Video summary
The podcast episode hosted by Christine Kieffer explores a strategic method for novelists struggling to fill the gaps between major plot points: introducing side quests. Borrowed from video game terminology, a side quest is defined not as a simple subplot or a single event, but as a complete sequence of events with its own beginning, middle, and end that occurs within the main storyline. In fiction, these secondary goals allow protagonists to pursue objectives they believe will aid their primary mission, thereby expanding the story's length without resorting to filler content. By integrating these distinct arcs, authors can complicate the plot, deepen character development, and enrich the world-building, ultimately creating a more immersive reading experience for the audience.
To illustrate this concept, the host analyzes Katniss Everdeen's journey in *The Hunger Games*, where her main goal is survival and returning home to care for her sister. After a pivotal moment at the story's midpoint where she is rescued by Rue, Katniss initiates a side quest to destroy the Career tributes' food supply rather than simply hiding or scavenging. This mission involves planning, executing a trap with landmines, and facing the tragic death of her ally, Rue. Although destroying the food cache was not strictly necessary for her survival, this secondary objective provided Katniss with crucial information about the arena, expanded the narrative world through Rue's stories, and raised the emotional stakes by mirroring Katniss's own relationship with her sister Prim.
The episode further demonstrates that side quests are versatile tools applicable to various genres beyond high-stakes violence, citing *Get a Life, Chloe Brown* as another example. In this story, the protagonist goes on a camping trip to complete an item on her bucket list, which serves as a side quest that helps her confront her fears and understand the kindness of her love interest. The host notes that while these missions can occur at different points in a narrative, they often emerge after the midpoint when the protagonist shifts from a reactive state to a proactive one. Whether characters are collecting items, rescuing allies, or evading enemies, these sequences provide opportunities for growth and intimacy that drive the story forward more effectively than passive waiting would allow.
In conclusion, Christine Kieffer argues that incorporating side quests is an effective solution for writers who find themselves unable to sustain a full-length novel or who need to bridge the distance between key plot beats like the inciting incident and the climax. By adding these self-contained yet interconnected sequences, authors can naturally extend their books while ensuring every scene contributes meaningfully to character arcs and thematic depth. The episode encourages struggling writers to consider implementing side quests early in their drafting process to add complexity and richness to their narratives, promising that this technique will help transform a draft into a page-turning novel with a fully realized world and compelling characters.
Read the full video transcript
[Music]
hello hello writers i'm christine
kieffer author of fantasy fiction and
creative writing resources and you are
listening to the well-studied podcast
where i share insights encouragement and
actionable advice designed to help you
craft sensational novels and build your
best writing life always in 30 minutes
or less so you can get back to writing
of course
ready for the show
let's get talking
[Music]
hello and happy october writers once
again i am your host kristen kiefer and
today is monday october 4th 2021
today we are tackling a bit of a more
unique and interesting topic here on the
the i almost called it the blog the
podcast uh we are going to talk about
how to craft complex plots by
introducing side quests uh so like i
said bit of a different topic here today
but i think it's a fun one that you will
really enjoy especially if you often
have trouble crafting full-length books
so without any further ado if you would
like to read along as you listen into
today's episode you can find the episode
transcript the original article on the
blog at welldashstoried.com
plotting
and with all of that said let's dive in
while some writers struggle to restrain
their novels to a standard length always
brimming with ideas for new conflicts
and scenarios their characters might
encounter this isn't necessarily the
case for every writer
in fact it's not uncommon for novelists
to struggle to write full-length books
sure they might know what events will
occur at their story's major beats
such as the midpoint the inciting
incident and the climactic sequence
but what about all those little scenes
in between
how can novelists fill the gap in their
stories without writing filler and fluff
one strategy is to give your characters
a side quest
not familiar with the term
in video game lingo a side quest is an
objective that is a goal
separate from the main story line that
players aren't required to accomplish to
finish the game
however completing side quests can be a
great way for players to
explore the story world develop
important skills and glean key gameplay
tips and information among other
