There will almost always be a secondary plot line, or subplot. Ideally, the subplot will accomplish several things:
- Deepen characterization—of the protagonist, other characters, or both
- Complicate and comment on the primary chain of events
- Keep things interesting
- Raise the stakes of the novel
Almost without exception (I say almost, because there is always an exception), the subplot must intersect at key points with the main plot.
In Lars Gustafsson’s The Death of a Beekeeper, one subplot is the narrator’s friendship with two schoolboys, who come by the dying narrator’s house to hear his stories of intergalactic warfare.
In the utterly riveting thriller Arctic Chill, by Arnaldur Indridason, Inspector Erlunder is investigating the death of a young boy who is found frozen to death in a pool of blood at a Reykjavik apartment block. The investigation into the boy’s death is the main story line. The subplot, however, is every bit as interesting: when Erlunder was a child, his younger brother was lost in a blizzard. The brother’s body was never found, and Erlunder has lived with the grief and guilt all of his life. The subplot about the little brother’s disappearance gives emotional resonance to the main story line. The death of another boy, in another place, brings to mind Erlunder’s helplessness to save his own brother decades ago.
In The Year of Fog, the primary subplot is the deterioration of the relationship between Abby, who lost the child, and Abby’s fiancé Jake, Emma’s father. Can their relationship hold up under the stress of the tragedy? What will happen to them?
If you haven’t already done so, now is the time to think seriously about your primary subplot. Sub means under, of course. Think of your primary subplot as an undercurrent to the main plot of the novel, something that runs underneath the main story line, influencing it, deepening it, making it more interesting.
I say primary subplot, because there may be several, but there should be one that is more important than the others.
If the subplot isn’t yet clear to you, that’s okay. Think about your protagonist’s major relationships and major struggles. Which one of these might lend itself to an interesting subplot?
Now, list any ideas you have about potential subplots.
Now, what is another question (in addition to your central question) that will keep the reader turning pages? This question should be related to your primary subplot. Write it down now.
Secondary question:
Now, write 1600 words developing your subplot.
One primary plot and one secondary plot are generally enough to keep up a novel’s forward motion. You can have a tertiary plot as well. Of course, talking about these plots as separate entities is not entirely accurate, because the main plot and the subplots are always at play with one another, intersecting, coming apart, and intersecting again.