Tag Archives: storytelling

How to Write a Dynamic Screenplay

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This week I will be moving on to a different aspect of creative writing; writing the screenplay or film script. A screenplay is a complex dramatic form that requires a particular structure and format, so I will be doing a series on how to write a dynamic screenplay over the next few weeks, which will include:

1.  An overview of a screenplay.
2.  How to create a dynamic Screenplay Design Plan.
3.  How to format a screenplay.

There are many multimedia entertainment formats that utilise a screenplay or a script such as films, television, theatre, and video games, but I am going to use film as my frame of reference. The magical world of film-making has captivated our collective imagination since its inception in the late 19th century, and now in the 21st century, it continues to be one of the most popular mediums for global storytelling.

An overview of a screenplay?

A film, as opposed to a work of fiction, is primarily a visual medium, therefore a screenwriter needs to think in visual terms. Although the dialogue is important, a dynamic and memorable image can deliver information much more effectively.

A screenplay may draw upon many similarities that are attributed to a work of fiction such as a complex story-world, a strategic plot, and characterisation, but it predominately relies upon the art of visual storytelling.

In the world of film-making, a screenplay acts like “a plan” or a “blueprint” (Glenn 2008, p. 104) for everything that is seen and heard on the screen. So when it comes to crafting a screenplay, remember the all-important literary mantra, Show Don’t Tell.  As a film contains moving pictures, the screenwriter needs to be able to craft words that come “alive with all the motion and emotion” (2008, p. 104) that is synonymous with the silver screen.

Before you set out to start writing each scene of your screenplay, ask yourself these four questions:

1.  Does my opening scene create a dynamic image in the mind of the reader and will it work on screen?  Visualising your scene on screen is a good technique.

2.  Have I been economical when it comes to word choice (have I used dynamic nouns and strong verbs to communicate the setting, action, and characters)?

3.  Have I utilised a good balance of dialogue and action?

4.  Does my screenplay create interest and suspense? This is where re-writing and multiple drafts help.   

Remember: perfection takes time.

A screenwriting tip. Download the screenplay for your favourite film and analyse its scene structure, tone, etc.  Stage 32 provides copies of the latest screenplays, but registration is required.

More tips for writing an effective and dynamic screenplay.

Avoid using anything in your screenplay that cannot be communicated visually or aurally on screen.

Film-making is all about dramatisation, not exposition. Show don’t tell! Although the dialogue is necessary to reveal story and character information, a single engaging image can convey a thousand words. A close–up on a character’s face. The camera focusing on a single memorable image.

Choose action over dialogue. The saying “Actions speak louder than words” is just as true in the film world. And like real life – what a person does as opposed to what they say reveals their true nature.

Of course, the dialogue is important, but when using dialogue use carefully crafted and strategically placed dialogue as opposed to a whole load of empty waffle.

I am in the process of re-writing a screenplay for a short film, and as I am a fan of dialogue, I have had to be ruthless and cut out unnecessary verbiage.

Keep in mind your audience when you are writing your screenplay and use strong images (especially in the opening scene), which will create a strong emotional response.

 

Next week:

How to Write a Dynamic Screenplay Design Plan.

 

References:

Glenn, John 2008, ‘The page: Words that move’, Writing Movies: The practical guide to creating stellar screenplays, (written by Gotham Writers’ Workshop Faculty; edited by Alexander Steele), A & C Black, London, Ch. 4, pp. 103-135.

 

 

Image:

Startup Stock Photos.

StockSnap.io

How to Create Dynamic Secondary Story Characters: The Donor, the Dispatcher and the Helper

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Over the last few weeks we have been learning about how to create dynamic story characters through brief character profiles. We started with the main characters – the Hero and the Villain and then moved onto the first of our secondary characters – the Princess. 

This week we will exploring the possibilities for the last of our archetypal characters as originally proposed by the Russian folklorist, Vladimir Propp – the Donor, the Dispatcher, and the Helper.

Although the Hero, the Villain and the Princess provide the main action in a story, the Donor, the Dispatcher and the Helper are indispensable elements in a narrative.  These story characters are especially important for our Hero. The Hero would not be able to embark upon his quest or successfully achieve his goal without these characters.