purposes
from a developer standpoint including
side quests not only extends the length
of the game
a side quest can also help complicate
the plot and further immerse players in
the story
and as it happens novelists can achieve
these same ends by including side quests
in their own storytelling
how do side quests manifest in fiction
in novels a side quest is not a single
conflict event or even a subplot
rather it's a sequence of events that
takes place within the main storyline in
which the protagonist chases a secondary
goal they believe will help them achieve
their main story goal
in many ways a side quest is a story
within a story it has a strong beginning
middle and end
a core conflict and a climactic sequence
among other potential story elements
a prime example of a side quest can be
found in the hunger games by suzanne
collins this episode includes detailed
spoilers for the hunger games so if by
chance you haven't seen or read it yet
and you would like to then maybe press
pause
go read it go read the book and then
come back and start the episode over
again
okay so in the book katniss has one
primary story goal
to survive the games
she's motivated by the need to return
home to care for her family especially
her younger sister prim
the source of the core conflict in the
novel is the reality that only one
competitor can survive the games meaning
dozens of other contenders called
tributes would love to see katniss dead
before the story's midpoint katniss
largely reacts to the story's core
conflict
she allows herself to be primped and
presented before the capital she does
very little to make friends or allies
during training
and once in the arena she runs and hides
rather than seeking to kill her
competitors
however everything changes at the
story's midpoint when katniss attempts
to hide from a group of career tributes
in a tree
upon finding her the career is
determined to wake katniss out knowing
that she can't stay up there forever
fortunately a young tribute named rue
helps katniss escape
and having made an ally in rue katniss's
first sidequest begins
together katniss and roo realize that
their ability to hunt and forage offers
no advantage in the games
because the career tributes have a cache
of food
thus they decide to take proactive
action by destroying the careers food
supply and this becomes katniss's
secondary goal so let's break this side
quest down
core conflict
katniss and rue want to destroy the
careers food supply but could be caught
and killed in the process
beginning katniss and roo spend a day
sharing information and devising a plan
to destroy the careers food supply
to enact their plan katniss hides in the
brush outside the careers camp while rue
lights several fires in the distance
as planned the careers leave camp to
scope out the fires
middle
realizing that the supply cache is
likely surrounded by landmines katniss
topples a bag of apples with an arrow
the apples trigger the landmines and the
whole supply cash explodes
injured in the blast katniss hides
nearby until her hearing and strength
return when she's well enough to walk
katniss travels to the rendezvous point
that she established with rue
unfortunately rue isn't there
after waiting for several hours katniss
searches for rue finding her in the
moment that one of the career tributes
kills her
and now for the end
katniss kills the tribute then sings to
rue as she dies
after surrounding brew with flowers
katniss leaves the area to avoid capture
soon she receives a gift from the people
in rue's district a loaf of bread
this gift is both fitting and thematic
giving katniss's secondary goal of
destroying the careers food supply
see how a side quest can play out in
fiction
katniss didn't need to destroy the
careers food supply to achieve her main
goal of winning the hunger games
she could have simply continued to hide
from the careers and forage food with
rue
hoping the careers would kill one
another first
however katniss and rue believed that
achieving this secondary goal would help
them gain an advantage over the careers
ultimately furthering their mission in
the games
and it did
at least for katniss
this sequence of events takes place over
four chapters but introducing this side
quest didn't just allow suzanne collins
to expand the length of her story
by talking with rue katniss gleans key
information about the games the arena
and her supplies
collins also utilizes rue to expand her
story world
rue shares many stories about district
11 with katniss as they bond in the wake
of the midpoint event
finally and perhaps most importantly
rue serves as a mirror for prim
roo's death raises the story's stakes by
reminding katniss that it's not just her
life at stake
if katniss doesn't win the games and
return home to district 12
then prim will likely die of starvation
exploring various types of side quests
can you see how introducing a side quest
can be a powerful way to both expand the
length of your book
and deepen readers immersion in the
story
in the hunger games katniss and rue
embark on a destruction-based mission
however a side quest could also see your
characters
collect important items
pursue and capture or kill an enemy
rescue another character from captivity
protect a character object or a
