How to Turn a Story Idea Into a Plot
Have you ever had a great idea for a novel, only to start writing and realize somewhere around Chapter Three that you had no idea what was supposed to happen next?
It’s probably because your story idea may be amazing, but it’s merely a premise. It’s not yet a plot.
The annoying reality is that some of our best ideas are actually just the set-up. They’re clear enough in our head to get us excited, maybe enough to get us started, but they won’t get us to The End.
The good news is that any story idea, no matter how flimsy to start, can be turned into a workable plot. It’s taken me a decade to figure out how, but through the process of writing and publishing forty romance novels, I’ve developed a formula.
The 5P Formula
Plot = A Person in a Predicament who has a Plan, but encounters a Problem.
These days I wouldn’t dream of typing “Chapter One” until I’m sure I have all of the bolded Ps above.
Here’s the 5P method applied to the wildly successful Emily Henry’s People We Meet on Vacation.
Person = Poppy Wright, a travel writer
Predicament = Her once-close friendship with Adam feels strained
Plan = Plan a final trip to reconnect with Alex and repair their friendship.
Problem = Poppy’s plan forces her and Alex to confront their unresolved feelings, and the reasons behind their rift.
It seems simple because it is, but it’s also easier than you think to omit a crucial P.
Take this story idea for example:
Kelly, a highly-capable office manager is secretly in love with her playboy boss Adam, only he seems to barely know she exists.
Sounds pretty good, right? So let’s put it through 5P:
We’ve got a person (Kelly) with a predicament (she’s in love with her boss) and a problem (he’s not in love back).
We know that’s an idea, and not a plot, because it’s missing a P!
Person = Kelly, a highly-capable office manager
Predicament = Secretly in love with her boss.
Plan = ??
Problem: Adam doesn’t seem to know she exists beyond managing his calendar
There’s no plan. What is Kelly going to do about the fact that she’s invisible to Adam? Without all the Ps, it’s hard to come up with enough scene ideas to fill a novel. This makes writing so much harder than it needs to be!
But watch what happens when we give our main character a plan.
Kelly, a highly-capable office manager is secretly in love with her playboy boss Adam. To finally make him see her as a viable romantic interest, she hires a stranger, Michael, to pose as her boyfriend, only to find herself falling in love her fake boyfriend just as Adam finally becomes interested.
Person = Kelly, a highly-capable office manager
Predicament = Secretly in love with her boss.
Plan = Kelly hires a stranger to pose as her boyfriend to make Adam jealous
Problem: She’s falling for the wrong guy
Alternate Problem: Her boss is finally noticing her, and she and Michael part ways, but will Adam forgive her when he learns she manipulated him?
Now we’ve got a plot!
Why do we care if we have a 5P Plot? Because it makes our writing life easier. Look how many scene ideas emerge just by rounding out our Ps. The moment we add the crucial plan, we can start to see these scene options:
Kelly coming up with the idea to hire a fake boyfriend
Auditioning fake boyfriends
Meeting Michael for the first time.
Telling her boss (Adam) that she can’t stay late because she’s going out with her boyfriend, and gleefully seeing his surprise
Actually going out to dinner with Michael to get their stories straight
Michael and Adam meeting for the first time
A double-date scene with Adam’s new girlfriend
A coworker’s wedding, where she brings Michael, but she and Adam share a dance
Adam telling Kelly that he’s developing pesky feelings
The company Christmas party where jealousy abounds
If you want to make sure you have enough story to sustain an entire novel, make sure you have all the Ps.
If you want to learn more about the formula and how I apply it, I've created a full guide on the concept.
