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I think Romeo and Juliet is the "Forbidden Love" plot. That's everywhere. (I heard Shakespeare has each of the original plots distributed throughout his plays).
Romeo and Juliet was the plot for "West Side Story." Unique plots are indeed hard to come by. What makes your story your own is the unique characters you create, the descriptions, scenes, and the twist and turns in the story.
I guess I'm at a loss as to what you mean by plot. Plots area numerous. Story types are limited.The "one" is a constant trope in several books, movies and shows. The workings within that trope are what's unique.
Percy Jackson and the Matrix are essentially about the chosen one. The difference is one deals with an over-complicated computer program world and one deals with Greek Mythos. Their plots are different, but their conceptual center is the same.
If your husband is basically writing a story about a futuristic police force which uses psychics to arrest people before they make a crime, then he in fact has a very similar plot to Minority Report.
If it's just a futuristic police force in a world where people have powers, then it's a similar conceptual birth but potentially a very different plot.
That's my opinion anyway! I know there's a book or something out there that is called the "Seven Basic Plots" or something close to it, but I tend to believe plot has more to do with the inner workings of the character's world and the struggle vs the foundation for which the story is built.
there's like 54 situations and 1,462 conflict situations making over 200,000 possible plot combinations. (according to story structure architect & plots unlimited ). he shouldn't worry. just write the story already. as long as the novel is engaging and the characters unique enough then he's good to go.
Christina wrote: "Moved to the Fun folder."Thanks!
Nathan wrote: "I guess I'm at a loss as to what you mean by plot. Plots area numerous. Story types are limited.The "one" is a constant trope in several books, movies and shows. The workings within that trope ar..."
Yes, "The Seven Basic Plots," by Christopher Booker - took him 34 years to write. He states that there are seven basic plots: Overcoming the Monster, Rags to Riches, The Quest, Voyage & Return, Comedy, Tragedy and Rebirth. The joy of being a writer is that you take any combinations of those and make something your own.
I have read that book. it's true there's only 7 basic plots. combined with conflicts and situations youd make over 200k variations. can't go wrong with that!
K.P. wrote: "I have read that book. it's true there's only 7 basic plots. combined with conflicts and situations youd make over 200k variations. can't go wrong with that!"Absolutely, K.P.! And, as Tyler mentioned, Romeo & Juliet has the 'Forbidden Love' element - how many times has that been done? How many times have we read the variations on a theme that is Lord of the Rings, or Beowulf? One day when I'm not knee-deep in research or reaching a deadline, I'd like to draft a story with ALL the seven elements. Ah, what a mess that'd be! :)
K.P. wrote: "I have read that book. it's true there's only 7 basic plots. combined with conflicts and situations youd make over 200k variations. can't go wrong with that!"Never mind that there are millions of books on Amazon.
Describing anything in vague enough terms is going to produce similarities. Above it's mentioned 'The Quest' is one of the basic plots. So, Frodo sets out on a quest to destroy the ring, Percy Jackson (in the first book) sets out on a quest to find the lightning bolt. Both are quest stories, but the characters, settings, and obstacles are all very different.
However many basic plots you want to assign, they're only meaningful when you strip away all the important parts of the execution.
...and then you have Stephen King who doesn't write with plots, but what if situations.
Mod
We really would need more information to determine if Ellen's husband actually has a valid concern or not. :) If the basic premise is the same, then there is no problem at all, if large sections of the plot line up, then there is a need for concern.
No Concern = There is a school for aspiring magicians and magic is real.
Concern = The is a magical girl named Mary who lives in a closet under the stairs because her parents were killed by evil magic, and she goes to the English Wizard school of Pigbumps, and she has two friends named Harriet and Rob...
Mod
Nothing really to add to this conversation other than I like the word "pigbumps".
Carry on.
I was once told there are only two types of stories. Someone went on journey, and a stranger came to town. Not sure how true it is, but it made sense at the time.
Not that long ago my hubby read a story about dinosaurs. The thing is the author had taken Jaws as a model and everything in the story was the same, only the names, jobs and places were different. Since Jaws is rather old, not many people caught the cheat. All that to say there is a huge difference between two stories sounding alike and two stories being the same. The latter in my mind is plagiarism pure and simple. The other is just similarities.
I would say, if you didn't read/watch the other story at all, then there's a pretty slim chance of your story being alike enough that it's a problem.
My husband's story was written about 20 years ago - put away, forgotten about, remembered, and of late he's been getting serious about publishing. When it comes to plot lines, I don't think I've read an original plot, but I have read some pretty creative writing when the writer takes a plot and does something I haven't come across in other stories. I really like it when the author is writing about a well-worn, well-known subject, say, The War of the Roses, and does something no one else has done and manages to keep the history intact. I also enjoy the 'overcoming the monster' plot. So many, many, ways you can write about that.
