Writers in the Storm

by Janice Hardy

Subplots can add depth and resonance to a story, but sometimes, they just knock the whole novel off track.

I’m currently revising two novels. My agent asked me to cut out a fairly large subplot from each of them, which changes a lot of little things in the novel, as well as some major things. Her advice was absolutely spot on, so I don’t begrudge the work, but seeing as I did this twice in a row, it’s made me reevaluate how I’ll plan my own subplots going forward. (And made me go back and read all the posts I’d written on subplots, ’cause clearly, I forgot my own advice *grin*).

When Subplots Don't Work

Subplots have a way of taking over novels. Unnecessary ones steal all the action, distract the protagonist, or in the worst cases, shine brighter than the actual plot. Helpful subplots enhance the story, support the theme, and brighten what’s already there. A truly bad subplot will try to smother the novel in its sleep with a pillow.

The annoying part is…

We can’t always tell which subplot we’re dealing with when they first come to us—is it helpful, unnecessary, or will it murder our story?

Some of the best-looking subplots I’ve ever had were the literary equivalent of will-o-the-wisps—shiny ideas enticing me to follow their light and see where they went. It wasn’t until I was deep in the swamp that I realized I’d been led astray. However, there have been just as many times that bright light led me to a brilliant subplot that brought my entire novel to a new level.

Evaluating Your Subplot

Before you add that subplot to your story, consider if it will help it or hurt it.

1. Will this subplot make the story better or just longer?

A distracting subplot adds more of what you’ve already written, just with different details. It doesn’t add anything new, even if the subplot itself is technically good. All it does is delay the time your protagonist takes to complete her goal. Maybe it’s yet another chase scene, or another example of the protagonist making bad decisions based on emotions, or another person who abandons her when things get tough.

All things readers have already seen.

A good subplot changes your protagonist’s goal, life, or experience in a way that matters to the overall story.

Ask yourself: By the end of this subplot, will readers understand something they didn’t before?

If the subplot doesn’t bring anything new to the story or character, odds are it will abandon you in the woods after weeks of work and make you cut everything associated with it.

2. Does your subplot raise the stakes?

If you’re taking a side trip in the story, that trip should create higher stakes or more tension for your characters. Pinpoint exactly what you gain by this diversion. Maybe it reveals a bigger threat on the horizon, or they formed a bond with someone they don’t want to lose, or they discover a secret that changes how they feel about what they’re trying to do.

Whatever it is, by the end of this subplot, things should be worse for the protagonist than they were before, either internally or externally.

Ask yourself: How will this subplot make things harder for my protagonist?

Be wary if the subplot only shows yet another way the protagonist's life is threatened, or has the same stakes you've already established.

3. Does it require more attention and page space than the main plot?

We often question a subplot because it feels like it’s hijacking the story, or it’s demanding to become the story. If you feel you’ve spent too much time on it, estimate how much more page time you’ll need to wrap it up. If you know it’s going to take another nine chapters of your 27-chapter novel, and drag you further away from your core conflict, that’s a big red flag this might not be the best subplot.

Ask yourself: What about this subplot is drawing me away from the main storyline?

If you’re spending that much time on it, there must be something there you either find compelling, or that you instinctively know the story needs. However, it could also be your subconscious trying to ask you…

3A. Is that subplot the story you really want to tell?

Hey, it happens to us all. We dig into a premise, and as we write, other ideas pour in and we discover something amazing that demands our full attention. Sometimes, we need to write the wrong words to find the right ones.

Ask yourself: Is the subplot the better story?  

For really demanding subplots–it might be worth an objective look to see if the reason it’s getting so much of your attention is because you like it more than your main plot.

4. Does it connect to the theme and/or character arc?

Subplots can tie a story together because they can slip into any aspect of it and make that aspect relevant. This is particularly true with your theme. If your theme is “discovering self-reliance” and your protagonist’s character arc is that she needs to stand up to her mother, you might have a subplot where she has to stand up for herself in a smaller, less threatening way so she can learn how and see she’s capable of doing it.

Ask yourself: Does this subplot show my theme, or help my protagonist learn a valuable lesson?

A novel isn’t just about how the plot unfolds (and this is coming from a hard-core plotter). Subplots are the threads that tie the story to the plot and give it greater meaning.

5. If you cut the subplot, would it change how your protagonist resolved the problem in the end?

Look at the core conflict. This is what your book is ultimately about—the big bad driving your story. This is the problem that readers want to see resolved to their satisfaction. Even if that problem is an internal character arc, the plot is still how the protagonist learns to deal with and fix that internal problem.

