Layer Your Novel: The Innovative Method for Plotting Your Scenes (The Writer's Toolbox Series)
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9. Key Scene # 3 - First Pinch Point 33%. Katniss dreams of the games. She awakes confused and at first wishes that Peeta was present to comfort her, but he is tending to Gale. Katniss talks with Haymitch about next steps. The square has been transformed with propaganda banners and machine guns. They watch as the Hob is burned to the ground. Katniss realizes that starting a revolution maybe more dangerous than she thought. Katniss receives her wedding dresses and freaks out. She heads for the forest to collect her thoughts. Katniss encounters a woman who has a cracker with the mockingjay stamped on it. [Force of opposition is shown.]
10. PART 2. Katniss speaks with the two runaways from District 8. They describe the failed attempted rebellion in their district and their escape. They plan on going to District 13 and tell Katniss she remains their one hope. She heads back but is trapped on the wrong side of the fence when it is electrified.
11. Key Scene #4 - Twist #1. Katniss is forced to jump from a tree and suffers a broken tailbone and other injuries. Katniss arrives home limping and is met by her mother, Prim, Peeta, Haymitch, and two peacekeepers that have a message from the head of law enforcement. Katniss is tended to by her mother and sent to bed. Days go by as she heals, but she sees on the news confirmation that District 13 just might exist.
12.Key Scene #5 – Midpoint. The prep team arrives at Katniss’s house for the photo shoot of Katniss in her wedding dresses. The two rebel leaders exchange information and plot the future. Katniss realizes once again that a rebellion is hard work. Caesar and Cinna host a TV show that is mandatory viewing throughout the country. The pictures of Katniss in her wedding dresses are broadcast to an adoring nation. The Quarter Quell ritual is described by Snow. Katniss realizes she and Peeta will have to go back into the arena for another battle [Everything now changes].
13. Katniss escapes and ends up in Haymitch’s house, where they drink. Haymitch and Katniss make a pact to keep Peeta alive. A drunken Katniss returns to her home and finds Gale there. Gale understands that the Capitol intends to kill her. Katniss feels engulfed in hopelessness. She, Haymitch, and Peeta start training again. The reaping takes place as their names are announced. They’re all put on the train and leave District 12.
14. Katniss mourns the fact that she was given no time to say good-bye. She and Peeta hug, the team reviews the reaping results. There are short descriptions of some of the Tributes.
15. Cinna once again comes up with ingenious outfits for Katniss and Peeta to wear for the opening ceremony. They make their grand entrance at the ceremony. Afterward, she meets Chaff and Seeder.
16. Peeta and Katniss arrive at their old quarters and realize that one of the peacekeepers from District 12 has been turned into a mute Avox—a reminder of the power of the Capitol. The team discusses strategies, and all teams practice. For Katniss’s “talent,” she makes a noose and hangs a dummy of Seneca Crane, the former game maker who had been forced to kill himself.
17. The team discusses what just happened, and Peeta reveals he painted a picture of Rue, which is also certain to upset the powers that be. Katniss spends the day with Peeta, then they dress for the spotlight. Katniss is forced to wear one of the wedding dresses, which causes an emotional uproar. Then the dress bursts into “flames” and turns into a mockingjay with feathers and wings, further taunting the Capitol.
18 Key Scene #6 - Pinch Point #2 - 66% Mark. In his interview on stage with Caesar, Peeta says he and Katniss already married in secret. Then he says Katniss is pregnant. This emotional shocker moves all the victors from all districts to hold hands and sway. The whole nation is in an uproar. Katniss, after spending the night with Peeta, is prepped for the games by Cinna. When she is in the launch tube, she watches in horror as Cinna is beat up and dragged away [The opposition is encroaching on her].
19. PART 3. Katniss, shocked, has to focus. She is surrounded by water. The games begin. She swims to the cornucopia. Finnick is there as she grabs a bow, but he assures her he’s her ally. They kill a few, Finnick goes to help Peeta, then grabs old Mags. Peeta runs into a force field and appears dead.
20. 75% Mark. Finnick gives Peeta CPR, and he comes to. They move on, Katniss flinging nuts at the force field to locate it. Katniss climbs a tree, sees the arena is a perfect wheel. They make camp, and the sky lights up with the showing of the dead Tributes. A parachute drops a metal object, and Katniss IDs it as a stile to push into a tree trunk to get sap. This allays their dangerous thirst. They sleep, a bell rings twelve times, it rains, then acid fog seeps in.
