Who doesn’t love a good story? Believe it or not, all stories contain a problem, someone to solve it, a location in time and space, series of events, and resolution. These are called story elements.
But what about the story your Uncle Ted tells every year at the family gathering? He may start with a set-up but quickly launches into the problem, followed by a series of misunderstandings and challenges that build tension, finally reaching the punch line, or resolution of the story.
Follow the links for each element.
Problem someone to solve it setting (time and place) plot (what happens)
Audience
Good writers address their target audience. Unless you are journaling, consider your audience. Will they be interested in what you have to say? Are they likely to agree? If not how can you embed information in your writing to convince them? Consider length, word choice, and topic.
Story Element – Problem
So you want to write a story. Where do you start?
A good place to start is with a “What if” statement. For instance, What if I were sent to a remote digital free camp where I wasn’t allowed to use any electronic devices for a week?
This leads to lots of other questions like, Would I go willingly? Would I survive? Would I go through withdrawal? What would the other people there be like? Would I like them? Would we band together to overthrow our oppressors?
Okay, you get the idea.
Another starting point is to think of a problem you are facing right now. Then try to write your way out of it. For example: You said something really stupid to your best friend and now she won’t talk to you. What do you do? You can shrug it off and hope she comes around. But what if she doesn’t? That’s the start of one story. Or you could pester her mercilessly until she relents. That’s another story. You could humiliate yourself in a very public way including wearing a shaming sign. That, my friend is yet another story.
That’s an example of a personal problem. But story problems can be on a larger scale too. Many dystopian novels and stories start with real world problems like climate change, social injustice, or war. If you feel passionately about any of these, you have a story in you waiting to be written.
Another place to begin is with life’s absurdities. This is where a lot of humorous stories come from.
Story Element – Character
Jump to POV How do you decide which POV to use? First person POV Third person POV
Characters help tell your story. Sure, you could tell a story without characters, but it wouldn’t be very interesting.
Ever hear the expression, Live Large? When creating your characters, the larger the better. Don’t be afraid to exaggerate aspects of their personality. Use their likes and dislikes, their understanding of the world and how it works to spice up the story.
Your main character has a problem to solve. Give your characters personal traits they must overcome to tackle the story problem. For instance if your character is at a digital free camp make them addicted to their devices. Withdrawal adds layers to your story and opens up great opportunities for your readers to experience it through the character. Imagine the lengths an addicted character will go to gain access to electronic devices. Lying, cheating, stealing, all are possible when you gotta have your fix.
Or maybe your character is painfully shy. Or a chronic liar. Or maybe, your character is super-nerd. Can you see how each of these traits will present different challenges for a character and the story?
It’s helpful to have a picture in your head of your character. You could download photos or cut pictures from print magazines. You could even base a character’s looks on someone you know. While looks are important, the character’s attitudes and background really shape your character into the person he or she is. Don’t forget to think about social class, geographic location, ethnic background, favorite music, movies, books, and hobbies. How does our character communicate? Pinterest, instagram, Face Time, text, the latest coolest app, or something else? Every detail you give us tells us something about your character.
Point of View
My grandfather always told me I was the most important person in the world. I, me, first person. When your main character is telling the story, that’s first person.
When your story is told by a narrator referring to your main character as he or she, that’s third person point of view.
First person and third person refer to verb conjugation. What’s that, you say? Conjugation is changing the verb to fit who is speaking. As English speakers we do this without thinking. In fact, I first heard the term conjugation in a seventh-grade beginning French class. The charts below show conjugation of the regular verb write, and the irregular verb be.
Regular verb
| Singular | Plural | |
| 1st person | I write | We write |
| 2nd person | You write | You write |
| 3rd person | He/she writes | They write |
Irregular verb
| Singular | Plural | |
| 1st person | I am | We are |
| 2nd person | You are | You are |
| 3rd person | He/she is | They are |
Okay, so what is point of view and how do you know which one to use?
Point of view is simply, whose eyes you’re looking through. In first person POV everything on the page is as the main character experiences it. What he or she sees, hears, feels, smells, tastes, or thinks. You can only tell your reader what other characters are thinking or feeling through the eyes of the main character. For example:
I know just what I want. “I’ll have the double California burger topped with onion rings, please.” I can practically hear Auntie Eve’s thoughts: With those body-hugging gymnastic leotards, you should be watching your weight. But I’m hungry, so I push her judgment out of my head.
