The Plot

The Plot is fundamentally about writers—”makers of sentences” (12)—and the process of writing. Korelitz compares the value of narrative structure with the importance of good writing (compelling, original sentences). Evan is on the side of plot: “I just care about the story. Either it’s a good plot or it isn’t. And if it’s not a good plot, the best writing isn’t going to help. And if it is, the worst writing isn’t going to hurt it” (23). Jake, on the other hand, argues for dedicated craftsmanship: “books did not write themselves […] work of imagination, work of tenacity, work of skill—would be required to bring his own eventual books into the world” (6). This tension sets the stakes for Jake taking Evan’s plot structure. If Evan is correct, and story is king, Jake’s actions are immoral. If Jake and his publishers are correct, then the recycling of plot structures is expected and commonplace.

Korelitz sets fiction apart from poetry; poetry is not required to have plot, and very often is lyrical rather than narrative. To Jake, poetry is parenthetical: “Jake had nothing of value to teach aspiring poets. In his experience, poets often read fiction, but fiction writers who said they read poetry with any regularity were liars” (11).