In a future blog, I will be exploring the role of characters even more in ‘How to create four dimensional characters’. As you can probably tell creating characters is one of my favourite aspects of storytelling. Whether we are reading a book or watching a film or a television show – great storytelling depends on dynamic characters.

So let us get back to creating a character profile/s for the Donor, Dispatcher and Helper.

Once more I am going to use a literature/filmic reference – The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) to explore these three character types.  LOTR is a good narrative to use for story character profiling as it provides us with a perfect example of how one character can play dual roles.  See Propp’s archetypal character list.

The Donor

The Donor is responsible for providing a magical agent to the hero before he embarks upon his quest.

The Donor in LOTR is the wizard – Gandalf the grey.  After finally succeeding in getting Bilbo to leave his “precious” ring behind before he leaves the Shire to journey to Rivendell, Gandalf gives this ring, which is the magical agent, to Frodo. But this magical agent harbors deadly magic – it originally belonged to the story’s villain – the dark lord, Sauron.   So we can see from this narrative that archetypal elements can take on variations.  LOTR also features more than one magical agent.  There are the elvish gifts that are given to Frodo: the sword that glows blue when Orcs are present, the silver ethereal vest, and The Light of Eärendil that is bestowed by Galadriel.

The Dispatcher

Gandalf also performs the role of the main Dispatcher as he sends Frodo on his mission. We could also include Strider/Aragorn, Elrond and Galadriel as dispatchers.

The Dispatcher has two functions.  He alerts the potential Hero to a grave misfortune or some sort of lack in their mutual world. The Dispatcher’s second function is to send the Hero on a mission or quest in order to resolve the original misfortune or lack.  Ultimately, the desire is to restore equilibrium to a world that is seriously out of balance or on the brink of destruction.

The Helper

The Helper’s job description is to inspire or motivate the Hero, provide rescue, help with or solve difficult tasks, and to transform the hero. Out of all these three characters, the Helper is the one character who is usually consistent throughout the narrative up until the conclusion of the story. And there can be multiple Helpers in a narrative.

In the LOTR films there are many Helpers.  Besides Boromir, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimili, and Arwen, there are also Frodo’s friends – the mischievous Merry and Pippin, and of course, the self sacrificing and loyal, Sam. With Merry and Pippin, we can see that sometimes the helpers can cause more trouble for the Hero than provide any actual help. But towards the end of the film franchise we see that Merry and Pippin redeem themselves and prove that they are indispensable to the story and more importantly to Frodo himself.

Here I have provided three brief character profiles for the Donor, the Dispatcher and the Helper.  For a more extensive outline of these archetypal characters and their broader narrative groups and place within a narrative, see John Fiske, 2010, Television culture.

 

Creative exercise

This week I have a creative exercise for you.

Watch ‘The Opera’ Season 4 episode from the Seinfeld series (you should be able to find it on YouTube). Or you can use any narrative that you familiar with. Analyze each of the characters. What are their functions within the narrative (hero, villain, princess etc.)?  Do they perform one or more function? Which is your favorite character and why?

 

References:

Fiske John 2010, Television culture, 2nd edition, Routledge, New York, London.

 

IMAGE:

Steve Czajka

Flickr.com

How to Create a Dynamic Character Profile

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A few weeks ago, I provided some tips on how to create and develop the role of storyworld characters. As writers, characters deserve our full attention as they are the active agents that drive a story’s plot forward. They can function as either a ‘character- focalizer’ (a narrative participant) or as a ‘narrator-focalizer’ (an outside observer who knows everything about the characters) (Culler 1997, p. 90).

Whatever their role, characters give us a front row seat for all the action. If we are reading a short story or novel, the characters provide us with an intimate view into their thoughts and feelings via their ‘streams of consciousness’.

We have also learned some of the basic techniques for creating the storyworld’s most important characters – the hero and the villain. This week we will be exploring secondary characters and their narrative function.  And I will deliver some tips on how to create a dynamic character profile for a False Hero.

The function of secondary characters.

