Using Plot Twist Generators When Writing a Novel
Add Unexpected Conflict to Shake Up a Boring Story
Apr 25, 2009
When your story is stuck, when your imagination is dry, when your outline is boring, you need a plot twist. Here is a description of how internet plot twist programs can be used, and some advice on using them for good effect.
Find Computer-Generated Plot Twists on the Internet
An internet search for “plot twist generator” will turn up a multitude of sites for plots and plot twists. These computer-generated plot twists are often written for the fantasy genre, but romance and mainstream categories also exist, as do plots based on well-known books such as Les Miserables.
Some sites also include character descriptions, names, and titles for added enjoyment and writing prompts.
Using a Plot Twist Program
When a writer clicks generate or go, the computer will create the specified number of plot twists. Here are a few examples from the Nine French Boys site:
- Suddenly a police officer asks if anyone has seen his/her daughter
- A social worker arrives and orders everyone to leave
- A librarian throws a tantrum
- The person mentioned briefly in chapter 2 arrives, wearing a strange hat
- A spouse arrives and begins locking the doors
Incorporating a Plot Twist Into Real Fiction
Obviously, writers want to create their own plots, to have characters drive what happens in the story. To use an artificially-created plot twist well, writers must determine their reasons for using it.
- If a writer has a challenging, production-oriented goal such as National Novel Writing Month, just choose an interesting plot twist and throw it into the story to see what happens.
- If a writer re-reads the novel manuscript and realizes it need some excitement, choose a plot twist that could believably be worked into the story. The plot twist may need adapting, or foreshadowing and/or characters put into place earlier, but that can be done if the plot twist turns out to work.
- If a writer is stuck on getting from Point C to Point D in the story, the computer-generated plot twists can be used to jog the imagination. A "princess searches for a lost treasure chest" might lead to a protagonist searching for a family heirloom. The key is not to use the plot twist as is, but to let the creative mind turn it into something that fits logically into the story.
Used judiciously, a list of computer-generated plot twists can send the imagination soaring. Whether they are needed to help a story, or just to have fun while dispelling writer’s block, check them out.
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