Often in the pursuit of inspiration, we forget about the skill, the craft. In addition, this is a very important component of success. Knowledge of the technique of creating texts will save you from questions: why I can’t write a story? How to find the first sentence? Why do my characters seem dead and boring?
The story – a very important form, although short. Moreover, you know why? In the story, at a glance, you can see all our abilities and talents; a short text requires great devotion and does not tolerate schlock. The story is a kind of quality control of our creativity!
Leaving aside terminological disputes and will highlight the main criteria.
A contemporary story can be considered a prose work up to one author’s sheet, which equals to 40 000 characters or 20 to 22 pages of printed text. Why this volume? He read in one breath, and in this volume it is easy to observe a selected pace of the narrative.
The story is sometimes called the quintessence of the novel. Why? Because a small text space to express the most important thing, exactly what you want to say. In just a few words to express the essence of the problem, the depth of feelings and thoughts.
Usually the story focuses on the description of one episode, an important event, like a spotlight picking out from a long ribbon of life one small piece, illuminating it from all sides, saturating it, making bright.
The degree of details in the story are always higher than larger forms. Let me explain: it is not always events in life happen as they are described in the text. Moreover, it is not so much about fabricated evidence: it is possible to tell and about the adventure that happened to you in the bus. The fact is that when we write a story, we do not take everything from reality, and choose only the main. We can begin to tell the story from the end, middle, and beginning. Can you give a description of the location component, you can exaggerate to enhance the desired effect, can treat the hero as if under a microscope.
In a good story, the events are always presented under a special “writer’s” perspective. Looking for friends, your corner!
First, call it “artisan”. When you need to write, set the theme, but not written. Although they can be used or combine both.
Second, “natural”, that is, when you want to share is the theme and the words and asks for paper.
For a story does not need a lot of material: the volume it is small. However, you want quality. A few details that will be included in the text and the language elements must be carefully selected.
Let’s say I want to write a story about the shoemaker. I need to know how he lives, how he talks, how he works, how they spend their free time. If I am a rough and tough story – I need the relevant vocabulary, if I decide that my cobbler dreamy romantic, in love with his work; I will choose a different vocabulary to describe his work.
It is better that the material was in abundance – plenty to choose from.
For the story, as with any text, it would be good to write a plan. Therefore, you organize the material and create a composition. About how to do this, read here: link to issue 1
The story gives all the possibilities for the twisting of the dashing of the plot. Moreover, the need for this composition. That is, the arrangement of scenes in a certain order that best reveal the idea of the text. Mandatory elements of the composition of a good story:
Every element of the composition – a topic that, alas, will not fit in our today’s article. Read more about the song in my next releases.
Everything is simple: sitting, stuck ass to a chair and forward. If you made a detailed plan, writing the text – a matter of time and technology. Only do not delay it indefinitely – at risk of losing interest in the work. Do not have to finish the story in one sitting: if you succeed, well, if not – continue the next day. Rule -no day without a line is a good motivator. Try to work on the text without breaks in a few days: such pauses discourage, and newcomers are at risk of losing its rhythm and style.
The story is so small that all must stand on the only possible place. You should try to write so that every word had weight, and it cannot be thrown away and replaced by another.
When you write a text, put it aside and let it air out. It is desirable for the week. I brought myself a rule: the time for “airing”, it has the time of disposal depends on the amount of text. The larger the volume, the more time it takes. Nevertheless, do not hang at this stage. Story for the week is optimistic. During this time, the emotions from the writing becomes blunt and the text can look “alien” eyes, noticing the roughness of plot implausibility, errors, etc. Edit them, feel free to rewrite whole chunks, add some color, but keep in mind the rule that the best the enemy of the good! Do not overdo it. If in doubt, give read to a friend or colleague via email.
When you write, no advice needed. Write all here. Follow the text, let it speak. Let the paper lie all the details, all the movements of the plot, which only come into your head. The narrative has its own logic.
The most important step in this option is edit. When the text broke through to a screen or paper ready, ask yourself a few questions that must be answered:
The purpose of the story? – to entertain, to tell something new, just to vent, to shock, to talk about the high? If the goal is entertainment – check out the story, well if it was built, wondering whether to follow him; pay attention to the style and vocabulary – whether jokes, whether funny, exciting if written. In General, the purpose depends on everything. If the purpose of the story is at odds with his story – here or to rewrite, or change the goal.
Remember that there is nothing worse than aimless story. So honestly ask yourself the question, why do you write?
Does the text idea? If you opened it? For example, you wanted to prove that justice always prevails, but in the end, it turned out that the hero of the pensioner shameless social workers stole life savings from under the pillow and left from the reckoning. What to do? On the other hand, change the idea or change the text. Add a good police officer who will punish the criminals and return the money to the grandfather and to save the idea.
All questions, discrepancies, gaps in the story need to decide at this stage if you want the story were of good quality. It may seem that editing is a waste of time, but it is not. Usually texts are not born flawless masterpieces. Over them have to work.
Therefore, the story turned out delicious, it is better to build the story on three pillars, time-tested.
Need to from the first row to involve the reader in the narrative, to intrigue him, to catch on the hook, to cause to burn with curiosity. Need to figure out how to attract attention. Try to start with dialogue, with the appearance of unexpected information that changes the hero’s life.
One of the most famous techniques for building good intonation: write half the story and throw a couple of scenes. By the middle of the text already found the rhythm of the phrase becomes more fluid and the story more clearly. Chopping off the beginning, we start from the middle of the narrative. Nevertheless, it is intriguing!
To be honest, to make spectacular eyeballs – it is hard, the first time it may not happen. Okay the main thing is to continue to write, to dream and everything will come.
Read more about how to start a story I will tell in one of the following lessons.
Every move the hero needs to fit the story idea, the whole plot needs to be clearly spelled out. Need to know what makes a hero, where, what, why, where it moves, where it comes from. To do this, in fact, need a plan.
For example, if the idea of the story: arrogance is the best way to make a million, we should be clear how with the help of his arrogance, the hero will get the money. Unnecessary plot twists, which lead to the goal, safely discarded. All actions must hook the reader.
An interesting story is always remembered for its ending. Goal: to shake the reader, to surprise, to shock. An example of such a finale is to turn everything on its head: the poor becomes rich, good poor, innocent old woman – killer, but a normal neighbor, with whom you were drinking beer, is an alien.
Nevertheless, it is not necessary to use strong emotions, passions and discharge, achieving challenging goals, victory over the elements and much more. Be creative and you will come up with something interesting. The end of the story should not disappoint the reader.
Of course, the ideal texts does not happen: critics and detractors will always find something to complain about, but that is no reason to refuse the job.
If you want to become a brilliant storyteller, do not forget to learn from the masters, read novelists: keep checking back often for their creative cuisine, learn recipes and do not forget to taste them.
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