Plotting the Short Story (by Culpeper Chunn - 1922)

PLOT DEVELOPMENT: COMPLICATED PLOTS

The complicated plot in its development calls for a fertile imagination and a natural aptitude for mental gymnastics. It usually proves to be the despair of the writer deficient in creative ability, and even the more imaginative author sometimes finds himself hopelessly entangled in its meshes. The simple plot, as we have shown, never swerves from a straight line; the complicated plot, on the other hand, may lead us off into divers by-paths, each ending in a cul-de-sac, from which the writer has to blaze a way back to the main idea. The difference between the two types of plots is traceable to the basic idea. Methods of development are the same in both cases. The thing the writer has most to fear in unfolding a complicated plot is the danger of becoming lost in one or more of the many side-issues that make this type of plot what it is, and until he becomes familiar with its intricacies, he should move slowly and never let the major idea remain long out of sight. Complicated plots form the basis of most mystery and adventure stories, and in fact, the majority of other stories of more than three thousand words in length.

For our first analysis, let us take the following sentence, or rather, part of a sentence, extracted from a recent book- length portrayal of life in the West Virginia mountains: "Melissa took the blood-oath. . . . and swore to shoot Blaze on sight." A promising plot nucleus, because it is atmospheric. 

We now glance at the Chart for Plot Construction and choose the most suitable field for the growth of this germ-plot, which is, we believe, as follows: Action — adventure ; Time — present ; Setting — mountains ; Character s — uncertain ; Atmosphere — doubtful ; Mood — doubtful, but possibly hate or revenge.

As we want our characters to be original, we at once change the girl's name to Dawn, and the man's name to Jerry, and begin our probe by asking:
1. What is a blood-oath?
2. Who is Jerry?
3. Why should Dawn desire his death? 

Having consulted one of our mountaineer friends in regard to the first question, we promptly reply:
1. A vendetta sworn by a feudist against another feudist of a hostile clan.
2. Dawn's lover.
3. He may have betrayed her trust, or perhaps, duelled with and killed one of her kinsmen.

Excellent! It appears that our principal characters are feudists and are identified with different factions. As we like plenty of action in our plots, this sounds promising. But to proceed with our inquiry:
1. Did Jerry really kill Dawn's kinsman (the duel appearing the most promising of the two possibilities) ?
2. If not, why has the finger of guilt been pointed at him? 

After due reflection, we would say:
1. No. (The slain man is Dawn's kinsman, let us say her cousin, and if our story is to have the "happy ending," it would never do for the girl's lover to be the murderer.)
2. Dawn's cousin, whom we will call Boyd for the sake of convenience, has been killed by some unknown person, and relatives have accused Jerry, whom they bitterly hate because of his relations with their kinswoman, of the murder.

All right. Now we want to know:
1. How and when did Dawn first here the rumor that Jerry is guilty of the crime?
2. How did it react on her? 

In reply, let us say:
1. When the dying man is brought to her cabin in the mountains.
2. As it would on any normal girl. She believes her lover to be innocent, and, having heard her kinsmen swear to avenge Boyd's death, leaps upon her horse to fly to Jerry to give him warning. 

A brave and noble act, and quite in keeping with the character of the average mountain girl; but we must not forget her kinsmen who are of the same fibre that she is, and quite as determined to slay Jerry as she is to save him. 

Therefore:
1. Is she pursued?
2. Does she reach Jerry in time?
3. Does he protest his innocence?
4. And, if the girl is followed by her kinsmen, does Jerry fight it out with them or "take to the timbers?"