Fred Thread 4

Chatterbox: Crowd Sorcery

Fred Thread 4

Fred Thread 4

 In this thread, I'd like to hear what you all think about your favorite types of fantasy plots. Which would you choose for our Crowd Sorcery story? 

 

1. Quest: The hero/heroine goes on a journey to find something good or powerful, collect some things, or maybe destroy something bad.

2. Rescue: The main character has to save someone.

3. Restoration: The protagonist works to change a bad situation back into a good one, perhaps by bringing order back to the land, by driving away villains, by righting a wrong, or by making a place safe again.

4. Reconciliation: The main character has to make peace, either between two other characters or between him/herself and someone else.

5. Escape: The heroine/hero has to get free from a bad situation—to get to a place of happiness and safety.

Others: Can you think of other kinds of plots? What are they?

 

Please feel free to comment on the good points and bad points of certain types of plots. What ideas for a plot do you have? 

submitted by Fred Durbin, Ukraine
(June 10, 2014 - 1:22 pm)

I really like the Revenge idea. I was thinking something like that. Like Fable's parents or someone in her family did something to the villian. This makes him turn dark and evil, make himself and his home invisible, and make his territory seem abandoned. This makes him want revenge. Do you like it? 

submitted by Ellie, age 11, PA
(July 4, 2014 - 6:29 pm)

QUEST!  QUEST!  QUEST!  QUEST!  YEAH!  YEAH!  YEAH!  YEAH!

Cappy says chyv.  Shiv?  Chevy? 

submitted by Bounty, age 12, On a quest
(June 29, 2014 - 8:33 am)

My favorites:

3. Restoration: The protagonist works to change a bad situation back into a good one, perhaps by bringing order back to the land, by driving away villains, by righting a wrong, or by making a place safe again.

4. Reconciliation: The main character has to make peace, either between two other characters or between him/herself and someone else

submitted by Watermelon
(June 30, 2014 - 7:43 am)

 

I like the Idea of a sort of Revenge plot, maybe the villan has sommethying to do with her parents dissapearence? But I love quest stories too, maybe we could have both, sort of mix two plots together. 

submitted by Juniper L., Elsewhere
(July 2, 2014 - 2:45 pm)

I think it would be interesting if the character thinks that the plot is one thing, like a quest, but it turns out to be another kind, like a reconciliation. Someone, like a wise sage, could tell the main character something like "You are heading down the wrong path. Think again, and be patient. What are you really looking for?"

submitted by Violet C., age 11, Washington
(July 2, 2014 - 7:04 pm)

1.Quest: I think it would be interesting to have Fable, our heroine, questing for who she truly is.

2. Rescue: This kind usually has the hero told by someone "We need you to rescue this person, you're the only one who can help,etc." I think it would be cool to have the sidekick kidnapped (they would be friends with the main character), and no one would really care except the main character. Halfway through, the main character would rescue the sidekick and they would go on a Quest to find the evil person who kidnapped the side kick.

I don't have a lot of time, I'll get to the other plots later. 

submitted by Violet C., age 11, Washington
(July 3, 2014 - 2:32 pm)

I really like the Quest, because the plot is formed nicely around this in the books I've seen it in, and I also really like Crowd Sorcerer's idea with the Protection or Preservation plot! I think the best one would be to combine these two. For example: A quest to find something or someone that will protect the world from a villain, or a quest to find someone and protect them before the villain can get to them.

submitted by Ellie N., age 13, Wisconsin
(July 4, 2014 - 2:29 pm)

Aw, thanks!Smile

submitted by A Crowd Sorcerer, age 13, New Hampshire
(July 5, 2014 - 8:07 am)

Hey, Fred, wouldn't it be cool if you made a voting area for some of your Fred Threads like this one?

submitted by Madeline T.
(July 6, 2014 - 8:04 pm)

Hi, Madeline! I'm glad you asked this question -- it's a good one! Through this Crowd Sorcery project, we are all together in thinking up ideas and characters. It's a chance for many people to cooperate and to discuss. It's also an opportunity to understand a little better how a story comes together and what is involved in the process. From the beginning, the Administrators and I have wanted to let many creative people (like you) design characters, think about the story, write some sentences, invent words, and vote on which characters you'd most like to see in the finished story. And wow! -- the work you've all been doing has been FANTASTIC! We're all delighted and impressed by the enthusiasm and imagination you've all brought to Crowd Sorcery!

On the one hand, we feel it's important to let the "crowd" determine which characters will appear in this story. On the other hand, it's also very important that the story grow naturally and organically. If too many of the "pieces" are decided by voting, there's the danger that the story might feel like something written by a committee -- like a project or assignment instead of like a real story. And we want it to feel natural and real. Do you see what I mean? That's why we decided to let everyone vote on the Hero/Heroine, Villain, and Sidekick, but not on the Fred Threads or Fantasy Dictionary.

Now, when I write the story, you can be sure that I will review all those non-character threads again and study everyone's great ideas, and I'll include the ones that seem to fit our story the best. As a writer, I truly believe that the healthiest and most satisfying stories grow from the characters -- and those characters are the part we're determining through the votes.

Does that all make sense? I'm really excited to see how this story grows!

submitted by Fred D., Pennsylvania
(July 6, 2014 - 10:59 pm)

Rescue: Fable has to rescue one of her parents in order to save her from th prophecy, but before the villain gets there first.

submitted by Peter E., age 11, Saratoga, NY
(July 8, 2014 - 11:01 am)

I like escape.

Perhaps Fable has to run from the villain.

Quest also seems good. 

submitted by Ashleigh G
(July 8, 2014 - 1:14 pm)

Rescues usually make for the most dramatic stories. Rescues are a kind of quest, methinks.

submitted by Naomi C., age 11, Westminster, MD
(July 9, 2014 - 8:01 am)
Plot idea (if there's a part 2 for this:3)
Fable and sidekick are sent to another dimension, while the sidekick forgets who she is. They meet with another sidekick who is in the first dimension they land in. The sidekick from the begining thinks their name is Reya (girl) or David (boy) and is absoutley normal. Also in the begining Fable is torn from the sidekick, thus the extra sidekick. Fable finds the sidekick and goes into the dimesional plane with them. The mortals (the first plane there in is earth) who are not cops are protecting the portal because they have been brainwashed by the Villian. The Villian had used Fable's powers to make them sent into another plane and have sidekick 1 forget who they are. The 2 sidekicks and Fable go on a journey to find their plane, after tumbling into an animal plane and becoming animals, they change back when they finally reach their dimension. Once they arrive back, it turns out the Villian had been sabotaging their plans, which leads to a poisoned sidekick. Fable must fight the Villian alone because a sidekick's poisoned and a sidekick is remembering what happened. In the end, after an epic journey, the sidekick saves the day, after a close call Fable could have died in, but instead the Villian vanishes forever. Back on earth the mortals close the plane, which the cops almost got thru. The cops remember they need to FIGHT evil, everything is back to normal, on earth and in Fable's dimension.
(C) only Fred D. can use this idea cause if he doesn't I might write this up :D and...um...MY ARM IS MELTING OFF AFTER THIS!!!
submitted by Ashleigh G
(July 19, 2014 - 8:35 pm)

I like the "survival" play on things :)

submitted by Liz B., age 100000, Michigan
(July 27, 2014 - 6:25 pm)