As we ready know, stories are usually centered around the hero, so the secondary characters function as an extension of the hero’s universe. The villain opposes the hero. The secondary characters provide help for the hero. But not always! If you are writing a comedy screenplay, chances are you might have a bumbling chaos-causing side-kick character who causes more problems for the hero than helping him.

In filmmaking, the sidekick can sometimes be turned into a worthy helpmate towards the end of the film. So this kind of character is well worth considering. Can you think of any books or films with this kind of character profile?

All of these rules about writing and story-world character creation may come across as being rigid and not allowing room for unbridled creativity. You may be thinking – creativity is all about letting your mind run wild and free, isn’t? Why can’t I just sit at my notepad, computer, or iPad and just for go for it?

Yes, absolutely you can do all these things! But the writing mantra has always been – once you know the literary rules that govern the story-world, then you can be brave and break them! An example of breaking the rules would be to turn the hero’s helper into a character who causes more trouble for the hero.  Remember the bumbling, chaos-causing side-kicks in Seinfeld – George or Kramer.

I believe that if you learn these basic rules, then you are on your way to becoming a better writer. I also encourage you to explore the world of narratology as much as possible. Especially if you want to take your writing to the professional level.  Learn from the experts such as: Robert McKee, James Patterson, Patricia Cornwell…

And become a reader too. Reading will expand your imagination, teach you about the beauty of language – and help you grow as a writer. My purpose at Creative is to help you develop as a storyteller. I am on a creative journey too and there is always something new to learn.

So let us start exploring our secondary characters a little more.

Seven archetypal characters.

In a previous blog, I mentioned that the story-world consists of seven archetypal characters as outlined by the Russian folklorist, Vladimir Propp. Here are Propp’s conclusions:

1. Functions of characters serve as stable, constant elements in a tale, independent of how and by whom they are fulfilled. They constitute the fundamental components of a tale.

2. The number of functions known to the fairy-tale is limited.

3. The sequence of functions is always identical.

4. All fairy tales are of one type in regard to their structure. *

* (Propp in Turner 1988, p. 69)

It is also important to remember that for modern-day storytellers these character types continue to remain stable and constant regardless of the setting or time period. But not all of these characters will be present in a narrative. And although all of these archetypal characters have distinctive functions, some of these roles can be played by more than one character such as the False Hero.

Here are the seven archetypes as identified by Propp:

The hero
The false hero
The donor (or provider)
The helper/s
The princess (or sought after person) (sometimes accompanied by her father)
The dispatcher (the person who sends the hero on his journey)
The villain

As we have already directed the spotlight onto our primary story characters, the Hero and the Villain, they can just hang out in the ‘green room’ for now.

Here are the archetypes we will be concentrating on over the next couple of weeks:

1. The donor
2. The helper
3. The princess (the sought after person)
4. The dispatcher – the person who sends the hero on his journey.
5. The false hero.

You have probably noticed that I have been using the mediums of filmmaking and television to predominately draw my story examples from. Of course, there are many great examples in literature, but I think both filmmaking and television have a greater potential for a global story saturation. And most of us are familiar with film and television references.

So now I am going to use the Star Wars saga to flesh out these characters in a modern setting.

The hero – Luke Skywalker
The false hero – Darth Vader
The donor – Obiwan Kenobi
The helper – Han Solo
The princess – Princess Leia
The dispatcher – R2D2
The villain – Darth Vader

This week I have chosen ‘The false hero’ for our secondary character profile.

From the Star Wars franchise, we have seen the development of the Darth Vader character, from the conflicted and misguided ‘false hero’ Anakin Skywalker, to his evolution as the villain. As a little boy, he was innocent and sweet and had a tragic life, and we felt for him, and we looked forward to his bright future as a light saber extraordinaire – the Jedi Knight. But alas, we were very much mistaken, or at least some of us tried to be shocked and dismayed at Anakin’s descent into darkness – after the considerable gap between the films. But Anakin was the false hero and it was his son, Luke, who would be the real hero. What is your view here? Do you think it is possible to have two heroes?