L.S. wrote: "I would say, if you didn't read/watch the other story at all, then there's a pretty slim chance of your story being alike enough that it's a problem."Believe me, In the case of Jaws, the hubby said it was like she had the book opened and was writing as she was reading. It was that bad according to him.
As for your husband, Ellen, I wouldn't worry about it. Sure there could be others stories that sounds alike and have a similar blurb while being entirely different. There are so many books after all.
G.G. wrote: "L.S. wrote: "I would say, if you didn't read/watch the other story at all, then there's a pretty slim chance of your story being alike enough that it's a problem."Believe me, In the case of Jaws,..."
Thanks, G.G.; I've told him to just write and not worry about what anyone else is writing.
G.G. wrote: "L.S. wrote: "I would say, if you didn't read/watch the other story at all, then there's a pretty slim chance of your story being alike enough that it's a problem."Believe me, In the case of Jaws,..."
Ha! Might make a good film!
I've experienced the "Oh, crap, my book's plot is just like this book's/movie's/TV show's/video game's plot!" Then when I write said story I end up with something that may have similarities with show/book/movie/etc, it still manages to be it's own thing. There was also a book I read that at first made me a little uncomfortable since it felt too much like it was trying to be another Harry Potter - a secret magic school for magical kids, a boy hero with one boy and one girl for friends, magical bad guy no one likes to speak about. But at the same time there was a lot the book was doing that made it feel unique (the "chosen one" possibly not being the chosen one, for example).
Trust the story. The idea may seem like something that's been done before, but that has a way of changing once the story is actually committed to paper.
Ellen wrote: "Good morning:My husband and I had a conversation about similar plots in stories on the way to the train this morning. He was discouraged because a television series and a book were similar in plo..."
When I conceived the idea for my first book, I was actually put off by the fact that it might be too like Asimov's The Bicentennial Man. It was in my opinion, an exploration of a similar idea but different.
The story is similar themed and has similar elements to it.
It now has 50+ reviews on goodreads. One reviewer has accused me of "ripping off" Asimov. Some compare it to Asimov's work (which leaves me feeling flattered).
Since I wrote it, I have seen similar ideas explored in Films and TV series, e.g. Transcendance, Extant, Humans. The series Humans, actually has a couple of scenes which I thought were strikingly similar to scenes in my book. However I am sure they didn't "rip me off!"
;P
No... wait...
Maybe I should check the release date!
Anthony, I got a 'rip off' comment from a reviewer of one of my works - what I thought interesting was that my book was written three years before the more well-known author's book came out.
Mod
Oops! I mad a mitsake! 50+ ratings, only 24 reviews!But…
Ellen wrote: "Anthony, I got a 'rip off' comment from a reviewer of one of my works - what I thought interesting was that my book was written three years before the more well-known author's book came out."
sigh
Now, Ellen, you can’t fool me with the, “my book was written three years before” line.
Your witchy powers will not work here!
I, too, have powers!
Anthony leans forward towards the screen and inhales slowly through his nose.
My MODsense can SMELL the deception in your post!
Ripping off a book BEFORE it has been written is the sneakiest, lowest, most deceitful…
FETCH THE ROPE AND THE WITCHING CHAIR!
Anthony’s arm snaps forward and his finger points accusingly.
Admit it! Admit it! Your book is so… so… so obvious, so obviously a rip off!
Admit it. Admit you’re a Precog!
…Confess!
…CONFESS!
…CONFESS!
;)
Riley wrote: "I'm of the opinion that everyone has a story to tell. No matter how they tell it, in the end, it will always have that persons flair added. Something that makes it theres. Either the voice, or thei..."Exactly!
I cannot deny the influence of Asimov in my work, but (for legal reasons) I cannot admit the influence of Asimov in my work. The story is my own work. I did not even set out to copy his writing style!
Ellen, your husband has a story? I say ‘Publish and be damned!’
Anthony wrote: "Oops! I mad a mitsake! 50+ ratings, only 24 reviews!But…
Ellen wrote: "Anthony, I got a 'rip off' comment from a reviewer of one of my works - what I thought interesting was that my book was wri..."
Dang, I wasn't going to say anything until Cardinal Biggles brought out the comfy chair.
Mod
But…
Ellen wrote: "Anthony, I got a 'rip off' comment from a reviewer of one of my works - what I thought interesting was that..."
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!
Put her on the rack!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWttC...
My husband and I had a conversation about similar plots in stories on the way to the train this morning. He was discouraged because a television series and a book were similar in plot to his sci fi. I told him not to worry because there are only three to seven (perhaps even 36) original plots and every story ever written has its seed in one of those plots. Okay, so what are the original plots? On your mark, get set, go!