In a post on Writers in the Storm, J. Scott Coatsworth says that writers can liven up their stories by placing a metaphorical wolf under the table. “When your plot slows to a crawl, one of the easiest ways to fix it is to throw in an unexpected element that turns everything on its head, and sends the story racing off in a new direction,” Coatsworth writes.
Such unexpected elements can raise a lot of questions: Why is the wolf there? Where did it come from? Is someone controlling it? You don’t need literal wolves under tables, but unexpected or sudden elements. Sometimes, you may want to add multiple wolves to complicate your protagonist’s life. “Plot wolves can take many forms—physical events, surprise arrivals of other characters, secrets revealed, etc.,” Coatsworth says. He recommends the Netflix version of Lost in Space as writing that regularly drops wolves in its characters’ path.
He also cautions writers not to overuse the device. “Too many plot wolves, and your readers may start feeling like sheep being fleeced with the same trick, especially if your characters escape unscathed every single time,” Coatsworth writes.
