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Group the Events into Scenes

The next thing I do is create a folder for the scenes, and inside this folder, another folder for each of the characters. I still use the corkboard in Scrivener for this part. I look at the events for each character, and from start to finish, I group the events into scenes by copying and pasting them into a new "index card" in the new folders. I gauge whether they belong in a scene together by whether the event is taking place within the same setting and time of day. 

I will also look at other characters involved in each event. For instance, if the character I'm working with is interacting with character 1, and then in the next event they're interacting with character 2, those events will be separated into two different scenes even if they're taking place in the same setting, one right after the other.

Sometimes one event will be a scene by itself, and other times I might group two or more events in the same scene. If I get stuck, I think of it as though my story is a play. If the stage needs a scene change or there is a change in characters on the stage, I will likely separate those into different scenes. 

After I finish grouping the scenes, I go through each scene and label whether the scene is part of the main plot for the story or if it's a subplot for that character. I also label the POV character for each scene. If the only character in the scene is the character I'm working on, then obviously that character is the POV character. When the scene has multiple characters, I decide which of those characters I will have as the POV character. 

If the scene is part of the main plot, I will make whichever character is the main driving force for the main plot in that scene the POV character. If the scene is a subplot for the character I'm working on, I make that character the POV character.

Finally, if any of the characters have a motif throughout the story, I label which scenes will have that motif. A motif can be anything, including an image, a colour, a metaphor, a word, a symbol, etc., that recurs and gains meaning throughout the story. An example of a motif is how the colour red always appears in The Sixth Sense whenever there is a ghost in the scene.

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