Another example of a false hero is the well known classic story that has also made a billion dollar crossover to a film franchise – The Lord of the Rings. Who is the false hero in this narrative? You may not agree, but I reckon it is Gollum. Before he became the wretched and ring-obsessed pathetic creature, Gollum, he was just a normal hobbit who had discovered a magic ring, not dissimilar to Bilbo and Frodo. But once the ring had consumed him with evil, he became a false hero, and in some ways a villain as well. Of course, he could have been the hero of the story, like Frodo, but his choice relegated him to the role of the false hero.

Just like the real hero, the false hero will have a journey to take and a choice to make. But he will falter in his journey, therefore allowing the real hero to step up.

Sometimes the false hero is used as a ‘red herring’ or as a clever narrative device to misguide the reader or viewer and to keep them guessing.

So we can see from this brief character portrait that although these character functions “serve as stable, constant elements in a tale” (Propp in Turner 1988, p. 60), some of these fictional characters can develop a dual/split personality, so to speak. For information on Propp’s archetypal characters see Graeme Turner: Film as Social Practice – available on Amazon Books.

 

Next Week: We are going to talk about the role of the ‘princess’ or love interest. This will be an interesting character to explore as the ‘princess’ in traditional storytelling, especially in the fairy tale, has been presented as a passive observer of the action, and more often than not – the passive receiver of the action. But this role has changed. Many thanks to Sigourney Weaver from Aliens, and Jennifer Lawrence in The Hunger Games.

Happy writing!

 

References:

Culler, Jonathan 1997, Literary Theory, A Very Short Introduction. Oxford. New York: Oxford University Press.

Turner, Graeme 1988 ‘Film Narrative’, Film as Social Practice, Routledge, London.

 

Image:
Kermit.

Source: Reddit.com

Giphy.com

 

 

How to Create a Dynamic Hero

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Last week we were learning about how to create compelling story characters in general and how the best characters are those who are fully developed.  This week I am introducing the main protagonist – the hero – and how a well-rounded and dynamic hero is of primary importance to your story. So read on and discover how to create a dynamic hero that will bring your story alive.

“What makes a hero? Courage, strength, morality, withstanding adversity? Are these the traits that truly show and create a hero? Is the light truly the source of darkness or vice versa? Is the soul a source of hope or despair? Who are these so-called heroes and where do they come from? Are their origins in obscurity or in plain sight?”

Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from Underground

We all love heroes; whether it be in the pages of a book, on the silver screen, or in even in real life. We are thrilled by their incredible acts of bravery and great sacrifice.  We admire those people who dare to shine like bright stars in a dark world.  So when it comes to writing a story, the hero or the main protagonist is one of the most important narrative elements in the fictional world.  It is the hero who allows the reader or viewer to primarily engages with the story.  It is usually the hero who bring us back to our favorite book or inspires us to follow a film franchise.

“First, find out what your hero wants, then just follow him!”
Ray Bradbury

Out of all the characters in the story world, it is the hero who allows a writer to explore and develop their story premise or controlling idea.  All of the other characters revolve around the hero and his universe and are designed to function as a help or a hindrance to his journey. 

Without the hero, the story world would fall apart.  Now when I say hero, I am also including the all important female double, the heroine, but just to make it simpler, I will just use the patriarchal title – the hero.

To understand the hero’s narrative function, we need to understand the basic reoccurring characters types or archetypes that are unique to all meta-narratives.  The great Russian folklorist Vladimir Propp studied a wide range of folk tales in the early to mid 20th century and consequently developed a model upon which all archetypal (original) character functions are based. 

According to Vladimir Propp, all characters can be categorized as ‘spheres of action’ (Lacey 2000 p. 51) within a narrative structure and serve as stable, constant elements…” in a tale (Turner 1988, p. 69).  These ‘spheres of action’ are separated into seven archetypal characters: villain, donor, helper, princess (and her father); dispatcher, the hero (seeker or victim); [and] false [or anti- hero]” (Lacey 2000, p. 51).  As we are talking about the hero in this blog, we will disregard the other character types for now.