21. Build to the Climax. They run from the acid fog, which debilitates their limbs. Finnick and Katniss carry Peeta and Mags, but they fail. Mags dies. The fog dissipates. They reach the water and soak in it. She and Peeta drag Finnick in. Monkeys attack and they fight. Just as Peeta is about to be killed, the morphling from District 6 blocks him and takes the attack on herself.
22. Key Scene #7 - Twist #2. Peeta stabs the monkey. The girl dies. A parachute floats down with much-needed ointment. Another cannon blast signals another death. They hide as they spot three Tributes coming. It’s Johanna and two others to join them. Wiress keeps saying “tick tock,” and Katniss realizes the arena is a clock, divided into twelve sections.
23. They realize specific dangers begin in each section at their specific time. So now they know how to avoid the dangers. They’re attacked, and Wiress and two Tributes die. The land spins and they’re flung. Katniss swims to grab the coil of wire from Wiress’s hands before her body is hauled up into the sky. Katniss realizes some of the victors are trying to keep Peeta alive. Then she hears a scream that sounds like her sister, Prim.
24. Katniss runs, then finds a jabberjay and realizes that was what she heard. Finnick runs after another scream. They see Peeta and Johanna but they’re mute, on the other side of an invisible barrier. Katniss and Finnick drop to the ground as they hear the “cries” of their loved ones, then the torment ends, and Peeta assures Katniss their families can’t be dead. Another cannon. A parachute with rolls to eat. Peeta and Katniss talk about who should survive and why.
25. The next day Katniss teaches Peeta how to swim. Beetee comes up with a plan to electrocute the remaining opponents. Katniss leads the way to the force field. Peeta finds a pearl in an oyster and gives it to her. They wait.
26. Key Scene #8 - Dark Night leading to the Climax. Beetee unrolls the wire. They’re to run it down to the water. Katniss and Johanna start off, but someone has cut the wire. They’re attacked. Katniss is hit in the head. Johanna digs with her knife into Katniss’s arm. She thinks Johanna means to kill her and worries for Peeta. Finnick runs by. The cannon booms. She thinks everyone is hunting her and Peeta. Everything looks hopeless. She winds Beetee’s wire around her arrow and shoots it into the dome. An explosion rocks the world.
27. Key Scene #9 Climax – No Resolution Scene #10 – hanging ending to lead into next book. Katniss thinks everyone is dead and all is lost. A hovercraft appears above her. She’s hoisted into the vehicle, thinks this is the end for her, and blacks out. She finally wakes and sets off in search of Peeta. She heads down the hall, hears voices speaking in a room, realizes Finnick and Haymitch are in conversation. She bursts in, and they fill her in on what really happened during the game. An underground movement protected her and arranged her escape. She is the mockingjay, and the rebellion needs her. And they are on their way to District 13. She learns Peeta’s been captured. Gale shows up and assures Katniss her family is safe, but District 12 is no more. [Huge development of bigger stakes, bigger commitment.]
Now, take a look at the same chart as I identify what I would consider the next layer. As I showed you in the previous chart, scenes 11–20 are in boldface to make them easier to spot.
If I had written this book, I would have started my plotting with those ten key scenes, then come up with the next layer using the action-reaction method. Who knows how Suzanne Collins plotted her story, but I hope you can see how this might be a logical way to do it.
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br /> 1.Setup. Katniss reflects on the changes to her life since arriving back from the Hunger Games. She brings food to Gale’s family and spreads her wealth around. She reinforces her relationship with Haymitch, waking him from his liquor-induced slumber. Peta arrives with bread. Katniss’s uncertainty regarding her feelings for Peta is evident.
2.Scene #11 – Twist and complication. President Snow shows up at Katniss’s house. He indicates he would have preferred her (and Peta’s) death at the end of the Hunger Games as he grills Katniss. The conflict/stakes are established as high as ever.
3.Scene #12 - Katniss processes what just happened. She attempts to make sense out of her exchange with President Snow while she bathes in preparation for her prep team’s arrival. The trio arrives to prepare Katniss for her tour of the districts. Katniss is encouraged to develop a talent. Peta and Katniss exchange a kiss before the cameras. Haymitch tells her she will never have a real life—the one she wants with Gale.
4.Inciting Incident. On the train, Katniss details the recent visit with President Snow to her team. She runs through her next moves and options. Effie and Katniss eat breakfast on their “travel day” before arriving at District 11. Peeta shows her his paintings. They arrive at District 11 and do their act. Peeta offers the district a portion of their winnings. Then Katniss speaks consolingly to the crowd. They show solidarity with the mockingjay salute. Katniss realizes she’s unleashed the whirlwind and in horror watches a man shot because of her.
