Subplots are crucial to any story. Everyone loves a good “ordinary Joe discovers only he can save the world so he fights against the Evil and then lives happily ever after” tale (or maybe not necessarily happily ever after, but you know what I mean).
The trouble is, if that’s all that was happening in the story, you’d be bored, right? All Joe would ever talk about is saving the world and vanquishing the Evil. Every scene. Every conversation. And the story would be over in a few chapters.
The thing is, Joe had a life before he had to save the world, and his life didn’t suddenly cease the moment his quest was laid upon him. His Mom is still dying from a rare disease that only the hermit in the mountains knows how to cure, and his best friend since childhood has just recently revealed she has feelings for him. (more…)