Randy Ingermanson’s Snowflake Method, step two:
… expand that sentence [from step one] to a full paragraph describing the story setup, major disasters, and ending of the novel. … Ideally, your paragraph will have about five sentences. One sentence to give me the backdrop and story setup. Then one sentence each for your three disasters. Then one more sentence to tell the ending.
And so, I try it.
Orphan Samuel and his tiger cub campanion, Ty, travel across the United States, entering sanctioned animal fights to earn funds. Their interactions with combat rival Kyle put the two against an underground organization known as the Solitary Rare. Their involvement with the Solitary Rare deepens when the two are offered sponsorship of a new product stolen from the organization. When the power the Solitary Rare seeks from Kyle is unleashed on Samuel, all his friendships are strained. As he recovers, a benefactor offers him a trip to Africa, but at a great cost unknown to Samuel. Once in Africa, Samuel and Ty go in search of what they’ve been hoping to find.
Is it bad that I’m rather unsatisfied with these, but cannot do any better? I’m trying to cut out everything not relevant to the main plot, but then the main plot just feels so bare to make it so consise.
Maybe I shouldn’t have used character names yet?