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Elements of a Good Story

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Story Writing - Part One

Story Crafting Basics For Stories Meant To Be Told

Entertain First. And Last. And Everywhere in Between
Stories must engage before they can do anything else. You don't have the luxury of choosing between an entertaining story and a story that has a powerful message. Every story must be entertaining even if it means enhancing the truth. When I tell storytellers to embellish the story they'll say, "But that's not the way it really happened." Too bad if the way it really happened is going to put your audience to sleep. Your first priority is to make it interesting, not to stick to the facts.

Know Your Story's Purpose
Every story serves a purpose even if it's simply to get your audience to laugh. Know the purpose of your story. Know the message. Know why you're telling it and what you hope to accomplish by telling that story. Know what will make that story entertaining and powerful.

Tell Your Story in One Sentence
No, I'm not saying that your story must be one really long sentence. But before you write it, I want you to be able to tell it in one sentence. You don't have to include the entire plot, but you do need to include the moral of the story. For example: This is a story of how a girl learns that being different can sometimes be good. When you are able to tell your story in one sentence, you start out with control over your story and where it is going. You find out right away if you've got a story that's not about anything.

Write What Your Reader Needs to Know
I actually make a list. Yes, that's right. As boring and uncreative as it sounds, I make a list of the things that my reader NEEDS to know. Not the things that I want to tell them, but the things that they need to know for the story to make sense. The fun stuff can come later.

Beware of Personal Stories
Something happens to a story when it happens to us. We lose objectivity. Be very careful of trusting a story that actually happened to you. Test it out on others. See if it gets laughs in social settings. If it doesn't, then it's not as good as you thought it was. I actually take myself out of the story and picture someone else telling the story.

Find the Story That Fits You
This is the story that speaks to your heart. If it doesn't mean anything to you, it will not mean anything to them. Be authentic. It's everything.

Story Writing - Part Two

Short and Simple
The more you cut from your story, the better it will be. Period. It's not about how many words you use, but what words you use. Say more with less. Replace three paragraphs with three sentences. Don't write long stories, write short stories and put them together if you need something longer.

Be Specific Enough To Be Believable, Universal Enough To Be Relatable
The more specific and the more personal you get, the better your story will be. Aim for stories that happened to you, not people you heard about. Avoid stories that most people can't relate to. Find stories that have themes that most people can relate to.

Start and End With a Bang
You have thirty seconds to get their attention. Don't start a story with ten minutes of introductory material. I can't stand it when someone takes fifteen minutes preparing me for a story they are about to tell. Start with a bang and end with a bang. Don't hang around at the end driving your point to death. End the story and get out.

The Story's in the Details
It's in the characters and the descriptions, and describing things in a way that no one else has before. Use your senses. Show us the story instead of telling us about the story.

Make Characters Real, Interesting and Believable
I believe that it's not the plot that makes the story, but the people. Make your characters real - with personalities and quirks - and if you're at a loss, look around you. Real life has more material than you could ever hope to create in your own imagination.

Write and Tell Your Story As If You Are Talking To a Friend
You're not giving a news commentary, you're telling a story. So write it the way you speak. Make it comfortable. Make it easy to understand and follow.

Learn Your Story
Learn your story - every word. Then practice telling it as if you didn't memorize it. Learn the story in scenes. Write an outline and learn the outline. If you don't know your story well, then you run a big risk of filling in gaps with unnecessary information.

Bring Out the Best in People
Stay away from stories that scare or instill guilt. Don't take them to the depths of despair unless you really know what you are doing. They need to know that you are okay. Stay in control of your own emotions. When you get too emotional you run the risk of being perceived as manipulative.

Leave Them Feeling Hopeful
Audiences want stories with a happy ending. If you take them down, bring them back up again. Good grief, at least let this be one place where

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Elements of a Good Story

Story Writing - Part One

Contents at a Glance

Contents at a Glance

Writing Tips and Help

Story Writing - Part Two

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