When we begin to write a story, it is the controlling idea or premise that tells the reader or viewer what the story is about.  But it is the ‘who’ – the all-important hero who outworks this controlling idea.  Right from the beginning, we follow the hero, we experience his struggles, his failures, and his victories.

In order to create a dynamic hero, we need to keep in mind some questions regarding a hero’s narrative function and specific characterization.  Who is the hero in the story?  What is his purpose? What are his goals?  What inspires or drives him to embark upon his journey?  What makes him unique from all the other characters?

The hero should be likable or at least invoke our sympathy.  We must care about him and identify with him on some level.  I am referring to human heroes here.  Although, animal heroes can also be endowed with human-like qualities: see anthropomorphism.

A good hero will be fascinating and possess some quality that catches our attention.  He will have an intriguing personality. He projects charisma. He is witty or brilliant.  He shows great courage in the face of great adversity.  For this example I will use a heroine – think of The Hunger Games protagonist – Katniss Everdeen.

A hero will have a strong desire and a primal need that connects him to his goal such as a desire for freedom, protection of loved ones, a love interest.  The goal should be simple and tangible, but there should be a world of complexity that surrounds it.

The hero possesses a conscious need or desire that is connected to an underlying contradictory unconscious need that stems from a deep seated wound like rejection, exclusion, or betrayal.  These hidden needs are a representation of the hero’s ego and also act as a metaphor for his search for identity and completeness.  It is these two conflicting desires that the hero struggles with throughout the narrative and his attempt to reconcile them creates interest and intrigue.

Endowing your hero with flaws gives him the opportunity to grow, to learn, to develop through the ‘character arc’.  As the hero begins his journey from a place of imperfection or a place of lack, he evolves into a well-rounded character with great psychological depth.  At the end of the journey, the hero is ultimately rewarded with the restoration of that lack: he wins the object of his romantic affection or defeats his nemesis.

The hero must be active, proactive and be an agent of change.  He may begin as a passive character, but at some point in the narrative, he must become active, and take back the control of his story.  It is his story that we are telling, after all! 

The latest Superman film, Man of Steel, is a great example of a hero’s transition from passive to active.  For quite a substantial section of the movie, Clark Kent tries to hide from his destiny.  Even his foster father tries to keep Clark from achieving his destiny as savior of the world or at least the city of Metropolis.  But it is when his foster father dies, and his arch-nemesis, General Zod, hunts him down, he is kick-started into action and this is when he really begins to shine.

Like all good storybook heroes, Clark Kent/Superman is firstly defined by a small action (saving the children in the school bus), which acts as a foreshadowing of greater things to come – an immense action – kicking General Zod and his army of supervillain’s butts.  Our hero should draw the reader or viewer in slowly, with a mix of internal and external conflicts, small and immense actions.

Above all the hero must undergo a metamorphosis or some sort of transformation.  But before he can achieve this transformation, he needs to be faced with a personal loss or tragedy that he feels he cannot reconcile himself to: think Luke Skywalker and the death of his father, Darth Vader/Anakin, in The Return of the Jedi. 

A hero’s tragedy or ‘dark night of the soul’ takes place in the final stages of a story and is considered to be the critical moment in the hero’s journey. It is this critical moment or final catalyst (although heartbreaking) that is designed as a necessary strategy to propel him forward towards his desired goal.  Although the hero faces defeat (and it must appear to be total), it is only a temporary defeat that allows him to transition into a new state of being and become a stronger character.

Finally, there are two types of heroes: the gung-ho adventure type who has no qualms about jumping into the action. Then there is the unwilling hero or anti-hero who is full of self-doubt and needs a violent shove by some outside force into a rip-roaring adventure.  Which hero type is your favorite? I’m a fan of the anti-hero.

Of course, there is so much more to be said about the hero.  So, I encourage you to seek out books, websites, YouTube videos about creating a dynamic hero.

Creative Exercise: Create your own hero/protagonist.

Don’t forget to leave a comment.  I would like to chat with you about your ideas for stories and characters.

Next week: The Villain – the heroes opponent.

