Hi Reader!

Have you ever hit a point in your writing where you're just stuck?

Where you start wondering what the heck you're even writing about?

Or how to get the hero to that pivotal moment in their story? Like, good gods, someone just give me a map, already!

Well, you are not alone!

Getting stuck can happen for a lot of reasons, but there is one quick test you can do to rule out one of the most common problems I see as a developmental editor for fiction: writing the wrong story.

If you're thinking, "Wait, wait wait. It's MY story. How can I possibly be writing the wrong story?"

I hear you! And you're definitely right—the story should absolutely come from your heart, mind, and soul. But here's what I mean:

In fiction writing, there are two different types of stories you can craft.

And I'm not talking about genre beats or short vs. long form fiction. I'm talking about the role the protagonist plays in the storytelling itself.

Either the plot exists to serve the hero.

Or the hero exists to serve the plot.

A good example of a story where the plot serves the hero is the 2009 movie Avatar by James Cameron. Jake Sully starts out as a hopeless but determined soldier trying to find meaning and purpose in his life. Through the events of the story, he becomes a better (and happier) version of himself. Avatar is a compelling story because it addresses the suffering caused by human greed and power-mongering in an uplifting, inspiring way (a story of literal transformation).

The James Bond movies, on the other hand, are a good example of a hero that exists to serve the plot. Mr. Bond doesn't really change over the course of his 20+ movies and 7+ actors. The character is exciting to watch because he's a top-notch spy who is able to pull off logic-defying stunts, cheat death, and save the world. But he never really becomes a better or worse version of himself. He's simply Bond, James Bond. Spy Extraordinaire.

And YES, you can write a story with independent external plot elements that also serve the hero's growth journey. But to do that, you first have to understand what transformation that growth arc must be based 0n. Because the plot still needs to be relevant to the hero's core struggle.

Avatar is an example of what I call character-driven fiction. The James Bond stories are plot-driven fiction.

The question you need to ask yourself is...

Does my story's plot inspire the hero to re-evaluate the way they make decisions?

Or does my hero merely serve as an exciting figurehead to progress the story's action?

If you're trying to write a character-driven story, but your plot is centered around events that do not challenge, test, and eventually transform the hero...

you're writing the wrong story.

Or, rather, you're writing the wrong scenes and setting up the wrong plot.

In my work as a developmental fiction editor and book coach, I specialize in helping authors craft character-driven, happy-ending stories that readers will connect to and remember.

I know this is pretty heady stuff, especially when you first start trying to figure out which type of story you're writing (or want to write), so I wrote an article with tons more examples to help you dive even deeper.

(It's been a while since I published a new article, and this one is a secret sneak peek INSIDE my upcoming course Liar, Liar, Plot on Fire!)

​Check out my brand new (sneak peek!) article here:

Read the article

I'll check back in a few days with more tips on how to dial in your story so you can publish your absolute best work and create hero journeys that readers will remember.

And I'm going to tell you why GMCs—Goals, Motivations, and Conflicts—are NOT the best way to set up your story's framework.

In the meantime, hit reply and tell me what sort of fiction you write and why you're so passionate about it! I love meeting the authors who open my emails—I mean, you are obviously pretty freaking awesome 🤗—so don't be shy!

Keep writing and learning, and never be afraid to fail forward!

<3 Sue

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Strategic. Creative. Savvy.

​SueBrownMoore.com​

​Get empowered—Click to follow me on Insta!​

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Skipped to the end? I totally do that too. Hey, time is precious! :) Here's what you skipped over:

• I specialize in character-driven fiction. If you love writing stories about heroes who become better versions of themselves, read this article to learn the difference between character-driven stories and plot-driven stories and figure out which one your hero needs you to write.
• But if you write stories where the hero serves the plot events, I'm probably not the right book coach for you. And the emails I send likely won't help you level up your own writing. I will have no hard feelings if you want to unsubscribe (click the link just below this in the footer).