How To Storywrite

Stories are a wonderful thing. They allow not only audiences of any age to escape into a new book or movie but can also take the writers themselves into that adventure. Many people think that creating a story is rather simple. Create a character, write out their journey, make them fall in love, defeat the villain, and have them live happily ever after. Story writing is much more complex. This guide will not only demonstrate the basics of story writing for aspiring writers to develop and craft their skills but also demonstrate how these basics can be used for a variety of different mediums such as novels and screenplays.

BEFORE YOU WRITE

Before you can write a story, it is important that your writing skills are up to the task. According to Scribendi.net, the best way to become a writer is to take “everything one step, one sentence, at a time.” (Scribendi.net). It is ok to struggle the first time you write. Not everyone is going to nail on their first try. Once you feel that you are ready to write, it is important to just jump in. The first time you write, just free write. The beautiful thing about freewriting is that it does not have to make sense. You are not creating a story; you are simply writing. After you are done free writing, it is now time to begin writing out a plot. Do not panic, it's actually easy to transition from free writing to plot writing.

WHAT MAKES A STORY

The first step is to write a character. Do not worry about complex story writing, this is just the basic version in order to transition to the complex skills. Once you have created a character, write out an adventure for them. Is it a simple school day and they are excited to head home for their birthday? Is it a father arriving at the hospital to meet his new child? Start with a basic plot before writing how the story will progress. The great part about this is that you can have as many sections as you want. You can always go back to change the word count or add another section you feel will enhance the story. Once you have begun the basic steps of story writing, it is now time to learn about the aspects of this form of writing.

In order to successfully craft a story, it is important to understand what makes a story an actual story. This applies to any story, whether it is a novel, a movie or tv show, or even a short story.
If even one of these aspects is missing, your story will struggle as a result. That is why it is important to first map each element before you start crafting your story. The main elements, according to steemit.com, are setting, plot, conflict, character, point of view, and theme (Alishi).

THEME

The first element, according to Jerry Jenkins, is the theme. According to Jenkins, “a theme is why it happens—which you need to know while you’re writing the plot.” (Jenkins).

The main point about a theme is that it conveys the message that you want your audience to come away with. For example, a fantasy involving a young wizard boy attending a magical school in Britain who learns how to love, and how that love leads to the defeat of evil. Other examples can be as simple as war, love, appearance vs personality, or other examples that you can use to create the message of your story. Start by making your message simple and easy to understand. Once you have created a simple theme, expand on it. A theme can be one of four options; lesson, moral, message, or motif. Once you have your theme, it is time to create your characters.

CHARACTER/SETTING

Character writing is something that many writers often struggle with when they create a story. A major issue that new writers will face almost immediately is that the character they write is either too perfect or has too much angst to be taken seriously. Even the most famous writers have faced this issue. It is important to find a balance between both. If you need to, do not hesitate to revise your character in order to find that balance. You are never going to get it right on the first try. If you need to change a character to better fit your story then change it. When writing a protagonist, it is important to create a character that the audience will support through the story. According to Jerry Jenkins, “The protagonist must have:

redeemable human flaws
potentially heroic qualities that emerge in the climax
a character arc (he must be a different, better, stronger person by the end)”

Every classic hero has had a flaw that impacts them in their journey. For example, Indiana Jones has a fear of snakes. Flaws such as this, whether it be phobias, issues in their personality, or other flaws will allow your audience to feel closer to your characters as they progress through your story. These flaws also allow your character to create an arc for their character development. For example, Luke Skywalker finds out his father is Darth Vader. This leads into the next film where Luke risks everything to save his father, and that allows Vader to become Anakin Skywalker once more and destroy the Galactic Empire.

This also ties into creating a setting for your story. The first rule of creating a setting is to create a time and place for your story. For example, if your setting is a dystopian cyberpunk society, but your character is a wizard, your setting will clash with your characters. Try to base your settings around your characters. If your characters are fantasy-related, create a setting revolving around a fantasy theme. If your characters are more cyberpunk-related, then create a setting based on that genre. It allows your story to flow better and your world to be more vivid and real to the audience. Once you have created your characters and setting, it is now time to move on to plot writing.

PLOT

The plot is the events that are going to happen in your story. It is now time to write your story. Begin by writing out a plot diagram (Thompson). There are five main elements to the plot diagram. Begin your story by writing notes in each section in order to flesh out your story until you feel confident that you can begin your tale of adventure. First, start by introducing your protagonist to the world.

CALL TO ACTION/CONFLICT

Once you introduce your protagonist and setting to your audience, it is time for a call to action. According to Angel Mondragon, “The chapter could be summarized as the call is the result of a crisis (Leaving the Gardened wall for Buddha). This crisis engenders the hero to deploy into action,” (Mondragon). What will lead your character to take their journey? Will be like Katniss, who volunteers for the Hunger Games in place of her sister? Will it be like Percy Jackson, who is called to action when he is accused of stealing the Lightning Bolt of Zeus? There are many ways that a call of action can be created that will allow your character to begin their journey and develop as a character. What will you choose?

Once a plot is written, it is now time to write the conflict and resolution of your story.

These are the two hardest decisions that any story writer will face when writing their stories. Conflict is the easiest of the two, as there are several for a writer to choose that will drive their story. It is important to understand how that conflict will drive the story and result in changes for the characters. There are six major conflicts that you can choose from (Jordan). Will it be a colored person standing up for what they believe in, while also having a relationship with a person who is not willing to stand up with them? Will it be an alien trying to adapt to a different world? Or will your conflict be a father trying to teach his child about the real world, but also having to learn that he must let the child go so that they can live their own lives? Once you have the conflict written out, how will you end the story?

RESOLUTION

The conflict is over. Once the dust has settled, your character rises from the ashes a better person than they were in the beginning. But how do you end the story? It is important to remember that the resolution is the end of your story, meaning that this is the part that demonstrates how the conflict was solved and what that resolution means for your characters and plot. According to Jerry Jenkins, “Give your readers a payoff for their investment by making it unforgettable. Do this by reaching for the heart.” This step, while crucial, is a step that allows you to step back for a second to think. Take a hike. Do something you find relaxing. Read over your notes and story. Clear your mind before you come back to finishing your story. Harry Potter ended with Harry watching his children leave for Hogwarts. The first Star Wars trilogy ended with the galaxy celebrating the end of the Empire and Luke and his friends celebrating on Endor. The Great Gatsby ended with Nick cutting out the toxic lifestyle that his cousin has become a part of and returning to the West. Provide your audience with an ending that wraps up the plot in a smooth, easy-to-understand sequence that will close the chapter of your story.

CONCLUSION

Learning story writing is something that's not easy to learn but can lead to new creations of new worlds and adventures once that skill is developed. As this guide has demonstrated, it is easy to write a story for any audience. From learning how to develop basic writing skills, to learn the elements of story writing and how to properly apply them, you can now create your own story to tell the world and introduce to a new audience, whether it be through the written words on a book, or through a visual adventure on the silver screen or tv show. Go out and write the best story you can.