Now look at your subplots. There's a good chance these are solid in their own right, even if they don’t fit the bigger picture (which is why they’re so hard to spot and cut). They might even follow interesting characters and create tension and do all the things they're supposed to do.

Ask yourself: Does that subplot relate to/advance/enhance/reveal more about the core conflict in some way that affects the outcome of the story?

An unnecessary subplot won't affect the resolution, because it won't tie into the core conflict. If the protagonist never learned about that subplot, or met the character who has the subplot problem, things would have turned out basically the same.

Final Thought

Going off into the woods can lead us to a wonderful place we’d never have found otherwise, but sometimes, it just leaves us to die alone in the dark.

As long as we pay attention to the path we’re on and where we’re going, we’ll be better equipped to identify the subplots that will make our stories stronger.

Now it's your turn... Has a subplot ever led you astray? Please share your experience with us down in the comments!

About Janice

Janice Hardy is the award-winning author and founder of the popular writing site Fiction University, where she helps writers improve their craft and navigate the crazy world of publishing. Not only does she write about writing, she teaches workshops across the country, and her blog has been recognized as a Top Writing Blog by Writer’s Digest. She also spins tales of adventure for both teens and adults, and firmly believes that doing terrible things to her characters makes them more interesting (in a good way). She loves talking with writers and readers, and encourages questions of all types—even the weird ones.

Find out more about writing at www.Fiction-University.com, or visit her author’s site at www.JaniceHardy.com. Subscribe to her newsletter to stay updated on future books, workshops, and events and receive her ebook, 25 Ways to Strengthen Your Writing Right Now, free.

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by Sarah "Sally" Hamer

What do virtues and vices have to do with plot? Actually, I think they have everything to do with it. At least, if you believe that character arc and plot are similar.

Just like humans, characters have character traits.

We’re smart or sexy or strong. Or we are stubborn and snide. Any of these work, both in positive or negative ways, with thousands more traits to choose from. And, in most books and movies, the protagonist starts with a trait that gets them nowhere, and grows into a better person because of it.

It’s really pretty simple when you think about it. Characters start the story with a problem.

A classic example

Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz is trying to figure out how to keep Toto from being put down because he snapped at the neighbor lady. Dorothy doesn’t have a lot of options at this point. She’s young and inexperienced (eleven or twelve in the actual book) and scared of life. She tries to run away, but that didn’t work. So, the ‘small’ problem of trying to keep Toto alive is taken out of her hands with the big tornado that sends her to Oz. Now, she’s given a much ‘bigger’ problem to deal with.

She has to learn lessons – lessons about how she is also smart, compassionate, and brave – before she realizes that, she does have control over her destiny. Yes, I know the movie takes the problem from ‘keeping Toto alive’ to ‘there’s no place like home’, but ultimately, Dorothy goes from an unhappy and relatively helpless teenager to a strong, compassionate young woman.

She learned. It took a journey – an actual physical one in this particular story – for her to get there, but she learned.

Why is this story memorable?

We talk about about Dorothy's journey over a hundred years later (the books are that old), because it’s so beautifully done.

It’s also known as a character arc. The plot shows her growth, from afraid and helpless to brave and able to make decisions on her own. Without a plot that moved Dorothy through that character arc, there would be no story.

When Character Arc is a Struggle

Why is character arc (and plot) sometimes such a struggle? My theory: it’s because we really don’t know enough about our characters. Often characters come to us – like thieves in the night, they slide into our consciousness, fully formed. But are they really complete? Or do we just know enough to get the story started?

If we don’t really understand WHO our characters are, how can we know WHAT they feel, WHAT they will do, and HOW they will eventually learn enough to make the changes they must?

In other words, where’s the character arc?

Here’s Wikipedia’s definition:

As opposed to the plotline of a story, a character arc, or transformation, or inner journey is a description of what happens to the inside of a character over the course of the story. He begins as one sort of person in the beginning; things happen to and around him, gradually moving him in an "arc" that ends when the story is over.

Clear as mud? Right?

Character arc is simple, if you focus on growth.

We almost always start with character.

Why? Because character is your story. Oh, I realize that each of you could probably name me at least ten books/movies that are plot-driven in less than five minutes. But many, many, many – MOST – good stories start with character.

Let me define my version of character-driven stories:

1. There is a protagonist with a character arc. The character changes something about himself or herself during the story.
2. The story is mostly about that protagonist, although there can be any number of antagonists.
3. There can be more than one protagonist but the main one will have the ‘largest’ character arc.

