Pieces of A Novel - Wordsnstuff November Monthly Writing Challenge
The idea of this challenge is to plan one piece of your story per day. For those participating in NaNoWriMo, this may be a helpful tool to use in conjunction with your daily writing goal. This can help you sustain inspiration, and it can help you find that balance between careful planning and spontaneity that many struggle to maintain.
This tool is designed to help you plan and/or write a longer story in a short amount of time, particularly a novel. If you choose to both plan and draft each scene assigned to each day, you should in theory have a near complete first draft of your story in a single month. Instead of basing the challenge on a word goal, it's organized into a list of tasks. Once all/most of these scenes are planned or written, you will have a nearly complete draft, missing only the scenes unique to your story.
The inciting incident of the beginning of your story.
Establish your protagonist(s) core need and bring key characters into the picture.
A scene that progressively complicates the beginning of your story.
A scene that establishes the protagonist(s)'s strengths and/or weaknesses
A scene that creates a crisis question at the beginning of your story.
A scene that foreshadows the arc of the main characters.
A scene that climaxes the beginning of your story.
A scene that establishes what the protagonist wants, versus what they think they need, versus what they actually need, as well as what they're willing to do to get it.
A scene that resolves the beginning of your story.
A scene that gives the reader a glimpse into the antagonist's power, needs, or goals. Alternatively, if there is no antagonist, a scene that establishes the background of the main challenge the protagonist is trying to overcome..
The inciting incident of the middle of your story.
A scene with a twist—something new happens. A new friend, minor antagonist, or new information arises as a result of the middle inciting incident.
A scene that progressively complicates the middle of your story.
An unexpected twist gives the protagonist(s) false hope. An important clue or weapon arises.
A scene that creates a crisis question in the middle of your story.
A scene that establishes how the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) motivations could become their downfall.
A scene that climaxes the middle of your story.
A scene that reveals the protagonist(s)'s and/or antagonist(s)'s greatest fears.
A scene that resolves the middle of your story.
A scene that foreshadows what the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) will gain/lose in the process of pursuing their goal.
The inciting incident of the end of your story.
A scene that establishes that there is no turning back for your main character(s)
A scene that progressively complicates the end of your story.
A scene that establishes how the main character(s)'s strengths/weaknesses help or hinder their success
A scene that creates a crisis question at the end of your story.
A scene that establishes what the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) learn once they initially succeed/fail
A scene that climaxes the end of your story.
A scene that answers one of the major questions of your story, or resolves an important dramatic theme.
A scene that resolves the end of your story.
(bonus) A scene that hints to the continuation of the story, if a sequel is to come.
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