On the other hand, third person is told by a narrator. In the example below the she of third person is replaced with the name of the character, Rachel:
Even though Rachel knew this was coming, her petite body flinched at the prospect of no texting, no surfing, and no apps of any kind for more than a few hours. She slept with her phone for chrissakes! How would she survive without her lifeline to a growing social circle?
The above is an example of limited third person. We see the story through Rachel’s eyes. She can guess what other characters are thinking but she can’t read their minds. There is another type of third person POV. In third person omniscient the narrator sees all and knows all. The narrator isn’t looking through one character’s eyes, but knows what each character is thinking and feeling, and even knows information the characters don’t know yet.
Second person POV takes a bit more sophistication. I recommend mastering first and third person POV before attempting it.
How do you decide which POV to use?
Ask yourself, can I tell this story using only the character’s own experience? Can I reveal the character’s motivations through his or her actions and thoughts? Is my character good at ‘reading’ other people? How well do I write dialog? Is the main character the best person to tell this story? And finally, are you comfortable writing in the first person? If you answered yes to these questions, try first person.
Alternately, do you need to bring in information that the main character doesn’t have? Do you have more than one main character? Is your character terrible at reading social cues? Do you need a narrator to best tell this story? Are you comfortable writing in the third person? If so, try third person.
The story will dictate the best POV. Sometimes it’s obvious, but not always. I once rewrote an entire early chapter book to see which worked best!
Things to watch out for in first person POV
If you decide to write in first person, you may discover that lots of sentences start with I. For example: I see, I think, I am. It is really important to vary your sentence structure so the reader doesn’t get bored. It takes extra effort but you can find ways to avoid the word I.
Another thing to watch for is pages of internal thought. The reader wants action. We do need to see some of what your character is thinking, but intersperse her actions with thoughts, not the other way around.
Keep your tenses consistent. By that I mean, if you start your story in present tense don’t suddenly shift to past tense or future tense. See past or present tense for more on this.
Things to watch out for in third person POV
Always be clear on who is speaking or doing the action. If you have three girls in your story and you say, “Rachel didn’t understand why she wouldn’t listen to her,” is it clear who she and her are? Rewrite for clarity: “Rachel didn’t understand why Keisha wouldn’t listen to Ashley.”
But don’t have your characters call each other by their names every time:
“Keisha why don’t you listen to Ashley?”
“Why do you think, Rachel?”
“My guess, Keisha, is because you don’t think she knows what she’s talking about.”
“Bam! You hit the nail on the head, Rachel.”
People don’t talk like that. Don’t do it! You will need to sprinkle their names in here and there to keep your reader on track, but give your readers some credit, they’re not dummies.
If you are writing in third person limited, limit yourself to what your character sees and experiences. This can be challenging.
Story Element – Setting
Setting is the where and when of your story.
Most people know the setting is where a story takes place. It can be inside or outside, in a city or on a farm, it can even be in outer space. The location of your story will be connected to your plot. More about that later. Many stories will have multiple settings that help move your story along.
The when of your story is part of the setting too. Surprised?
Let me show you what I mean. Let’s say your story takes place in San Francisco. Will 1850 look the same as 1935, 2020, or 2105? Think about transportation. In 1850 people in San Francisco traveled by foot, on horseback or by boat. By 1935, most people drove cars or rode public transit, but donkeys still pulled the ice man’s wagon. In 2020 we have above and below ground public transit and we can expect to see self-driving cars on the roads. In 2105 who knows? We could have flying cars and supersonic trains. Do you see how the when of your story affects how your character will move through the story?
Now go through the same process with communication, building construction materials, clothing, social expectations, entertainment, and energy production. These details shape your character’s experience and make your story feel authentic.
Story Element – Plot
Plot answers the question, what’s going to happen? It consists of the events that make up the story. Most plots have the same shape. They generally start with introducing the character and his or her problem. Then the character goes through a series of challenges which create tension for both the character and the reader. Eventually, the character reaches a turning point, loose ends are tied up, and the character solves his initial problem.
The series of challenges can be as simple as the completion of three tasks (a common pattern in fairy tales) or as complex as a challenge followed by a false turning point before escalating into additional challenges (most novels follow this model).
The important thing to remember when developing your plot is your character must solve his or her own problem. Sure, a friend can help, but your reader wants to see your character overcome obstacles which cause your character to grow and change.