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Explanation of a Simple Plot and a Random Story Generator - Strategies to Succeed in Fiction Writing. Also refer to protagonist, antagonist, hero, heroine, villain, description, location, activity, conflict, success, Ron Kurtus, School for Champions. Copyright © Restrictions

Simple Plot and a Random Story Generator

by Ron Kurtus (revised 14 August 2007)

Fictional stories usually have a distinct plot or general summary of what happens in the story. A given plot can result in a number of different stories, depending on the specific characters, locations and activities.

Questions you may have are:

• What is an example of a simple plot?
• What are examples of stories for this plot?
• How can I use this in story writing?

This lesson will answer those questions.

Simple plot

In a typical plot, there is the protagonist--who is the hero or heroine of the story--and the antagonist or villain. There is also often a bystander or victim of the villain.

Consider the following very simple plot:

1. A person sees a villain do something bad to an innocent bystander. This is a problem, dilemma or conflict for the person.
2. He or she tries to stop the villain, but the villain seems to escape. This is a point of tension, because of the possibility of failure.
3. The protagonist then makes a valiant effort and catches the villain.
4. The victim is grateful and rewards the protagonist.

By changing names, descriptions and actions, you can write a variety of stories for this simple plot.

Story examples

The following story is randomly generated to illustrate this point. In some respects it is a little silly, but it should get the point across. Click the button to see a variety of story possibilities.

Resources

The following resources provide information on this subject:

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Books

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Miscellaneous

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Simple Plot and a Random Story Generator