Plot or Character Driven Novels

photo credit: fiolee2.deviantart.com

I read with interest a short article titled, "Self Publishing Podcast Pits Stephen King Character Methods Against Dan Brown's Plot Methods." (HERE)

Podcast co-host Sean Platt explains the pros and cons to both methods.

“Dan Brown’s books are definitely page-turners,” says Platt, “but they’re so tightly plotted that it’s like eating fast food—it’s very fast and disposable. With Stephen King, the characters feel real and the dialog flows because King’s not concerned about plot but about characters and situations and driving the story. I think that’s why some people hate Stephen King—he tends to meander, sometimes for hundreds of pages.”

That last line is true -- Some people do "hate Stephen King" because he tends to meander.  But others of us have become comfortable and even enjoy King's easy pace of story telling.  That he is not plot driven does not mean there is no plot!  It just means that in many of his novels, you have to live with the people who inhabit the story before you learn exactly what it is that's going to drive that story.

Some of King's novels open with incredible energy and plot.  Consider Under The Dome, which starts like a mad race.  The Shining, on the other hand, is a slow moving character drama.  These character dramas are not without action -- but they have to build and develop purpose before they can explode.  Reading a King novel is like churning a Jack-In-The-Box, you never know exactly when the whole thing will explode all over you!  Consider The Stand.  I enjoyed the plot, but was shocked when King killed off a whole bunch of good guys mid novel!

There are some instances where King ends the novel's actual plot long before the novel itself ends.  Again, the Stand goes quite a ways past the events in Las Vegas that bring a deadly end to Flagg.  But King is interested in the characters and takes time to tell us what happens to them.  I appreciate this style. King did much the same thing with IT.  Even after the monster is dead, we want to know what happened to Bill and take joy as he rides off on Silver.  (I'm being vague about the ending of IT on purpose).

There are times when King's heavy character development makes the novel too heavy.  "Where is this going?" the reader asks.  I find Lisey's Story hard to read, but am anxious to someday find the magic there.

I think King's best novels employ both gripping plot and sympathetic characters.  Dolores Claiborne is an example of strong plot and strong characters.  Gerald's Game, however, is so character heavy if fails to move at the speed the reader really needs  it to.  It takes a deeper commitment on the readers part to keep going after the first thirty pages of this book.

King often drops characters into wild situations and then lets them hash it out.  This is the case with The Mist, Under The Dome, Desperation.

To read and enjoy Stephen King you have to be willing to give him room to tell a story.  If you don't want to do that, there are the novella's and short stories.  The Body, The Mist, Blockade Billy -- and they are some of my favorites.  But there is something deeply satisfying about a good -- long -- read.  Stephen King often gives us that pleasure.

So, just for fun. . .

1. What novel contains your favorite plot?
2. Who is your favorite character in a SK novel?
3. What King novel most successfully weaves character and plot?

Go ahead, answer them.  It's Monday. . . we all know you look more busy at work typing away.

Me: The Stand  / Dolores Claiborne / 11/22/63