Apr
Classic Plots
The secret of writing a great book is to take a classic plot and twist it to make the plot unique. Here is a list of the classic plot types:
1. Secret Baby - a pregnancy results from a romance and the father doesn’t know about it.
2. Cinderella - a rags to riches story.
3. Beauty and the Beast - one of the main characters is physically marred in some way.
4. Good Girl/Bad Boy - opposites attract. This can also be reversed with a bad girl/good boy.
5. Stranded - a couple is stranded together and the enforced intimacy leads to more.
6. Marriage of convenience - an arranged or forced marriage leads to love.
7. Family feud - think Romeo and Juliet.
8. Mistaken Identity - one of a couple isn’t who he or she appears to be on the surface.
9. Lady and the Cowboy - a class difference sets a couple apart.
10. Secret - a secret stands between romance.
11. Twins - lots of possibilities here.
12. Kidnapping - an abduction.
13. Business competitors - two people fighting for the same prize and only one can win.
14. Friends to Lovers - a friendship leads to more.
15. Masquerade - pretending to be someone else.
16. Amnesia - where one of the characters has lost their memory.
Some of these plot ideas work better for historicals than contemporary stories. I really enjoy writing the Friends to Lovers style of plot since the characters already know a lot about each other and have a history together. Another favorite is the good girl/bad boy plot. I’m a sucker for a bad boy. Which plot type is your favorite? Have I missed one of your favorites?
I’m writing a historical reunited lovers plot, but I’m a total sucker for marriage of convenience (although I wouldn’t want to marry that way in real life, LOL). Like you, those bad boys make me want to be bad, too.
April 24th, 2008 at 4:47 pmI also love a marriage of convenience story. I also like the amnesia and Cinderella themes.
April 25th, 2008 at 12:11 amI rather like masquerades — more specifically, when you have a titled gentleman is masquerading as someone not so titled. Especially loved the couple I can think of where he’s the butler for some reason or another.
Lois
April 25th, 2008 at 8:38 amAs a reader, I love a marriage of convenience plot. This type of plot works well with a historical but it’s very difficult to pull off with a contemporary.
I also enjoy amnesia plots. In fact my historical combines both marriage of convenience and amnesia.
April 25th, 2008 at 4:06 pmI meant to add to my last comment - do you think a marriage of convenience plot works with a contemporary story?
April 25th, 2008 at 4:07 pmOnly if there’s some big external thing driving people to marry. Today divorce is always an option, so I guess a writer could make it work without losing credibility.
April 26th, 2008 at 4:48 pm