5.Scene #13 – Reaction. They hurry back into the Justice building as more shots are fired. Haymitch demands to know what happened. Peeta explodes in guilt. Quick montage as they spend days doing the same appearances at all the other districts, until they arrive at the capitol, where they make their final appearance before Snow.
6.Scene #14 – New twist, raised stakes. They attend the big party at Snow’s mansion. Katniss thinks about the suffering people. Scene ends with her seeing a secret transmission showing a violent uprising in District 8.
7.Flashback: Katniss is in the woods on her way to the cabin for a rendezvous with Gale. Gale and Katniss draw closer, and Gale announces his love for her. Katniss tells Gale about the uprising in District 8. Gale reacts strongly to this information. Katniss tells of her plan to run away. They argue about options, the world predicament. Coming out of the woods, Katniss seeks out Peeta to explain her plan and seek his approval. Gale is whipped in the square for his transgression of hunting in the forest. [THIS IS ALSO THE 25% MARK-GOAL FIXED]
8. SCENE #15 – Reaction. Katniss is injured but not as severely as Gale. Katniss’s mom tends to Gale’s wounds. Peeta tends to Katniss and Haymitch supports everyone. The threat to Gale’s life brings clarity to Katniss’s feelings for him.
9. First Pinch Point 33%. Katniss dreams of the games. She awakes confused and at first wishes that Peeta was present to comfort her but he is tending to Gale. Katniss talks with Haymitch about next steps. The square has been transformed with propaganda banners and machine guns. They watch as the Hob is burned to the ground. Katniss realizes that starting a revolution maybe more dangerous than she thought. Katniss receives her wedding dresses and freaks out. She heads for the forest to collect her thoughts. Katniss encounters a woman who has a cracker with the mockingjay stamped on it. [FORCE OF OPPOSITION IS SHOWN]
10. SCENE #16 – New development. PART 2 Katniss speaks with the two runaways from District 8. They describe the failed attempted rebellion in their district and their escape. They plan on going to District 13 and tell Katniss she remains their one hope. She heads back but is trapped on the wrong side of the fence when it is electrified.
11. Twist #1. Katniss is forced to jump from a tree and suffers a broken tailbone and other injuries. Katniss arrives home limping and is met by her mother, Prim, Peeta, and Haymitch, and two peacekeepers that have a message from the head of law enforcement. Katniss is tended to by her mother and sent to bed. Days go by as she heals, but she sees on the news confirmation that District 13 just might exist
12.Midpoint. The prep team arrives at Katniss’s house for the photo shoot of Katniss in her wedding dresses. The two rebel leaders exchange information and plot the future. Katniss realizes once again that a rebellion is hard work. Caesar and Cinna host a TV show that is mandatory viewing throughout the country. The pictures of Katniss in her wedding dresses are broadcast to an adoring nation. The Quarter Quell ritual is described by Snow. Katniss realizes she and Peeta will have to go back into the arena for another battle [EVERYTHING NOW CHANGES].
13. Katniss escapes and ends up in Haymitch’s house where they drink. Haymitch and Katniss make a pack to keep Peeta alive. A drunken Katniss returns to her home and finds Gale there. Gale understands that the Capitol intends to kill her. Katniss feels engulfed in hopelessness. She, Haymitch, and Peeta start training again. The reaping takes place as their names are announced. They’re all put on the train and leave District 12.
14. Katniss mourns the fact that she was given no time to say good-bye. She and Peeta hug, the team reviews the reaping results. There are short descriptions of some of the Tributes.
15. Cinna once again comes up with ingenious outfits for Katniss and Peeta to wear for the opening ceremony. They make their grand entrance at the ceremony. Afterward, she meets Chaff and Seeder.
16. SCENE #17 – Twist. Peeta and Katniss arrive at their old quarters and realize that one of the peacekeepers from District 12 has been turned into a mute Avox—a reminder of the power of the capitol. The team discusses strategies and all teams practice. For Katniss’s “talent,” she makes a noose and hangs a dummy of Seneca Crane, the former game maker who had been forced to kill himself. [Shows Katniss raising the stakes]
17. SCENE #18 – Twist. The team discusses what just happened, and Peeta reveals he painted a picture of Rue, which is also certain to upset the powers that be. Katniss spends the day with Peeta, then they dress for the spotlight. Katniss is forced to wear one of the wedding dresses, which causes an emotional uproar. Then the dress bursts into “flames” and turns into a mockingjay with feathers and wings. [Raises the stakes even higher.]
