Causality

This week I want to talk a little about plot - but more specifically - the causality of plot.

You've heard it since you were a kid: Your actions have consequences. Another way of saying it is: Cause and Effect. This same mentality that got you a timeout for stealing a before-dinner-cookie is also crucially important for the plot of your story. Whether you are writing a short story or novel, it is important that every event occurs based upon the event that proceeds it.

For example, Marian has an affair in Scene 1. She realizes in Scene 2 that she is unhappily married.

It is only because Marian had the affair that she realized how unhappy she was in her current relationship. She couldn't have understood her unhappiness without first having the affair and seeing how different she felt. If you take it another step further and say that in Scene 3 Marian files for divorce and her husband commits suicide, you are still following the causality of the plot. Because Marian filed for divorce (cause), her husband committed suicide (effect). Was this the only reason her husband had for suicide? Could he not also have had prior mental problems? Well, of course he could have. He probably did. However, there is a logical progression to this plot. The previous event inspires the next to happen.

For many of us, especially those who value a more literary tone to their work and like to play more in the character's psyche than in the plot line, this simple lesson can be forgotten. However, if you keep this lesson in mind both while you outline and while you revise, you'll likely have fewer beta readers asking you why this character did this or why that character said that. Nothing will seem random.

A great causality in plot keeps readers interested. It doesn't mean that they know what will happen next. It means that when something does happen, no matter how unusual, they will understand that it was necessary based upon previous events. This is what agents and editors talk about when they say they want that "logical progression" or "fantastic flow" to a story. They want everything to seem right. They don't want to question why something happened. They want to enjoy your story.