When "plot" is stronger than "character"

It’s possible to have a story where plot is ‘stronger’ than the character or the character doesn’t change. All of the older James Bond movies are a good example where a character has very little growth – we ALWAYS know that Bond is going to stop the bad guy and get the girl.

The franchise has begun to let Bond have an arc since Daniel Craig took over and probably will continue if they don’t lose their core audience. Since Daniel Craig, Bond CHANGES. And we get to see it.

In fact, certain genres don’t really need a character arc. Usually, these are more action/adventure, thriller-style genres, often preferred by men. Women are more likely to want a character to learn a lesson and grow throughout a story.

Back to Dorothy and her Character Arc

Going back to Dorothy, because this part of the story is solid and easily understandable. She wanted to find a happy place, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” where bluebirds fly and the wicked witch next door doesn’t want to kill her dog. Dorothy runs away to protect Toto but just gets herself in more problems.

She starts out as a sensitive, passive, insecure child who allows others to push her around. We see her make decisions based on what other people tell her to do:

• “Follow the yellow brick road."
• “Talk to the Wizard in the Emerald City – the Wizard knows everything.”
• “Bring me the witch’s broom.”

During the story, we watch her mature and grow. She begins to make her own decisions and, when the Wizard refuses to help her after she brings thewitch's broom back, she stands up to him and demands that he keep his promise.

This is my favorite part of the movie – instead of being a supplicant like she was the first time, now she marches in, burnt broom held like a drum majorette’s baton and fellow warriors lined up behind her, and demands that he keep his promises. Great scene! Great growth! Great character arc!

 Later, she has to make a choice – will she go back to Kansas without Toto when the hot air balloon takes off, or will she jump out and (once more) protect Toto? As a reward for her courage and new-found understanding of what’s important to her, she gets to go home with Toto.

Way to go, Dorothy!

Final Thoughts

I used The Wizard of Oz because the character arc in this story is very clear. Our heroine starts out as a wimpy, unhappy child. Her journey to a mystical and dangerous world gives her multiple opportunities to grow up and prove that she is both worthy and capable. We believe in her by the time she clicks her heels together.

Now it's your turn.

• What are your characters’ traits?
• Do they grow throughout the story?

Remember, a character can even “ungrow,” in that a character’s arc does NOT have to be positive, even though a lot of readers prefer that. Even Darth Vader’s arc is in a positive direction. But some bad guys just get worse, so “de-volving” works too.

How do you use character traits to create a character? Do you have an example to share, from your own characters or from another book or movie that you love? Please share it down in the comments!

About Sarah

Sarah (Sally) Hamer, B.S., MLA, is a lover of books, a teacher of writers, and a believer in a good story. Most of all, she is eternally fascinated by people and how they 'tick'. She’s passionate about helping people tell their own stories and has won awards at both local and national levels, including two Golden Heart finals.

A teacher of memoir, beginning and advanced creative fiction writing, and screenwriting at Louisiana State University in Shreveport for over twenty years, she also teaches online for Margie Lawson at www.margielawson.com and for the No Stress Writing Academy at https://www.worldanvil.com/w/classes-deleyna/a/no-stress-writing-academy.  Sally is a free-lance editor and book coach, with many of her students and clients becoming successful, award-winning authors.

You can find her at info@mindpotential.org

Top photo created in Canva, based on this photo by SpaceX on Unsplash.

by Dr. Diana Stout

How many times have you heard, “You shouldn’t use was.*** It’s passive writing?" Far too often, I find editing software or autocorrect will say “passive writing” when it’s not true. That’s why it’s important to understand what passive writing looks like.

Notes for this Post on Passive Writing

Our goal is to identify what was is and the type of verb that generally accompanies was will better aid our understanding of how to identify passive writing so that we can fix it. I promise that by the end of this blog post, you will be able to identify passive writing with two simple questions.

Helping verbs, also called auxiliary verbs, usually accompany participle verbs, which most often end with -ing or -ed. The middle column lists the various helping verbs.

*** Important: Words or phrases being analyzed or discussed are always italicized. Quote marks are reserved for dialogue or actual quotes that require(s) mentioning the source or providing a citation.

The TYPE of helping verb	The helping verbs	Extra information
BE	am, is, are, was, were, be, been
HAVE	have, has, had
DO	Do, does, did	done is a helping verb in British English but not in American English where it’s the past participle of do.
CONDITIONAL	Should, could, would
FUTURE TENSE	will, shall
ABILITY, PERMISSION, POSSIBILITY, NECESSITY	can, may, might, must	The order of types matches the order of helping verbs. Ability = Can, Permission = May and so forth.

