This information is from some notes I took while attending a panel, during a previous year of my favorite symposium, Life the Universe and Everything. Those listed on the panel were: Larry Correia, Howard Tayler, Dan Willis
– Main plot is the story about the protagonist. Subplots may contain stories about secondary characters.
– Watch out for sub plots overshadowing the main plot.
– Third person is easier to use for subplots.
– A plot can be compared to a thanksgiving dinner. You need to structure and plan when to do what. Time to thaw, cook, cool and cut the bird. The subplot could be compared to the side dishes of potatoes, or cranberry sauce. They will be introduced at different times to the dinner.
– Move subplots around to influence action and emotion of book to main plot. It can help pacing or slow sagging middle.
– The use of Scene and Sequels means there are scenes of the story moving alone and a sequel is when characters talk about what has happened in a resent scene etc. Sequels give the reader time to digest what has happened. Harry Potter is good example of mixing the scene and sequels by mixing action, characterization and Harry thinking about what has happened.
– You can do more than follow the sequence. Break up the pattern. i.e: Scene, Sequel, Scene, Sequel. Mix it up such as: Scene, Sequel, Scene, Sequel, Scene, Scene, Scene, Sequel .
– Foreshadowing: If there is a gun on the mantle in scene one than by scene three that gun needs to be used. If someone is shot in scene three than the gun needs to be introduced in scene one.
– Red Herring: when you see a gun on the mantel piece but not use it.
– Plot hole: is when your audience is coming up with a better solution then what the author has devised. A plot hole is also something that exists in a story that could be used later in the story but is not. An example is a monster book where a monster could have been killed by a navel gun but is never used.
Do you have some suggestions on this? Please feel free to share them.