You don’t need to write mystery novels or thrillers to leverage a good old-fashioned plot twist to throw your characters and readers off-course. And thanks to modern technology, you might want to try, whether you want to or not. Audiences are accustomed to binging way more content than their parents or grandparents even dreamed of having available (or wanted…) so writers need to bring their full imaginative arsenal to play in order to stay one step ahead of their readers, says Kristen Lamb.
“Audiences are far more discerning and savvy than ever,” she says. “Audiences consume so many stories that they’re more attuned to any story that’s ‘formulaic’ to the point of predictability.” When audiences had to wait a week – or more – between episodes and several months between seasons, they were more likely to forget little details and might not catch when writers repeated a plot point in a later episode. With so much content, audiences are also far less patient with a story that doesn’t hook them right away.
Lamb suggests that writers master the art of the plot twist to keep readers guessing and engaged. “When we deploy savage plot twists, we keep audiences on their toes,” she says. “We can also deliver an ending they never saw coming (but, in retrospect, should have).”
Lamb examines at length four types of plot twists: Sleeper Agent, Red Herring, Sudden Detour, and Unreliable Narrator.