Helping Verbs Made Easier

Now, let’s look at a timeline of official verb terminology and how each is used with these helping verbs, starting with the past way in the distance, moving toward the present, and then into the future, and beyond.

Using the word hike

Perfect Progressive Past	Perfect Past	Progressive Past	Simple Past
I had been hiking	I had hiked	I was hiking	I hiked; I did hike

Present

• I hike
• I am hiking
• I do hike
• He is hiking

Simple Future	Future Progressive	Future Perfect	Future Perfect Progressive
I will hike; he should hike	I will be hiking; he should be hiking	I will have hiked	I will have been hiking

Are you noticing how the participle -ing and -ed verbs are required when there is a helping verb? Are any of these phrases in the chart passive? No, they’re not. They’re all active. How so?

A closer examination

Let’s examine the use of was more closely with various subjects. The verb forms are italicized.

• He was walking to the bank.
• She is talking on the telephone.
• The ball was kicked.

So, are any of these sentences passive writing? Yes, one sentence is passive and it’s the last one. The first two sentences are active writing.

I can hear you thinking or saying, “But, I’ve been told using was is passive writing. I’m confused. How can I tell when was is passive or active in my sentence?”

Often, helping verbs creates wordiness. In some cases, helping verbs create telling rather than showing. Wordiness and telling do not equal passive writing. Passive writing occurs for one reason and one reason only and here’s how to find out whether your sentence is passive or not.

How to Identify Passive Writing

#1 - Identify the subject

Using the three example sentences again, I’m underlining the subjects.

• He was walking to the bank.
• She is talking on the phone.
• The ball was kicked.

#2 - Ask: is the subject performing the action?

In the first two examples, yes, the subject is doing the acting. In the third sentence, the ball is not doing the kicking.

If a subject performs the action, it’s active writing regardless of the verb form being used.

If the subject is being acted upon, the sentence is passive. The additional problem with the last sentence is that it’s unclear; it needs more information to be made clear.

            Question: The ball was kicked by whom?

            Answer: The ball was kicked by the little boy.

Meaning is clearer. But, notice how we now have the preposition by. Prepositions can lead to wordiness, too. Plus, the sentence is still passive.

So how do you make a passive sentence active?

Switch things around. Move the subject so that it performs the action. Notice how the preposition disappears, too.

            The little boy was kicking the ball.

But, it’s still a bit wordy and slow-moving. The sentence isn’t as active as it could be. To make sentences less wordy, remove the helping verbs and use simple present or simple past tense.

• He walked to the bank. (simple past)
• She talks on the telephone. (present)
• The little boy kicked the ball. (simple past)

Reminder: To determine if your sentence is passive:

1. Identify the subject.
2. Ask: is the subject doing the action or is it being acted upon?

If the subject is being acted upon (passive writing), rewrite or rearrange until the subject is performing the action (active writing).

To remove verb wordiness, use simple verbs without the helping verbs.

Test Yourself

Think you understand the difference between passive and active writing now? Let’s check. Is the following sentence passive or active?

The boys in the choir who were marching in the parade were soaked by the rain.

What’s the subject? Boys

What’s the verb: were marching and were soaked

Are the boys performing the action? Yes and No. To figure it out, simplify the sentence using only subjects and verbs

The boys were marching so that first portion is active. The boys are doing something.

The boys were soaked. The boys aren’t doing anything. This sentence is a statement of fact, so that means something else is acting upon the boys. The boys were soaked by the rain. The rain is acting upon the boys.

So, the above sentence is both active and passive. Is that okay? Certainly.

Final Thought

Not all writing has to be active. The beauty is that I can change it, restructure the sentence if I don’t want part of it to be passive.

There will be times when you want your subject acted upon, when they have no control, are threatened, or are being abused by someone or something. Via passive writing, you are showing how the character has no control.

Do you have a sentence you’re not sure how to rewrite and want to share? Or, have you found a passive sentence in your work that you’ve rewritten and it’s now active? Share it! Show us how you changed it.

About Diana

Dr. Diana Stout enjoys helping other writers become better at their craft. Her main goals for 2025 are to publish her grammar and punctuation book, publish her psychological paranormal thriller, and write her fully researched based-on-a-true-story historical screenplay. To subscribe to her announcement-only newsletter of these publications, click here.

To learn more about Diana, visit her Sharpened Pencils Productions website and check out her Recommended Reading page where she provides links to helpful books and articles for all writers.

Top photo purchased from Depositphotos.