plotlines for dummies
by fallinghawks and cy'
Thriller:
Protagonist is a cop/ex-cop/lawyer/stockbroker/scientist/doctor who, in the course of carrying out his usual business, discovers corruption in the police/political structure/law firm/brokerage/laboratory/hospital. Protagonist knows many intelligent, resourceful friends who will spend lots of time researching Corrupted Forces for no or low charge, simply out of friendship for Protagonist. To explain the technical aspects to the reader, Protagonist may request information from these friends that he/she, as a professional, ought to know already. Protagonist may be stunningly unaware of his/her social environment. If female, Protagonist stands a 99.92% chance of hearing a sexist remark.
In the course of research, Protagonist encounters one eligible person of the opposite gender, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on his/her forehead. Love Interest, if encountered randomly, will just so happen to have some special knowledge about, or a bad experience with Corrupted Forces. At the peak of exhaustion from defending him/herself from powerful and evil forces, Protagonist will have a cathartic sexual encounter with Love Interest about 70% of the way through the book, when the action is flagging.
Protagonist can never fully involve the police in his/her investigation. Reasons range from already being in trouble due to previous aberrant behavior, to not having credence, to being threatened by CF.
Protagonist is the only one with the mental horsepower to assemble the facts. He/she may also possess his/her own crucial piece of knowledge that will bring down the Corrupted Forces. Protagonist sets up a trap to prove guilt, but will continuously express uncertainty in the likelihood of success. Nonetheless, the trap will catch Corrupted Forces. CF may be arrested and charged with crimes, or may be shot by Protagonist in self-defense.
Historical fiction:
Protagonist is an ordinary fellow of below-average intelligence, presented with a mystery. He takes his questions to a multitude of friends, who explain the historical context to enlighten the reader in the process of giving Protagonist leads. These leads bring Protagonist to various unsavoury neighbourhoods to negotiate with unsavoury characters. Colourful descriptions of vomiting sailors, brassy whores, and destitute, enslaved children are essential.
One (and only one) of these acquaintances is an eligible female, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on her forehead. There is an 80 percent chance that Love Interest will result in romance and marriage, but this will remain unresolved until the end of the book.
Protagonist will meet and speak with one famous historical character.
The mystery is resolved with the assistance of Love Interest and friends.
Romance (classic):
Protagonist is struggling (check any below)
__ financially
__ emotionally
__ work-politically
Protagonist meets several eligible men, but only one is clearly THE ONE. The rest are all cads, and if it must be proved, each is eliminated swiftly. However, The One is
__ poor (check "a" below)
__ oppressed (check "b" below)
__ married (check "c" below)
After several chance meetings, leading to dates involving smoky looks and mental swoons over inadvertent physical contact, which leads to mental struggle over (a) financial (b) political c) marital security, Protagonist decides The One is The One after all.
If married = .t., The One's wife
__ sickens and dies
__ divorces
freeing up The One for full-fledged romance and The Kiss. If The One is poor, it will turn out that he is actually a lordling who owns an estate and a winter palace.
Romance (modern):
Protagonist is sexually assaulted more-or-less immediately by The One, whose lust-at-first-sight for Protagonist is too great to be borne without action. Protagonist spends the rest of the book in love-hate, attempting to tame The One using various methods, eventually succeeding. If The One is poor, it will turn out that he is actually a scion who owns 10 estates and a few tropical islands.
Horror:
Protagonist is new to town and moves into a house with History, and encounters various hints of strange behavior within the first forty pages of the book. He/she will meet several locals who will fill in the context and give shape to the Bad Thing. One (and only one) of these locals will be an eligible person of opposite gender, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on his/her forehead. At the peak of exhaustion from defending him/herself from evil, Protagonist will have a cathartic sexual encounter with Love Interest about 70% of the way through the book, when the action is flagging. Protagonist will defeat Bad Thing with knowledge gained mostly from locals, but it is essential that Protagonist has some special connection to spiritual forces that will help defeat Bad Thing.
Cyberpunk:
Protagonist is a disenchanted male engaging in lots of illegal activities in a dystopian megalopolis with a prominent emphasis on biomodification. Unlike his peers, he has no overwhelming vices. He is presented with a mystery or a threat. In the course of getting to the bottom of this, he will encounter approximately 8 diverse strangers who will spend lots of time and resources assisting Protagonist for no reason at all. At least one of these strangers is a token ethnic, either a spliff-laden Rastafarian or sword-laden Japanese; the majority will be white, despite all indications of whites being a minority. One of these strangers is a woman whom Protagonist has a 1.78% chance of having any kind of sex with because she is a tough bitch and way smarter than Protagonist. The strangers and Protagonist, now all comrades (in dystopia there are no such things as 'friends'), sneak into Bad Megacorp Responsible for Problem. With a combination of heavy firepower and technological wizardry, they defeat Bad Megacorp. At least two comradeswill die in the process.
