A scrivener lives in a large empire that is part modern, part stuck in the past. Although he is skilled in many ways, he is desperate to be an author. He never follows through on his dream because he believes he lacks something — a divine spark, perhaps. Instead, in hopes that one of his three daughters will become authors, he names them Imagination (Ima), Ornamentation (Orna), and Plot.

Although the scrivener gives the girls books to read and takes them to listen to storytellers, none of them are that inclined to write stories themselves. The scrivener takes them to a critic, who reads a story that each of them have written, and concludes that none of them have any talent. She tells them that her sister is a witch, and if they go seek her in the forest, she might be able to help them.

The scrivener asks his daughters if they are willing to go seek the witch, and because they love him, they agree. They decide to go one-by-one so that the house is not left all alone. 

Ima ventures into the forest first. Her rampant imagination makes her think of all the things that could hurt her in the forest, and she turns around to leave. However, she gets lost, and a woodcutter finds her. He brings her to his home where he lives with his mother and hosts her for the night. She wakes up in the middle of the night to find that her hosts are werewolves, and she runs away. The woodcutter finds her sleeping in the forest the next morning, and leads her out of the forest. He explains that he and his mother live in the woods so that they don’t get arrested or stoned for being werewolves. He says that they are peaceful, and asks that she not tell anyone about them. Ima returns home, and tells her father that she could not find the witch.

Next, Orna ventures into the forest. Her imagination doesn’t run wild, but she’s distracted by all the beauty of the forest. She encounters forest spirits, who she is dazzled by, and lives with them through the fall. They spend their days wandering through the forest and their nights making love together. When winter comes, she realizes she must return home. When she returns, her father tells her they thought she had died in the forest, and spent weeks in vain looking for her.

Finally, Plot goes looking for the witch, who she finds straight away. She sneaks into the witch’s house. The witch is jarred by her at first, but then puts her to work, cooking and cleaning and making potions. Plot stays there through the winter, observing the people that the witch helps, and continuously asking if the witch will help her. She sends letters home so her father won’t worry. Finally, spring arrives, and Plot decides she must return home. The witch tells her to come back and be the witch’s assistant.

Plot returns home to an almost empty house. Her father explains that Ima got married to the woodcutter and went to live with him in the forest, and Orna returned to frolic with the forest spirits. Plot tells him that she did not learn to write, but wants to go back and be the witch’s assistant. The scrivener agrees, because he has learned that he can’t live out his dreams through his children.