stronghold from danger
sneak through a dangerous area to
deliver an item
evade enemies and or escape a dangerous
situation
achieve a particular task to gain reward
or compete against another character to
gain reward
while these missions might sound
exclusive to violent high-stakes stories
that doesn't have to be the case
and get a life chloe brown by talia
hibbert chloe and red go on a camping
trip to fulfill one of the items on
chloe's get a life list
this sequence lasts several chapters and
helps chloe gain the reward of facing
her fears and living a little note that
hibbert didn't necessarily need to
include the camping trip in the story
yes chloe's goal is to complete her
bucket list which includes camping but
chloe's list largely consists of risky
bad girl type activities that she thinks
will finally make her life interesting
ultimately what chloe needs to lead a
happier life
isn't to complete her bucket list
it's to take a risk on the things that
matter most in life such as opening her
heart to love
the camping trip sequence helps support
this end goal by allowing chloe to
realize the depth of red's kindness
and offering them both an opportunity to
get to know one another more intimately
how side quests interact with story
structure
while you can implement a side quest at
any point in your story it's worth
noting that both of these examples occur
in the second half of the character's
respective journey
this makes sense given that a story's
midpoint often prompts a pivotal shift
in the protagonist's mindset when
working within the three-act story
structure which you can learn more about
at
well-storied dot com slash blog slash
structure
a protagonist is largely reactive during
the first half of the story's rising
action
notice that i mentioned this reactive
state earlier when describing katniss's
story
the midpoint event acts as a fulcrum
tipping the protagonist into full
awareness of the story's stakes and thus
into a more motivated and proactive
state
for example you see this in the hunger
games
katniss barely escapes the career
tributes with her life during the
story's midpoint
and this near-death experience reminds
katniss that if she doesn't start
fighting back she'll inevitably be
hunted and killed
thus the quest to destroy the careers
food supply
in get a life chloe brown the midpoint
occurs when chloe and red attempt to
cross drunken night out off of chloe's
get a life list
before the night is through both chloe
and red acknowledge that there's
something electric between them
prompting both to actively pursue their
budding romance on the camping trip and
beyond
all that said it's not uncommon for a
protagonist to be given a side quest in
the early chapters of their story
in the fellowship of the ring for
example
gandalf tasks frodo with taking the ring
to rivendell
frodo accepts this quest but remains
largely reactionary allowing aragorn to
lead the way
the midpoint occurs when frodo is
stabbed on weathertop and realizes just
how dangerous the quest can be
he assumes responsibility for the ring
at the council of elrond thus taking up
his main story goal
and ultimately chooses to abandon the
fellowship to keep his friends safe
regardless of where side quest occurs
there's no denying that this type of
sequence can expand a book's length by
complicating the plot
in doing so a side quest also holds the
power to deepen a story's characters and
story world ultimately making for a more
immersive reading experience
if you're struggling to fill the gaps
between your story's major beats then
consider introducing a side quest to
your story asap
before we go today writer i want to ask
you a question
are you tired of struggling to craft the
page turning novel of your dreams
if so then it's time to grab the
pre-write project an actionable and
insightful pdf workbook designed to
guide you through the process of
developing sensational stories step by
step
each section contains lessons and
activities that break down the seven
stages of the pre-writing process so you
can draft your novel with confidence
clarity and ease
if you're listening to this episode of
the podcast recently after its release
then you might know that i just released
the third edition of the pre-write
project i am so proud to put this new
version of the workbook out there into
the world
i originally created this workbook back
in 2015
six years ago
and it's had a few iterations since but
it really needed a major overhaul and
update to kind of bring it into
i want to say the 21st century it's
always been around in the 21st century
but to bring it up to speed with what
has
lately been my my quality of production
here at well storied and i am so proud
of the version that i have created for
you it also includes at least three
maybe four new activities that have
never before been seen in the prewrite
project
never before been included so even if
you have a previous version i think you
will really enjoy this updated one
so if you would like to check out the
pre-write project and consider grabbing
your copy today then simply visit
welldashstoried.com
prewrite
sound like a plan writer
now here's to crafting well-structured
stories that we can be proud to share
with the world
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writing