The Temptation Plot: How to Write a Temptation Plot for Your Story

The best characters - the ones we know and love and in some part of our hearts believe that they're "real" even though we know they're not - are the ones we can identify with. They are so hopelessly human that we can hear them breathing. We have felt the same emotions they're dealing with, and we hope that they come through their ordeals more or less unscathed because it gives us hope for ourselves.

At one time or another, we've all dealt with temptation.

That alone is reason enough to consider a temptation plot - it is something that, as a writer, you've got experience on your side to write about and, as a reader, you can identify with. Whether the temptation is to something strictly illegal or just socially undesirable, this kind of plot holds serious power.

Structure of the Temptation Plot

As with most plots, the temptation plot can be broken down into three essential acts. We'll call these: The Tempting Act, The Repercussions Act, and The Crisis Act. Within the story, there will be dozens of little sub-plots and other diversions, but even these will fuel the three acts and keep the story moving forward.

The Temptation Act - Our very best of intentions can be completely undermined by strong temptation, and that's what the opening chapters of your story will show. Take some time to establish who your character is, let the reader know why the temptation you're showing is a strong one for him. And he's got to have some kind of moral conflict about giving into the temptation. He's going to resist, rationalize, deny, all of those things that we do when we're trying to keep ourselves out of trouble.

Think of it as the 12 Steps program, and your character is about to fall off the ladder in a big way.

Then ... let us watch him fall.

The Repurcussions Act - Yup, he's given in. He might deny it now, lie about it, try to cover his tracks, but he's a dirty dirty dog and now must face the consequences. They won't be major consequences yet, more like lots of little things that slowly overwhelm your character.

Going with the most basic form of temptation, let's say that he gave in and cheated on his wife. It happens. Afterward, what does he deal with? Guilt, perhaps even horrible guilt, and all the little panic-driven moments of trying to hide what he's done. He will have to try and "get rid" of the affair, attempt to make the other partner in the crime leave him alone ... and hopefully she doesn't come home and cook the kids' bunnies in your character's kitchen.

This act is where most of your story will actually unfold. Your character's already given in to temptation, now you show him trying to continue life after that slip. There is a whole bunch of room here for you to thread in moral questions and themes, for you to explore the meaning of temptation, betrayal, and redemption.

The Crisis Act - Your character has finally been crushed by the weight of what he's done. The repurcussions are mounting danger, the conflict has hit a boiling point, the stakes are so high that your character can no longer go on pretending that nothing has happened.

Guilty people always confess. They will confess to themselves first, finally admitting in their heart what they've done and try to deal with the burden that confession causes. The problem is that this is never enough. It's hard to truly forgive yourself - you need the forgiveness of another. "Another" might be a person, a deity, or any other thing intrinsically woven into the fabric of the temptation/deception story. They will try to get that forgiveness, somehow.

In this act, you get to put the finishing touches on your explorations of moral beliefs. You get to lay bare motives, needs, and impulse. Your character has gained something, lost something, and paid some heavy prices. And your reader wants all the gorey details.

Create a Temptation Plot Checklist

Temptation plots are extremely character-driven. You need to have well-rounded characters who are both good and bad, and can clearly explain their motives for being either. Temptation itself is an internal conflict, so the reader must see what leads up to this temptation being so strong, what honestly motivates the character to give in, and then manifests itself in his behavior, speech, and daily life after he has.

Because you will be exploring so much internal drama, it is important to stay very focused on the goal at hand: a clear plot line. You want every single word, every event, every memory in your story to drive the overall theme home.

Try printing this checklist out with your answers filled in, then proudly tape it or tack it right in front of where you do most of your writing. Then, when you're feeling the temptation to give in and chuck your story out the window, scan your answers to find the light.

1. Think about the nature of temptation in your story. What motives, needs, and impulses feed this temptation? What makes it a temptation that is compelling enough to drive a story?

2. Brainstorm at least three ways to clearly show the nature of the temptation. Show why your character might naturally struggle against it, and why they will naturally surrender to it.

3. What is the moral story? Giving in to temptation will have a serious impact on your main character and those around him - otherwise, it won't drive an entire story. What are those impacts? What moral codes and societal belief systems pound the guilt home? And maybe most importantly of all - where did your character start out morally in terms of this temptation, and where will he end up?

4. Brainstorm at least three ways to clearly show the inner turmoil of your main character. Show how your character is dealing with inner conflict, how it affects his exterior self.

5. What is your character's responsibility? In order to "repent and be forgiven", your character will have to undergo some sort of ordeal. Does he try to escape responsibility and avoid punishment? Or does he confess to the entire world and expect execution?

6. We want a satisfying ending. The last act in your book should resolve all his internal conflict - or at least reasonably resolve them - and take steps toward seeking forgiveness and trying to right the wrongs caused by your character's actions. Brainstorm at least 3 things your character will actively do to try and "fix" things, and what the effects of those actions will be.

Moral dilemmas, inner turmoil, the fight of the right against the wrong ... the temptation plot holds power and gives the writer a lot of room to play with ideas of what societal norms are - and what is wrong with them. When you pen a temptation plot, you get to truly be godlike, meting punishment on evildoers. Just try to keep your goals in mind and remember it's only a story, okay?