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A long time ago, a brilliant but unknown (at least to me) writer proclaimed that when all was said and done, there are really only two basic plots in fiction: 1) A person goes on a journey; and 2) a stranger comes to town. Everything is in some way a variation of these two. And if you think about it, at least for plot-driven stories, and for the beginning writer, this is as good a place to start as any. The easiest and most straightforward story a beginning writer can attempt is that of a strong, single protagonist moving forward through time (and perhaps space) to achieve a single, all-important goal. This is the Type 1 or Active plot, and it is at least as old as Homer's Odyssey.

So, what elements constitute Type 1? In this case, the person going on the journey is the sympathetic protagonist. You must establish who this person is and is he alone or does he have a sidekick, a spouse, sex partner, best friend, or even a group (police, military, athletic team, etc.) to help him in his quest? You must give us some background: How did our hero grow up, develop, what experiences have made him what he is and given him his attributes of strength, courage, wisdom, or other abilities? You must define the nature of the quest, anything from the purely selfish (finding buried treasure) to the idealistic (finding a cure for a disease, or achieving world peace), and also what in his personality and background make him want to achieve this goal above all others. Then all you have to do is to tell the story: who he meets on the way, his adventures and encounters, giving special attention to the obstacles standing in the way of his quest which can be human villains or things as impersonal as raging blizzards. Once these obstacles have been overcome, all you need is the happy ending (or conversely in a tragedy, his sorrowful defeat by these obstacles).

So, to sum up, the formula for Type 1 is: a strong (but not invincible) protagonist goes on a quest, meets people, has adventures, overcomes (or succumbs to) obstacles, and eventually achieves his goal (or not, in a tragedy) though not without plenty of thrilling hardships and action along the way.

But lest you be accused of merely following the formula (or phoning it in, as I like to call it), you must make your characters as real as possible, with real concerns that seem valid for them, and who act as people do in real life (though some exaggeration is not only permitted but necessary). You must also create interesting situations, experiences, and quests for your equally interesting characters. And of course the odd moral dilemma is always welcome. This is best done by just the right combination of life experience, observation, and imagination. So get out there and do it!

Next time - the joys and perils of Plot Type 2.