Building Plot

To me plot is a hugely important thing. Without using this device correctly, I believe you can't really put together an engaging story, novel, novella, etc. If you're taking a trip to someplace, you get out the map, (or nowadays the GPS) and make sure you have pinpointed your destination. If you don't you are very liable to get lost. It is the very same thing with writing...you get in the car (in this case the car is the story or book you are reading) and you meet people and take in sites. I can't tell you how many times I have read a story or novel (and often by some big name authors) where you get to the end and you keep thinking, ok...they're going to rap this up on the next few pages or so. Then you get to the end and you find that all those loose ends weren't tied up at all. In effect, the author simply deserted you. It's kind of like being driven out into a desert and just abandoned! What's up with this? There is nothing quite so frustrating...and yet a lot of authors do it. Now I'm not talking about making flow charts and detailed diagrams of stories. But at least have a mental picture of where you COULD end up. A lot of times you will find that if you write something, and you are really into it and the characters grow, you end up with an even better ending sometimes if you had at least a general idea of where you were going and where you would end up. Don't totally rely on the growth of your characters to have them know suddenly how things are going to end. They don't really know either. That's your job as the author. You're the God of this world. So you need to have some order when you are writing. Don't build a house of cards and have it all fall to pieces at the end. Build from bricks, and if you do it right, the project will be solid when you finally reach the end. That's my two cents anyway.