Tipster...Wait, What?

Ooooh, jeez. Guess who lost track of the days and forgot to make her post on Tuesday? Yep. This chick. My bad, guys. The holidays have me all scatterbrained...well, more scatterbrained than usual. So, this week, Tipster Tuesday will be Tipster Thursday. Meh...not as catchy.

Today's Topic:

Subplots

(I just realized today was Thursday, so I didn't have time to come up with a great topic. My boyfriend threw out subplots and I just decided to roll with it. Let's see how this goes over. lol.)

Subplots aren't just there to take up space in your novel. They're important too--at least, they'd better be or you've got the a case of Filleritis. They help you keep the flow of your story in places when your MC can't concentrate on the main problem. In BROKEN, my MC has to train for a while to get the hang of her new powers. A couple of different subplots popped up in that time--both to advance the plot and develop characters.

If I hadn't had those subplots what would I do with all that time she spends training? There's only so long you can read about someone running laps or struggling to control their abilities before it gets boring. And I can't just time skip over it. How lame would that be? Three or four chapters of training, time skip, BADABOOM! Big battle ensues. Bleeeeh. Makes for a shorter book, but I know how much that would annoy me if I read it.

So, what goes into a good subplot?

--"Who broke Mom's lamp?" isn't a subplot

Unless you're writing a weird kid's books, I guess. Anyway, my point is, sub-plots can't just be any random shit. Just because it's not your main plot doesn't mean you can pick any stupid, mundane thing and call it a subplot.

--Hey! Hey! Remember me? Y'know...the actual plot?

Don't go off on a wild tangent and let your subplot take over ten chapters of your book. I know it's fun to see your characters do something else for a change, but you can't forget their main goal. I did that in OPHELIA and ended up having to delete four chapters of nothing but subplot development that didn't go anywhere.

--Ow! Who put this brick wall here?

You know that subplot in OPHELIA I just mentioned? Well, this was what killed it. I ran smack dab into a brick wall. I had two choices: spend a lot of time reworking the story so the subplot would fit, or delete the damn thing and get back to the main plot. I chose the obvious one.

But what if your subplot is really, really, REALLY important? Well, I guess you're out of luck, eh? No, no. I kid. Actually, you've just got to find a way over that wall. Figure out what's not working and fix it. If you can't find anything to fix, you have probably a bigger problem that needs addressing.

--Why is this here again?

I've said this a million times and something tells me I'm gonna say it a million more before I'm done--subplots, like everything else in your book, need to have A POINT. Don't just throw one in to eat up space. Word count for the sake of word count is a no-no. It should do something within the story. Character/plot/world development, foreshadowing, ANYTHING!

For those of you who skipped to the end:

*Just because it's a subplot doesn't mean it can be trivial and usless.

*Don't get distracted from your main plot.

*Watch out for the dreaded brick wall!

What are your thoughts on subplots?

What should a subplot do within the story?

HAPPY WRITING, LOVELIES!

(Sorry this post is both late and sucky!)