18 66% Mark – Pinch Point #2. in his interview on stage with Caesar, Peeta says he and Katniss already married in secret. Then he says Katniss is pregnant. This emotional shocker moves all the victors from all districts to hold hands and sway. The whole nation is in an uproar. Katniss, after spending the night with Peeta, is prepped for the games by Cinna. When she is in the launch tube, she watches in horror as Cinna is beat up and dragged away [The opposition is encroaching on her].
19. Part 3. Katniss, shocked, has to focus. She is surrounded by water. The games begin. She swims to the cornucopia. Finnick is there as she grabs a bow. But he assures her he’s her ally. They kill a few, Finnick goes to help Peeta, then grabs old Mags. Peeta runs into a force field and appears dead.
20. 75% MARK. Finnick gives Peeta CRP and he comes to. They move on, Katniss flinging nuts at the force field to delineate it. Katniss climbs a tree, sees the arena is a perfect wheel. They make camp and the sky lights up with the showing of the dead Tributes. A parachute drops a metal object, and Katniss IDs it as a stile to push into a tree trunk to get sap. This allays their dangerous thirst. They sleep, a bell rings twelve times, it rains, then acid fog seeps in.
21. Build to the Climax. They run from the acid fog, which debilitates their limbs. Finnick and Katniss carry Peeta and Mags, but they fail. Mags dies. The fog dissipates. They reach the water and soak in it. She and Peeta drag Finnick in. Monkeys attack and they fight. Just as Peeta is about to be killed, the morphling from District 6 blocks him and takes the attack on herself.
22. Twist #2. Peeta stabs the monkey. The girl dies. A parachute floats down with much-needed ointment. Another cannon blast signals another death. They hide as they spot three Tributes coming. It’s Johanna and two others to join them. Wiress keeps saying “tick tock” and Katniss realizes the arena is a clock, divided into twelve sections.
23. S
CENE #19 – Important realizations and developments. They realize specific dangers begin in each section at their specific time. So now they know how to avoid the dangers. They’re attacked and Wiress and two Tributes die. The land spins and they’re flung. Katniss swims to grab the coil of wire from Wiress’s hands before she’s hauled up into the sky. Katniss realizes some of the victors are trying to keep Peeta alive. Then she hears a scream that sounds like her sister, Prim.
24. Katniss runs, then finds a jabberjay and realizes that was what she heard. Finnick runs after another scream. They see Peeta and Johanna but they’re mute, on the other side of an invisible barrier. Katniss and Finnick drop to the ground as they hear the “cries” of their loved ones, the torment ends, and Peeta assures Katniss their families can’t be dead. Another cannon. A parachute with rolls to eat. Peeta and Katniss talks about who should survive and why.
25. SCENE #20 – Key development. The next day Katniss teaches Peeta how to swim. Beetee comes up with a plan to electrocute the remaining opponents. Katniss leads the way to the force field. Peeta finds a pearl in an oyster and gives it to her. They wait. [Sets up the action in the climax with the roll of wire.]
26. Key Scene #8 Dark Night leading to the Climax. Beetee unrolls the wire. They’re to run it down to the water. Katniss and Johanna start off but someone has cut the wire. They’re attacked. Katniss is hit in the head. Johanna digs with her knife into Katniss’s arm. She thinks Johanna means to kill her and worries for Peeta. Finnick runs by. The cannon booms. She thinks everyone is hunting her and Peeta. Everything looks hopeless. She winds Beetee’s wire around her arrow and shoots it into the dome. An explosion rocks the world.
27. Key Scene #9 Climax. Katniss thinks everyone is dead and all is lost. A hovercraft appears above her. She’s hoisted into the vehicle, sees the face of the game master, thinks this is the end for her and blacks out. She fades in and out, finally waking, and sets off in search of Peeta. She heads down the hall, hears voices speaking in a room. Realizes Finnick and Haymitch are in conversation. She bursts in and they fill her in on what really happened during the game. An underground movement protected her and arranged her escape. She is the mockingjay, and the rebellion needs her. And they are on their way to District 13. She learns Peeta’s been captured. Gale shows up and assures Katniss her family is safe, but District 12 is no more. [Huge development of bigger stakes, bigger commitment.]