than the people who take part in it
* Make sure there's a real danger of the pursued getting caught
* your pursuer should have a reasonable chance of catching the pursued; they may even catch them momentarily
* rely heavily on physical action
* Your story and your characters should be stimulating, engaging and unique
* Develop your characters and situations against type to avoid cliches
* keep your situations as geographically confined as possible; the smaller the area the greater the tension
* The first dramatic phase should have 3 stages. a) establish the ground rules for the chase b) establish the stakes and c)start the race with a motivating incident

okay this book does a slightly cookbook feel about plot developement, but for those new to the game, what's wrong with getting a little support and help? Consider it a training manual for plotting! And sure you might not agree with the checklists and the manner...but don't you see, that it's getting you thinking about it too! So even if you hate it, you still gain because it pushes you to refute or accept or partially accept what it presents, and this requires effort. Effort creates thought, which leads to understanding and the development of your own ideas! So where's the problem! The only problem is if you're looking for a 'do-it-for-me'...sorry you miss out here.

Apart from the exposition of each of the 20 plots there are chapters (as listed in the table of contents) involving triangular relationships, structure, motivations, the basics of plotting: the things that are always the same.

Seriously for $10 you get a lot of book. It has some really useful content here. I am an engineer and have written two fictional novels (neither published, since I never realy tried to get them published). Yeah scary huh? A literate engineer! That aside, it appeals to my 'generalize the solution space' nature and make a solution that is readily acceptable, decipherable and accessible (there was once a british engineer who went to the local library, found out the most popular childrens books, analyzed them for the common characteristics and plots and then wrote his own...hey it's ugly but it worked!)

Just remember that there is no substitute for actually writing. Nothing will write for you. It is not a panacea. It won't give you ideas nor will it make you a good wordsmith. It will guide and help you to develop one of the major stumbling blocks in writing: having a story that actually goes somewhere (you just have to be sure you avoid being 'formulaic' and applying a given plot too rigidly- remember it's a guide, not a blueprint!). Great characters doing nothing don't interest too many poeple outside of the literary criticism clique. I'm sure it makes them cringe because one doesn't do these things...circumventing the process of suffering for ones art.

Great value for money, well written, using examples we all know and it's cheap. What more could you want? Definitely 5 stars!

Rating:
Summary: Fun to read and very helpful -- an unexpected find!
Review: My biggest praise is the checklist at the end of each section that summarizes the elements of each plot type

With the use of these checklists I'm abel to see the plots I'm using in my stories and determine if I'm being too cliche or not.Now that I have something to compare things with, I'm able to decide if my story plots need elements added or removed.

For the plot types that I haven't started yet, I found reading the plot generalizations to be a nice springboard for brainstorming twists and turns that my own stories can make as I mix-n-match the different plot devices.

I'm very happy I got my hands on this book!

Rating:
Summary: The ONLY book on writing that helps in a practical way
Review: Ronald B. Tobias must have written this book with me in mind. I've published and edited non-fiction for years, but now trying my hand at writing fiction. Scary! I usually advise people to stay away for books on how to write, believing it can't be taught. But Tobias chops through the undergrowth and reveals very practical information on structuring your work.

Almost all of the books I've worked on as inhouse editor suffer from lack of structure. Intelligent people seem clueless when it comes to shaping their manuscripts and making them commercially viable. 20 Master Plots offers much more than plot ideas. It succinctly puts forth a wealth of information on how to think about what you're doing and where you are going with your work. I'm so jazzed by this book, I woke up after three hours' sleep to write this review and get back to my novel. Exciting!

Rating:
Summary: Didn't like it
Review: This book focused on the plots...hey guess what, I already wrote a book...and you know what? It had about 12 of the 20 plots in it! Give me a break! Get Self Editing for Fiction Writers, The First Five Pages, How to Write a Damn Good Novel or many others out there.
SUGGESTION: Two books that helped me out, more than any other, On Writing by Stephen King and Elements of Style By Strunk and White. Read those as well as this book, and you should have enough tools in your belt to get the job done.

Rating:
Summary: Not a technical eye-opener.
Review: This books starts well, and if you are interested in pursuing plot type #1, Quests, and haven't dissected a plot since high school then I think this is highly recommended. Things start with a very technical approach, giving a useful breakdown of plot's parts and the main types of plot. In his approach to Quests Tobias even uses one or two of the terms that loom so large in his initial over-view.

Unfortunately things swiftly digress and it is not long before the reader is left to establish his own technical descriptions; Tobias meanwhile falls into the traps of most fiction 'how to' books, generalization and ambiguity, for example suggesting sagely over several paragraphs (in Maturation) that anyone interested in writing about adolescents should try to think like one, but offering very little concrete technical guidance to work with.

Anyone expecting a book which examines difficult plotting in depth (Tobias works mostly with fairy tales, which, although paradigmatic, are rarely comperable in their structural intricacies to novel-length fiction) and hoping to witness either a detailed dissection of exemplary plots by great writers or else a highly technical, step-by-step dissection of architypical "master" plots would be better off buying the Cliff Notes to the works of Conrad, because they will not find such revealing stuff here.

Rating:
Summary: Helpful Guide on Plot Form and Structure
Review: You could say that this book asks more questions than answers--it is certainly not a soup-to-nuts 'how to write a novel' book. But I found its approach inspiring. That is not to say I dislike 'how to' books like Cleaver's, Stein's or Frey's; I have read them and find them useful.

In 20 Master Plots, Tobias demonstrates the inherent patterns, relationships and expectations imbedded in plot. I think this information is helpful to create something that the modern reader will find engaging. I also recommend highly the writing craft books of Noah Lukeman.