I'm currently creating a new plot for a book, but it needs a bit more expansion, here's the gist of the idea: John Defoe (son of a widowed mother) has to get the money to pay off his fathers massive debt, and pay off his family farm's rent. But when he gets into town, he is told by the mayor, that if he can kill the 5 deadliest outlaws and bring back their weapons as proof, then the debts will be forgotten and the bounty money shall be given to John. But as John finds and defeats each Outlaw, he slowly uncovers the mystery behind his father's death, a secret about his family farm and a conspiracy dating as far back as the creation of the Wild West. The plot takes place in the Wild West era, I've got a few big plot points andthe main characters (John, The Mayor, 5 outlaws etc.) almost fully sorted, but how do I flesh out he story, what can I put in it to improve it and make it more original?
For now, I'd just write what you have - the events themselves sound like, as long as you took the time and care over each part, and didn't rush anything, something that could fill a novel pretty much on the chase alone. However, as you go, keep an eye out for minor characters you could flesh out, and think of them like side-quests in a computer game or something. Maybe the kindly shopkeeper has his own dark secret/connection to it all, and offers to tell John something to lead him to one of the outlaws, but only if he goes off and does something else for him. Done right, it could be better character development for him, and also give a better sense of the world they live in. Take every opportunity to stop and look around as you write - use the landscape as another character - and it should work with you to help you think of things along the way. Remember, many great stories sound very basic when boiled down to a paragraph-long synopsis, and it's only in writing them that they flesh out and use their full potential.
If you mean John, He is going to use the knowledge of the conspiracy to stop said conspiracy, as it's a conspiracy against his family and against the entire West. But it's a rather complex thing to explain without fully telling the story.
From what you've told us, it is pretty original, except for the dark family secret (right?) part. It sounds good! I'd like to read it when you're done, if I could. My suggestions? You have five outlaws. How are you going to make each and every hunt for the outlaw new, exciting, and original? After the first one or two outlaw catches, it would get kind of boring, and just the same ole' cat and mouse kinda thing. idk. It sounds great, keep it original and awesome!
Well, first off, tanks for saying it's original, and seond, it's not a dark family secret, it's a secret about the John's farm, nothing really related to his family, just the farm. Plus, now that I think about it, the chase for each outlaw would be different, only 4 would really be chased and each would be different (i.e one in a mine, one comes to John etc.), but thanks for your opinion.
The variety in the chases alone would hook your target demographic (me etc). Originality depends on your handling of the characters with respect to the storyline. There is not advice to be given here but go write!