 

References:

Lacey, Nick 2000, Narrative, and Genre: Key Concepts in Media Studies, Houndmills: Macmillan

Turner, Graeme 1988, ‘Film narrative’, Film as Social Practice, Routledge, London

 

Reading list:

Voger, Christopher 1999, The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Storytellers and Screenwriters, Pan, London.

 

Image:

Ironman

Heartywizard

Pixabay.com

How to Create Compelling Story Characters

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Creating story characters is an exciting part of writing. As the creator of your own micro world, there are new heroes and villains just waiting to be born. But in order to capture your reader’s attention and make them want to read your story up until the very last page, you need to create compelling story characters they will care about.

So before we start, let me ask you some questions.  When you read a book, watch a film or a television show – what draws you in?  What captures your imagination?  What inspires you to go and see a film or buy a book? What gets you hooked into a television show?  I am pretty sure your answers to these questions will be… the characters – real or fictional. 

It does not matter whether we cheer for the hero or whether we hate the villain, characters are the most important elements in the story-world.  We all have our favorite characters (and I don’t mean actors or actresses). Who is your favorite character?  Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, or maybe a cartoon superhero – Batman, Superman or Iron Man?  Or maybe you are a fan of the villain – the hero’s nemesis!

The best characters are complex and fully developed.  They have distinctive traits (actions, speech and external appearance).  Characters appear more complex when they develop new traits or undergo a metamorphosis or a personal transformation throughout the story.

What do we look for in a character?  Human qualities like sensitivity, empathy, strong values, bravery etc.  We seek to identify with characters on some level.  Do they laugh, cry, or experience conflict?  Do they experience crushing disappointments and celebrate long-awaited victories?

Even though I am a self-confessed bookaholic, I believe the world of filmmaking has the greatest potential for creating dynamic characters.  Since the creation of film, in the late 19th century, audiences have been quite happy to sit in a small darkened room, separated from their friends and other captured viewers, whilst being held transfixed by the moving images on a screen.

In the 21st century, we continue to repeat this much loved cultural activity, either at the cinema or in our self-created home theatre.  And in these social places of magic and wonder, we are suspended in time and space.  So what keeps us spell-bound?  Forget the special effects, the digital sound and computer generated imagery (CGI).  It’s all about the characters!  Whether we admit it or not, we live vicariously through these imaginary people who seem to live eternally in the magical story-world.

“It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.”
― William Faulkner

I love this quote about story characters.  Faulkner’s experience reminds me of what can happen when you breathe life into a character.  Once you have drafted your character’s backstory, their actions, their trajectory, chances are, he or she can sometimes develop a mind or will of their own.  There have been countless times when my characters have surprised me.  Their personalities have undergone a dramatic reversal and they seem to want to direct the plot themselves.  I thought it was just me and I had been staring at the computer screen for too long.  I had spent too much time in the fictional world.  But one day I attended a catch-up meeting with some other ‘creatives’ from the film, television, and theater site, Stage 32, and when I asked one of the writers do your characters sometimes change during the writing process? The answer was Yes!

So, why do characters change mid-story?  As writers, we have the power to create characters that can mirror real life people.  And just like real people, your characters can develop a mind or will of their own. 

A character will possess universal human characteristics and can be drawn from people we know.  We can relate to them on some level and we hope others will too. 

Of course, characters are not only restricted to humans; they can be animals, extraterrestrials (E.T.) or toys that come to life (Toy Story).  The possibilities are endless.  And sometimes there are characters we can not relate to, but they also have an important part to play and have an important story to tell.

“Who are these characters?  What do they want?  Why do they want it?  How do they go about getting it? What stops them?  What are the consequences?  Finding the answers to these grand questions and shaping them into a story is our overwhelming creative task.”

Robert McKee, Story, Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting.

Characters are the active agents in your storyworld that drive the plot forward.  They get things done, they react to situations and to other characters.  They put the heart and soul into your story.  The dialogue and monologues uttered by fictional heroes and villains are often the words we fear to say in real life. 

As a creator, we can make our characters do things that we are afraid to do in our everyday lives.  An example would be: having the courage to talk to someone we have admired from afar, or being bold and accepting a challenge. 

