# Plot Thread Template  (schema: PlotYAML)
# Copy this file into your project's plots/ directory, rename it
# (e.g. plots/the-hidden-door.yml), edit the values, then run:
#   novel-writer sync all
# The sync layer parses these exact keys — keep them spelled as-is.

name: Plot Thread Name            # REQUIRED. The name used to refer to this thread.
type: main                        # REQUIRED. One of: main | subplot | character | theme
status: planned                   # REQUIRED. One of: planned | active | resolved | abandoned
priority: 8                       # REQUIRED. Integer 1-10 (10 = highest narrative priority).
description: |                    # REQUIRED. What this thread is about and what is at stake.
  A paragraph describing the dramatic question of this thread.
  What does the reader want to know, and what is at risk?

# Beats (optional) — ordered story moments. Each beat: { scene, description, type }.
beats:
  - scene: "Chapter 1, Scene 3"   # Free-text reference to where the beat lands.
    description: The inciting moment that opens the thread.
    type: setup                   # One of: setup | development | climax | resolution
  - scene: "Chapter 5"
    description: The complication that raises the stakes.
    type: development
  - scene: "Chapter 12"
    description: The confrontation everything has been building toward.
    type: climax
  - scene: "Chapter 13"
    description: How the thread is paid off and resolved.
    type: resolution

# Characters (optional) — who drives or is changed by this thread. Each: { name, role, arc? }.
characters:
  - name: Character Name
    role: protagonist             # Free text: this character's role within THIS thread.
    arc: How this thread changes them.   # Optional.
  - name: Another Character
    role: antagonist

# Themes (optional) — a list of thematic ideas this thread explores.
themes:
  - Secrecy and exposure
  - Inherited power

# Dependencies (optional) — names of other plot threads that must advance first.
dependencies:
  - Name of a prerequisite plot thread

# Chapter anchors (optional) — integers naming the chapter numbers.
introduced_in: 1                  # Optional. Chapter number where the thread is introduced.
resolved_in: 13                   # Optional. Chapter number where the thread resolves.
first_appearance: "Chapter 1, Scene 3"  # Optional. Free-text first-appearance reference.

# Additional Notes (optional) — free text.
notes: |
  - Author reminders about pacing or payoff
  - Open questions still to answer