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Write On: And Then What? [1]

['View Profile', 'Thom Hartmann', 'Chitown Kev', 'Nanny Ogg']

Date: 2026-05-07  

Your plot is a series of events. But not just any events. Each must follow logically from the ones before it, and set things in motion for the ones after it.

So even though you know where you want your characters to end up, you have to create the path. And the antagonist (living or inanimate) is going to act according to his/her/its own nature, needs, and desires, regardless of their effect on your plot or your protag. Witness the debacle that has occurred because a certain leader did not, could not, would not consider the actual nature of the nation he decided to attack, or predict that they would act in the most rational manner for their own interests. He still chooses not to believe that someone in the world does not wish to do whatever he tells them.

The absolute worst thing you can do to a plot is throw in a deus ex machina. Nothing in fiction should “just happen”. Something led to it, and if you don’t know about it before it happens, you probably need to go back and seed a clue or two.

There are often multiple logical paths from a single point. Can you plot several possible steps ahead toward your goal?

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/5/7/800034665/community/write-on/

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