Using Parallel Plot Lines in Your Novel

So, what does a veterinarian, a furniture maker, a cold-blooded twin killer, a homeless boozing druggie, an expert in chaos theory, and a man with a contract out on his wife have in common?  They are all characters in Dean Koontz’s novel Breathless. And, they all are part of parallel plot lines.

What are parallel plot lines?  Sometimes a story may require not just subplots but two or more plot lines that seem to run parallel.  They appear to be separate stories within the same story.

In Breathless, all the aforementioned characters are related only by strange, unexplainable happenings in their lives.  The veterinarian encounters a pasture full of horses in a trance.  The furniture maker encounters two strange white creatures that end up following him home.  A guy murders his twin brother only to be haunted by bloody hand prints, a bloody pair of gloves that appear out of nowhere, and a mysterious note that sounds like it could have been written by his twin that he has just murdered.  The homeless guy has some strange encounters with birds and a pack of coyotes that protect him from being robbed.  The expert in chaos theory wins big in Las Vegas on every try.  The man who hires another guy to kill his wife has an unusual experience with an unexplainable energy in the woods.

As the story progresses, the reader is taken on a wild ride of mystery and suspense.  Each of the plot lines eventually converge, some sooner than others, to reveal the source of the unusual happenings.

Parallel plot lines in some instances can mirror each other as in the story of the Empire Strikes Back.  In the first scene, Han Solo saves Luke Skywalker’s life.  After that, the two split up and go their separate ways.  Han goes on to battle Darth Vader and the evil empire, while Luke goes to another planet for Jedi training with Yoda.  The two plot lines remain separate for the entire story until the end when Luke returns in time to try to save Solo’s life. 

 However, there are situations in each one that mirror the other.  In one scene Luke enters a cave where his fear manifests itself as Darth Vader whom his must do battle with.  In another scene Han Solo flies his ship into what he believes to be a cave only to discover that he has entered the mouth of a giant galactic worm.
  

Mirrored scenes can provide a sense of unity and work the best when the plot splits in two. 

Parallel plot lines can add depth and intrigue to a novel.  Just make sure that if you use them, they converge seamlessly at the right point or points in your story.