Plot I Character vs Character.

I have been thinking about plot lately.  Most people who know me know that I like to think of myself as an aspiring novelist.  (so far no one has said this belief is delusional) so it should come to no surprise that the wondering spiral maze that is my mind has been dancing around and teasing out this concept called plot.  first there are only nine types of plots.  Only nine in all the thousand's of years that there have been stories told around the campfire, only nine.  Interestingly enough not one of them is the all encompassing Good verse Evil.  I remember hearing this about the Harry Potter books and other random books, heck I've even used it, "well it is about good verses evil, so that is good right?"  well aren't all books in some way shape or form about Good vs. Evil?  Something is defined as Good and another thing is defined as Evil and they fight in some fashion.  If you are reading a Ted Dekker book you have a guarantee that the good will win, if you are reading a Steven King Novel, chances are that evil will probably win.(this is obviously an exaggeration, I haven't read an single Steven King novel only see a few of his movies so I am going off what I have heard, hopefully that is more then just hear-say of the conservative religious rhetoric on books GLC's shouldn't read).  how many books have you read that were Good vs. Good?  or Evil vs. Evil?  (maybe we could say that watchman is E vs E, and a um.... a really boring book as G Vs. G.)

Any way so what are the nine plots?  I am glad you asked. basically they are all according to the Protagonist or the main character and what that character is fighting.

Cloud vs Squall

1) Character vs Character. I though about just saying Protagonist verses antagonist but then I realized that the term antagonist can really be used on various different characters and that can be confusing.  For example The Harry Potter books is Harry Potter VS Voldimort, even thought Malfoy and Snape are both antagonists.  also there can be many Protagonists, for example Hermione, Ron, and Nevil would all be considered protagonists.   The Dark Knight is another example of this kind of plot, it is Batman fighting the Joker and one of them is going to win and one is going to lose.

Watch for a follow up on the other 8 basic plots in days, weeks, or months to come.

2) Character vs Society
3) character vs Fate
4) Character vs the Unknown
5) character vs God, (or the gods)
6) Character vs Self
7) Character vs Nature
8) character vs Machine
9) Character vs Circumstances