Thriller:
Protagonist is a cop/ex-cop/lawyer/stockbroker/scientist/doctor who, in the course of carrying out his usual business, discovers corruption in the police/political structure/law firm/brokerage/laboratory/hospital. Protagonist knows many intelligent, resourceful friends who will spend lots of time researching Corrupted Forces for no or low charge, simply out of friendship for Protagonist. To explain the technical aspects to the reader, Protagonist may request information from these friends that he/she, as a professional, ought to know already. Protagonist may be stunningly unaware of his/her social environment. If female, Protagonist stands a 99.92% chance of hearing a sexist remark.
In the course of research, Protagonist encounters one eligible person of the opposite gender, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on his/her forehead. Love Interest, if encountered randomly, will just so happen to have some special knowledge about, or a bad experience with Corrupted Forces. At the peak of exhaustion from defending him/herself from powerful and evil forces, Protagonist will have a cathartic sexual encounter with Love Interest about 70% of the way through the book, when the action is flagging.
Protagonist can never fully involve the police in his/her investigation. Reasons range from already being in trouble due to previous aberrant behavior, to not having credence, to being threatened by CF.
Protagonist is the only one with the mental horsepower to assemble the facts. He/she may also possess his/her own crucial piece of knowledge that will bring down the Corrupted Forces. Protagonist sets up a trap to prove guilt, but will continuously express uncertainty in the likelihood of success. Nonetheless, the trap will catch Corrupted Forces. CF may be arrested and charged with crimes, or may be shot by Protagonist in self-defense.
Historical fiction:
Protagonist is an ordinary fellow of below-average intelligence, presented with a mystery. He takes his questions to a multitude of friends, who explain the historical context to enlighten the reader in the process of giving Protagonist leads. These leads bring Protagonist to various unsavoury neighbourhoods to negotiate with unsavoury characters. Colourful descriptions of vomiting sailors, brassy whores, and destitute, enslaved children are essential.
One (and only one) of these acquaintances is an eligible female, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on her forehead. There is an 80 percent chance that Love Interest will result in romance and marriage, but this will remain unresolved until the end of the book.
Protagonist will meet and speak with one famous historical character.
The mystery is resolved with the assistance of Love Interest and friends.
Romance (classic):
Protagonist is struggling (check any below)
__ financially
__ emotionally
__ work-politically
Protagonist meets several eligible men, but only one is clearly THE ONE. The rest are all cads, and if it must be proved, each is eliminated swiftly. However, The One is
__ poor (check "a" below)
__ oppressed (check "b" below)
__ married (check "c" below)
After several chance meetings, leading to dates involving smoky looks and mental swoons over inadvertent physical contact, which leads to mental struggle over (a) financial (b) political c) marital security, Protagonist decides The One is The One after all.
If married = .t., The One's wife
__ sickens and dies
__ divorces
freeing up The One for full-fledged romance and The Kiss. If The One is poor, it will turn out that he is actually a lordling who owns an estate and a winter palace.
Romance (modern):
Protagonist is sexually assaulted more-or-less immediately by The One, whose lust-at-first-sight for Protagonist is too great to be borne without action. Protagonist spends the rest of the book in love-hate, attempting to tame The One using various methods, eventually succeeding. If The One is poor, it will turn out that he is actually a scion who owns 10 estates and a few tropical islands.
Horror:
Protagonist is new to town and moves into a house with History, and encounters various hints of strange behavior within the first forty pages of the book. He/she will meet several locals who will fill in the context and give shape to the Bad Thing. One (and only one) of these locals will be an eligible person of opposite gender, with "Love Interest" stamped prominently on his/her forehead. At the peak of exhaustion from defending him/herself from evil, Protagonist will have a cathartic sexual encounter with Love Interest about 70% of the way through the book, when the action is flagging. Protagonist will defeat Bad Thing with knowledge gained mostly from locals, but it is essential that Protagonist has some special connection to spiritual forces that will help defeat Bad Thing.
Cyberpunk:
Protagonist is a disenchanted male engaging in lots of illegal activities in a dystopian megalopolis with a prominent emphasis on biomodification. Unlike his peers, he has no overwhelming vices. He is presented with a mystery or a threat. In the course of getting to the bottom of this, he will encounter approximately 8 diverse strangers who will spend lots of time and resources assisting Protagonist for no reason at all. At least one of these strangers is a token ethnic, either a spliff-laden Rastafarian or sword-laden Japanese; the majority will be white, despite all indications of whites being a minority. One of these strangers is a woman whom Protagonist has a 1.78% chance of having any kind of sex with because she is a tough bitch and way smarter than Protagonist. The strangers and Protagonist, now all comrades (in dystopia there are no such things as 'friends'), sneak into Bad Megacorp Responsible for Problem. With a combination of heavy firepower and technological wizardry, they defeat Bad Megacorp. At least two comradeswill die in the process.
posted by C. Y. Noquote at 9:41 PM
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