Last week, I
discussed National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)
and Picture Book Idea Month (PiBoIdMo),
both of which take place over the month of November. If you plan to
participate, it helps to do some prep!
Here are some tips for developing your
idea. (If you are doing NaNoWriMo, try to do this before you start
writing in November. For PiBoIdMo, bookmark this post or print it out so you
can use it as you brainstorm ideas next month.)
(The following is excerpted from You Can Write for Children: How to Write Great Stories, Articles, and
Books for Kids and Teenagers. The book
is available for the Kindle,
in paperback,
or in Large
Print paperback. That book and Advanced Plotting will provide
lots of help as you write and edit.)
Developing an Idea
If
you have a “great idea,” but can’t seem to go anywhere with it, you probably
have a premise rather than a complete story plan. A story should have three
parts: beginning, middle, and end (plus title and possibly bonus material).
This can be a bit confusing though. Doesn’t every story have a beginning,
middle, and end? It has to start somewhere and end at some point, and other
stuff is in the middle. Beginning, middle, and end!
Technically,
yes, but certain things should happen at those points.
1. The beginning introduces a character with a
problem or a goal.
2. During the middle of the story, that character
tries to solve the problem or reach the goal. He probably fails a few times and
has to try something else. Or he may make progress through several steps along
the way. He should not solve the problem on the first try, however.
3. At the end, the main character solves the
problem himself or reaches his goal through his own efforts.
You
may find exceptions to these standard story rules, but it’s best to stick with
the basics until you know and understand them. They are standard because they
work!
 |
| Cute, but no conflict |
Teachers
working with beginning writers often see stories with no conflict – no problem
or goal. The story is more of a “slice of life.” Things may happen, possibly
even sweet or funny things, but the story does not seem to have a clear
beginning, middle, and end; it lacks structure. Without conflict, the story is
not that interesting.
You
can have two basic types of conflict. An external
conflict is something in the physical world. It could be a problem with
another person, such as a bully at school, an annoying sibling, a criminal, or
a fantastical being such as a troll or demon. External conflict would also
include problems such as needing to travel a long distance in bad weather.
The
other type of conflict is internal.
This could be anything from fear of the dark to selfishness. It’s a problem
within the main character that she has to overcome or come to terms with.
An
internal conflict is often expressed in an external way. If a child is afraid
of the dark, we need to see that fear in action. If she’s selfish, we need to
see how selfishness is causing her problems. Note that the problems need to
affect the child, not simply the adults around her. If a parent is annoyed or
frustrated by a child’s behavior, that’s the parent’s problem, not the child’s.
The child’s goal may be the opposite of the parent’s; the child may want to
stay the same, while the parent wants the child to change.
For
stories with internal conflict, the main character may or may not solve the
external problem. The child who is afraid of the dark might get over that fear,
or she might learn to live with it by keeping a flashlight by her bed. The
child who is selfish and doesn’t want to share his toys might fail to achieve
that goal. Instead, he might learn the benefits of sharing.
However
the problem is resolved, remember that the child main character should drive
the solution. No adults stepping in to solve the problem! In the case where a
child and a parent have different goals, it won’t be satisfying to young
readers if the parent “wins” by punishing the child. The child must see the
benefit of changing and make a decision to do so.
A Story in Four Parts
If “beginning,
middle, and end” doesn’t really help you, here’s another way to think of story
structure. A story has four main parts: situation,
complications, climax, and
resolution. You need all of them to make your story work. (This is really the same as beginning, middle, and
end, with the end broken into two parts, but the terms may be clearer.)
The
situation should involve an
interesting main character with a challenging problem or goal. Even this takes
development. Maybe you have a great challenge, but aren’t sure why a character
would have that goal. Or maybe your situation is interesting, but it doesn’t
actually involve a problem.
For
example, I wanted to write about a brother and sister who travel with a ghost
hunter TV show. The girl can see ghosts, but the boy can’t. That gave me the
characters and situation, but no problem or goal. Goals come from need or
desire. What did they want that could sustain a series?
Tania
feels sorry for the ghosts and wants to help them, while keeping her gift a
secret from everyone but her brother. Jon wants to help and protect his sister,
but sometimes he feels overwhelmed by the responsibility. Now we have
characters with problems and goals. The story is off to a good start. (This
became the four-book Haunted series.)
Tips:
· Make sure your idea is specific and narrow.
Focus on an individual person and situation, not a universal concept. For
example, don’t try to write about “racism.” Instead, write about one character
facing racism in a particular situation.
· The longer the story, the higher the stakes
needed to sustain it. A short story character might want to win a contest; a
novel character might need to save the world.
· Ask why the goal is important to the character.
Why does this particular individual desperately want to succeed in this
challenge?
· Ask why this goal is difficult. If reaching the
goal is too easy, there is little tension and the story is too short. The goal
should be possible, but just barely. It might even seem impossible. The reader
should believe that the main character could fail.
· Even if your main problem is external, try
giving the character an internal flaw that contributes to the difficulty. This
adds complications and also makes your character seem more real. For some
internal flaws, see the seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath,
envy, and pride.
· Test the idea. Change the character’s age,
gender, or looks. Change the point of view, setting, external conflict, or
internal conflict. Choose the combination that has the most dramatic potential.
AdvancedPlotting is
available in print or ebook at Amazon and Barnes
& Noble, or in various ebook formats at Smashwords.
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