Plot Garden

Welcome to the Plot Garden. This little patch of the internet is intended to serve as an inspirational tool for sowing the seeds of conflict in order to grow an exciting story.
Conflict Seeds   
Basic Conflicts

  • Character vs. Character
  • Character vs. Self
  • Character vs. Nature
  • Character vs. World

Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling
Polti’s Thirty-six Dramatic Situations 

Potential Plot Hooks

  • The citizens of a land ravaged by inter-tribal conflict turn to religious leaders who promise to establish order in the country. However, to achieve this end, they institute a new system of strict laws which some view as draconian, while others deem them necessary.
  • Local law enforcement attracts individuals who consider themselves men of action, not words. This leads to problems after a guard is killed in the course of duty. In an effort to cut of future tragedy in their ranks, the guard becomes increasingly decisive/aggressive when dealing with suspects.
  • Refugees fleeing war/famine/trouble pour into a neighboring country. Native residents blame the newcomers for taking jobs, draining local resources and causing a strain on the economy
  • A country takes in refugees, or discovers a previously unknown people. They accept them into society in certain roles, but the newcomers feel treated like second class citizens and want more.
  • A Leader styles himself after a cultural hero of legend and seeks to recreate that hero’s world and deeds. The fact that the world now has different political alliances and geographical borders poses a problem.
  • A group of people looking for a way to live forever come across a potential solution… but it comes with a terrible price.
  • A person commits a heroic act in the course of his/her daily life and gets a taste of the spotlight from his/her fellow citizens. As the attention begins to fade, the person realizes how much they enjoyed it, and to what length they will go to get it back.
  • A farmer, seeking to clear his land of foxes has successfully driven them out… directly onto his neighbor’s farm.
  • A powerful piece of new technology (or magic) goes missing while in transit between two secure locations. The powerful organization who owned it wants it back, but who took it? highway bandits? a rival organization? a government hoping to seize its power for themselves?
  • The assassination of a major political figure on foreign soil pushes the already tense relationship between the two nations to the brink of war.