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writercisesOriginal Posting June 4, 2016
Writer's Digest, May 1996 (yes, 20 years ago! That's why it's moldy!) on pages 27-29 had an article by Monica Wood with the title Your Short Story Shape-Up Plan. It's marked as the Technique of the Month, too! So, here's the three steps to tightening up your first draft into a great story. I'll just mention that you really should read the original, with the example of Teresa, the ornithologist on a wild woodpecker chase.
Step 1. 3 questions! These are aimed at making sure we know the general shape of the story and whether there's enough material in the draft to shape into a story.
1. What does the main character want? Start with the simple answer, but then push it a bit. Why do they want this?
2. Does the story have a beginning, middle, and end? What are they?
3. Does the story have the makings of a central (or unifying) metaphor? This is optional, but... nice to have.
When you finish answering these three, you will probably have new material to work in. So...
Step 2. The Classic Story Shape! Setup, complication, rising action, climax, denouement. Walk through these, and see how your story fits.
Setup: the beginning, that sets the stage.
Complication: an event or person that disrupts the setup and propels the story into motion (aka the inciting event!)
Rising action: all the events in the middle that expose the character or add more complications.
Climax: Kaboom! The end of the story, where there is a reversal, transformation, or realization.
Denouement: let the readers absorb the climax and relax.
The trick, of course, is to consider how your story fills these steps. Go ahead, consider the information from your 3 questions, and then make sure your story has a good solid shape, full of interesting and exciting events and characters.
Step 3. Weight and balance. Think of your story as one of those wonderful hill-shaped curves that English teachers love to show us. Does it have a setup and complication that fit nicely into the left-hand side of the curve? How about rising action filling in the middle? And do the climax and denouement take us smoothly down the right side of the curve? Don't make it too even! You want us to feel the rise and fall of dramatic tension. Don't unbalance it, though, with too much time on the setup or a long, meandering denouement.
Simple, right? Just three questions, a bit of shaping, and a final check for the right balance.
That's the way to make your story sit up and get some attention!
tink
Writer's Digest, May 1996 (yes, 20 years ago! That's why it's moldy!) on pages 27-29 had an article by Monica Wood with the title Your Short Story Shape-Up Plan. It's marked as the Technique of the Month, too! So, here's the three steps to tightening up your first draft into a great story. I'll just mention that you really should read the original, with the example of Teresa, the ornithologist on a wild woodpecker chase.
Step 1. 3 questions! These are aimed at making sure we know the general shape of the story and whether there's enough material in the draft to shape into a story.
1. What does the main character want? Start with the simple answer, but then push it a bit. Why do they want this?
2. Does the story have a beginning, middle, and end? What are they?
3. Does the story have the makings of a central (or unifying) metaphor? This is optional, but... nice to have.
When you finish answering these three, you will probably have new material to work in. So...
Step 2. The Classic Story Shape! Setup, complication, rising action, climax, denouement. Walk through these, and see how your story fits.
Setup: the beginning, that sets the stage.
Complication: an event or person that disrupts the setup and propels the story into motion (aka the inciting event!)
Rising action: all the events in the middle that expose the character or add more complications.
Climax: Kaboom! The end of the story, where there is a reversal, transformation, or realization.
Denouement: let the readers absorb the climax and relax.
The trick, of course, is to consider how your story fills these steps. Go ahead, consider the information from your 3 questions, and then make sure your story has a good solid shape, full of interesting and exciting events and characters.
Step 3. Weight and balance. Think of your story as one of those wonderful hill-shaped curves that English teachers love to show us. Does it have a setup and complication that fit nicely into the left-hand side of the curve? How about rising action filling in the middle? And do the climax and denouement take us smoothly down the right side of the curve? Don't make it too even! You want us to feel the rise and fall of dramatic tension. Don't unbalance it, though, with too much time on the setup or a long, meandering denouement.
Simple, right? Just three questions, a bit of shaping, and a final check for the right balance.
That's the way to make your story sit up and get some attention!
tink
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