When writers come up with a great story idea but don’t know how to develop it, usually the problem is one of plotting.
Understanding story structure – i.e. plot – would be extremely helpful in developing their story. For example, they might realize that their kernel of an idea really is a great concept for a scene but not for an entire story. Knowing how that scene might fit into a full story would allow them to start writing.
Many fiction writers eschew the idea of following any general structure, believing that the story should grow organically, that following some kind of blueprint would result in tales that are all the same, like so many ticky-tacky houses in a cheap suburban development. But understanding story structure isn’t about following a blueprint. Instead, it’s like knowing the basic rules of structural engineering in construction. If you don’t understand tensile reinforcement, loading conditions, and distribution reinforcement, your building probably will be substandard and collapse. Likewise, if you don’t understand plot’s relationship to the other elements of a story, the parts of a plot, and conflict’s role in storytelling, your story probably will be substandard and quickly fall apart. And just as those engineering rules can lead to an infinite variety of structures, from pole sheds and 2-bedroom homes to airport terminals and skyscrapers, so the general rules of plotting can lead to an infinite variety of stories, from epic poetry and novels to short stories and screenplays.
Many writers instinctively understand story structure, as they’ve read hundreds of novels; they’ve also been exposed to the basics of storytelling during their schooling. Still, they at times find themselves unable to diagnose the problem with a story, because just like a novice writer who can’t get started, they’re not thinking systematically about the tale.
To understand the basic rules for constructing your story, you’ll want to examine:
• Plot’s role in storytelling
• Importance of conflict in plotting
• Five traditional elements of a plot (at least in Western storytelling
• Common plot pitfalls
The structural guidelines in the above articles work for any genre, whether you’re writing a serious literary piece or penning in any of the escapist genres from romance or science fiction to mystery or fantasy.
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My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. I also offer a variety of self-publishing services. During the past 15 years, I’ve helped more than 400 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of the Storytelling 101 writing guidebooks, four nonfiction hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel Windmill. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.
Check out some of my guidebooks for plotting your story:
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