Mistake #1. Characters making bad decisions because its convenient for the plot

-      Nobody is perfect. Everyone is flawed. But …

-      There is a difference between being flawed and acting in a naive and unbelievable way that doesn’t fit the character

If you’ve been:

-      Receiving death threats and the stalker knows where you live

-      The stalker has been inside your house

-      You don’t go out on the deserted street at night all alone

Other Examples:

-      Sweet, responsible young woman making out with a stranger in front of her boss, co-workers and a crowd of customers

-      Meeting a murder suspect in a deserted place without anticipating a trap and telling anyone where you’re going

-      Blindly trusting the word of someone known to lie

Avoid your characters making decisions just because they’re convenient. Convenient may be contrived.

Mistake #2. Not doing research, or ignoring proper procedures

Examples:

-      Improper police procedures: ignoring security

-      Medical issues with no debilitating G symptoms and only a few months to live

-      Go through a kidney transplant and be released the next day in perfect health

Don’t avoid research because what you discover might be inconvenient. Fins a way to work with it.

Mistake #3. Taking the easy way out and glossing over things

Examples:

-      Dad wakes up from a coma and all the kids unrealistically immediately forgive him and everyone makes up

Instead: ask if dad had not been in a coma, what would have happened?

-      You have to have the scene where siblings fight, not relate it in a telephone call

-      You have to show the kidnapping, not cut to a makeshift prison cell in the villain’s basement

These are robbing the reader of an important part of the story

Examples:

-      Character forgets something they wouldn’t in real life

-      Events don’t fit with backstory, e.g. Character lives in expensive apartment with no means of support

-      Children are mentioned, but glossed over

These aren’t real life

Make sure you aren’t making resolutions too easy, skipping crucial scenes, or glossing over important details

Mistake #4 – Not Playing Fair with the Reader

Examples:

-      Holding something back the narrator knows, putting the reader at a distance

-      Not having consistent rules for the story world (ghost whose abilities change)

-      Too many coincidences – as in constantly running into each other

Play fair. Keep your story rules consistent. Watch out for contrived coincidences and secrets

Mistake #5 – Plot twists coming out of left field

Examples:

-      Yes, you want to surprise your reader. Yes, you want have some unpredictability. But it must be believable

-      If it hasn’t been integrated into the story, than it isn’t believable

(This is more prevalent with pantsers)

Set up your plot twists. Yes, they should be surprising, but, in retrospect and after its happened, they must make sense – there must be clues that the reader will overlook or not consider relevant at the time