Yes, sometimes characters can achieve the things that we can only dream about. 

I also think that creating characters can be very therapeutic.  When I’m angry, stressed or depressed – creating a character helps.

Here are a few tips or ideas to get you started:

1.  Create a backstory for your character/s – even if you are only writing a short story.  A short story can develop into a novel or screenplay! Create a character profile: name, age, appearance, occupation, etc. 

2.  Just like actors do when they are preparing for a performance, ask yourself these questions about your characters?  What drives them? What are their passions, fears, goals? 

Let your characters lead you.   The fictional world is their domain.  Let them take you on their journey, you never know where it may lead.  So have fun creating compelling story characters your reader will love.

 

 
Images:

Library. erdemdindar

Pixabay.com

 

Reference:

Stage 32: The Premier Social Network for Film, Television and Theater Creatives.

https://www.stage32.com/welcome/18/

 

Write a Gripping Ending To A Story

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“Have you thought of an ending?”
“Yes, several, and all are dark and unpleasant.”
“Oh, that won’t do! Books ought to have good endings. How would this do: and they all settled down and lived together happily ever after?”
“It will do well, if it ever came to that.”
“Ah! And where will they live? That’s what I often wonder.”

J. R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring.

 

This week we are talking about how to write a gripping ending to a story.  Ending a story is always a difficult part of the writing process for me. When the final line has been written or typed, and there is nothing else for the characters to do, and victory has been won and the antagonist vanquished – I shed a tear.  You may think me to be a tad melodramatic, but I have just finished the first draft of my first novel.  And I feel a sense of satisfaction that is tinged with sadness. 

But all stories have to end sometimes, don’t they?  When it comes to your literary masterpiece, the question needs to be asked, “Have you thought of an ending?” (Tolkien).  So here are some tips on how to write a gripping end to a short story.

Like the beginning of a story, there are many ways to end a piece of fiction. You can choose to end your story with a satisfying conclusion – with all the loose ends tied up.  Most of us enjoy this type of ending. The neat and tidy ending is so popular because, unlike real life, a story can provide us with a guaranteed resolution of conflict. We can have our desired happy ending and everyone lives ‘happily every after’. 

But for those of us who choose to defy traditional story-telling techniques, there is the option of a ‘surprise ending’ or an ‘open ending’.  By daring to be different we can ultimately leave the reader desiring more. So let us go a step further and explore the different ways that you can craft your ending and leave an indelible impression on your reader’s mind.

The circular ending

 This type of ending is when the story concludes with a mirror image of the beginning.  It is a circular journey where the characters return to the same scene at the beginning, but they have learned some valuable lessons.  They may look or still be dressed the same but they have been transformed on the inside. 

The ending of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis is one of the best examples I can think of.  Although the children do not enter Narnia in the first paragraph, but in the first couple of pages, the ending mirrors this section of the story.  As in the beginning, the children tumble out of the wardrobe and are met again by the sound of the footsteps of Mrs. Macready and her guests in the hallway.

The surprise ending

Kate Chopin’s ‘The Story of an Hour’ is a great example of a surprise ending.  In the beginning, Mrs. Mallard is notified that her husband has died in a tragic train accident.  The majority of the narrative focuses on Mrs. Mallard’s conflicting emotions over her husband’s sudden demise and reveals some interesting revelations about his abusive nature. 

As her ‘streams of consciousness‘ show her dramatic shift from the grief-stricken widow to a woman who has discovered the guilty pleasure of an overwhelming revelation that she is now free from her husband’s suffocating control, there is a clever twist at the end.  Brently Mallard was well and truly alive, and seeing him at the bottom of the stairs, not only fatally shocked his wife, but shocked me as well.  This kind of ending is not everyone’s ideal ending, but Chopin’s ironic and tragic twist contributed to the overall tragic mood of the story.

