Here's fresh insight that will refine your subplots and
reinforce your story's main physical and psychological spines.
But first let's set the stage.
In other places I explain how a story's subplot can
be devised and used to reinforce the Moral Premise of the story. In short,
those explanations have focused on these traits:
1. Each subplot follows a
particular character in their pursuit of a specific goal.
2. Each subplot has fewer dramatic
beats than the story's physical spine.
3. The psychological arc of every character in every subplot lies someone along the arc between
the opposing values anchored by the Moral Premise Statement.
For example, let's say we have a story titled HOT WATER. Our story's main plot (or physical
spine) centers on a protagonist—an elderly but persistent widow—who battles a secretive
landlord who refuses to provide more than 65/F of heat to the hot water heating system during the winter months.
The widow's goal of the main plot is to sue the landlord to
reveal how much profit he's making by keeping the temperature at 65/F, and thus force
him raise the temperature.
But the landlord's position is that his financial records
are private, and he further argues the tenant agreement specifically states
that the maximum temperature that he needs to provide tenants is 65/F, not a
degree more.
Let's say the Moral Premise
Statement for our story is:
