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September 2015: Plot Building 101 - Foundation, Scaffolding, and a few Nuts and Bolts

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Every story plot needs to be sculpted, but you don't have to start with just raw clay. Structural elements can support your plot, help to move it forward, and help you find and create something new out of some basic materials. Just as 3d animators use basic, primitive shapes when starting a new object, writers can use basic elements to shape their story. We will be discussing three major structural elements:

  1. The Foundation. the basic shape of the story, as demonstrated with various styles of act structures and plot building techniques.
  2. Scaffolding. dealing with the needs of individual chapters or episodes. How can the foundation be built on piece by piece, and how can each story arc, chapter, or episode serve to further the plot?
  3. Nuts and Bolts. dealing with the little things to help push plot along. Don't be afraid to clip a few corners by using pre-existing ideas and basic molds for characters and setting to help fill the needs of the plot and move it along.

We'll finish the meeting by plotting a future episode of Space Archaeologists, a serial created specifically for the R-Spec podcast!

Facilitator: Hugh Sullivan
Location: Barnes & Noble, Pittsford
Meeting Time: September 1, 2015 from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.

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