1. the practice of making a story or narrative unnecessarily complex with too many plot elements, subplots, or twists
Usage: literary criticism

Examples

• The novel suffered from overplotting, with too many subplots that confused readers.
• Critics accused the film of overplotting, saying the multiple twists detracted from the main story.
• The author’s tendency toward overplotting made her books difficult to follow.
• Good editors help writers avoid overplotting by streamlining unnecessary story elements.
• The screenplay’s overplotting resulted in a confusing and unsatisfying movie.
• Many fantasy novels fall into the trap of overplotting with endless side quests.