Plots and storylines

Open threads, their connections and the promises they create.

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• There are too many storylines to keep in your head

  Managing the number and connections of open threads, rather than the length of one thread's absence.

• A storyline disappears for too long

  The interval between one thread's contributions is the issue, even if the rest of the novel is well balanced.

• Your storylines don't feel connected

  Connections between lines are missing, rather than events within one line failing to cause each other.

• One storyline is taking over the book

  The allocation of attention across storylines differs from your intention, rather than one isolated gap being the whole problem.

• Your setups and payoffs have become disconnected

  Preparation and response have lost their connection; the timing of an otherwise prepared reveal may need a different review.

• Things happen, but the story doesn't seem to build

  The causal links between events are weak, rather than a connected sequence simply changing too little.