Feb 15, 2024 07:00:00

What is the best way to create a story that entertains the reader with a twist?

A ``plot twist

' ' that surprises the reader by collecting foreshadowing all at once, or that betrays the reader's expectations and causes an unexpected development, greatly enhances the interest of the story. This is an important element to raise. However, it is difficult to create interesting plot twists because once readers are used to plot twists, they can easily predict them. English author Heidi Parks explains how to use such plot twists effectively.

The Importance of the Plot Twist ‹ CrimeReads
https://crimereads.com/plot-twist-importance/

Especially in genres like mysteries and thrillers, readers expect plot twists because they don't want things to play out the way they expected. However, the more expected a plot twist becomes, the more obvious it becomes, and the more the reader is left guessing. This forces authors to come up with innovative new ways to add twists to their stories.

Parks points out that the first thing to do is to 'get a good grasp of important plot developments.' The idea that forms the premise of a story is important because the reader sees it, starts reading, and predicts the development from there, so by analyzing it carefully, you can understand ``what kind of inferences the reader will make.'' Simply by shifting the reader's guesses, you can create a plot twist.

Parks cites ``character-driven'' as a common pattern for plot twists. Creating surprises for the reader by giving a twist to the character's impression, such as when a person thought to be a good person is actually a bad person, or when the main character is an unreliable narrator who lies or hides things from the reader. I can.

However, just adding a twist does not make for a good plot twist. According to Parks, an interesting twist needs to be a 'genuine surprise' that draws readers in even more, and it's best if they leave you wondering, 'Why didn't I notice that? How could I have been fooled so easily?' thing. Therefore, rather than being too afraid of knowing that a plot twist will occur, you should cleverly place hints in your story so that you can find many clues when you reread the story later. A University of California, San Diego study on story spoilers found that readers tend to enjoy a story more when they are told that a plot twist will occur. It has been suggested that if you can enjoy the parts that hint at the ending, it can be just as much fun as the plot twist itself.

What is the best way to use ``plot twists'' that defy the viewer's expectations and surprise them? -GIGAZINE

Also, if the structure is such that there will be a twist in the middle and the story progresses to a new development, build out the main development first. Then, consider how the previous story arc might mislead the reader.

According to Parks, it's nearly impossible to perfect a flow that misleads readers in the first draft. Therefore, once the author has written the story and understands the flow well, he or she can continue to revise the second and third drafts, adding hints about the characters and story.

'While I think some readers always know where the story is going, the vast majority work in hopes that they don't,' Parks said. 'A good way to do that is to create a plot twist followed by an even bigger plot twist. There are many twists and turns, and readers are always in a state where their initial expectations are betrayed,'' he said about creating a story with twists and turns.