The ‘open’ ending

Daphne Du Maurier’s The House on the Strand is one of the best examples of an ‘open’ ending I have read.  Although I am a fan of defying traditional narrative expectations, I initially was quite shocked and disappointed by her choice of ending.  I really wanted to know what happened to the main character, Dick Young, who had become addicted to a drug that enabled him to travel back in time to the fourteenth-century in Kilmarch, Cornwall.  At the end of the book, Young is back in the safety of his home and under the expert care of the resident doctor.  But whilst on the phone to his wife, he suddenly looses consciousness, and this is where the novel concludes.  Du Maurier had left me high and dry and I was devastated.  I wanted to know what happened to Dick, did he die? Did he return to the past?  So many questions and absolutely no answers. 

But in hindsight, Du Maurier’s ‘open’ ending was another example of clever writing.  She had provided me with an opportunity to dream up my own ending.  As the passive reader, she was giving me some narrative power and inviting me to write my own conclusion and to decide upon Dick Young’s ultimate fate.

The trick ending

‘An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge’ by Ambrose Bierce is a good example of a trick ending.  At the beginning of the story, a man is being hanged.  Bierce provides quite a densely packed narrative about the man’s supposed dramatic escape. But it is not until the man reaches his home and family that we are told that he, “Peyton Farquhar was dead; his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek bridge”. 

In writing this story, Bierce had drawn upon the idea that moments before death a person can be subject to hallucinations, and he uses this to trick us into believing that Peyton had cleverly escaped his death sentence.  With his trick ending, Bierce reveals that Peyton had only imagined that he had successfully cheated death!

The summary ending.

This technique is used a lot in film-making.  At the end of the film, the audience is shown a written summary that tells them about the final outcomes for each of the characters – they get married, they succeed in business, etc.  As in films, this choice of ending provides a feel-good ending for the reader. The hero or heroine are victorious, the villains are punished and justice is served.

I have provided you with just a few choices for the ending of your story. But whichever one you decide to choose, your purpose should always be to leave a lingering impression or a dynamic image in the reader’s mind.  As writers, we have the power to entertain and inspire the reader but to also challenge their literary expectations. Have fun writing your gripping ending for your story. 

Happy writing!

 

Next week: It’s all about the characters.

 

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Write a Dynamic Opening for a Story

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When it comes to writing a short story there are two important structural guidelines to remember: the ‘beginning and ending‘.  Although there are other guidelines, the ‘beginning and ending’ of a short story are considered to be among the most important.  These guidelines apply to novels as well, but for a short story, there is a limited word count in which to offer an intriguing storyworld.  So let us get started in exploring how to write a dynamic opening for a story.

A story’s opening paragraph should be designed to capture a reader’s imagination and inspire them to read more.  The opening paragraph acts as a pivotal gateway through which your reader must enter so that they can journey successfully through your story.  There are many ways of beginning a story: setting, character description, action, a statement, an idea, or posing a question.

1. SETTING

Your setting could be a location: a windswept beach, a dark Dystopian city, a magical underwater world, or a simple hobbit’s hole as described by J. R. R. Tolkien on the opening page of The Hobbit – “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or eat: It was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.”

2. CHARACTER DESCRIPTION

The opening lines can introduce your main protagonist, for example –“Ella leaned back against the cold damp stone wall. Her porcelain skin was pale and drawn, with deep lines etched around her eyes and mouth, and her once glorious golden hair hung in matted tendrils around her face.”

3. ACTION

Starting your story with strong action is a great choice as it thrusts the reader into the thick of the story.  “The baying of the hunting dogs drew closer as he dashed through the thickly wooded forest.  Like a mad man, he fought his way through the close-knit trees, until he was suddenly redeemed by a burst of bright sunlight as he stumbled out of the forest into a small clearing.”

4. A STATEMENT

The iconic opening statement in Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities is dramatic, poetic and memorable, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of our despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way . . .”

5. AN IDEA

How about Jane Austen’s opening line in the classic novel, Pride and Prejudice – “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”  Starting your story with an idea can really get your reader thinking.  Although they may not agree with your idea, they can be compelled to read on to see where this idea will take them.

6. A QUESTION

“Where’s Papa going with that axe?” said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast.” Charlotte’s Web, E.B. White.  Beginning your story with a question sets up intrigue in the reader’s mind.  You have provided them with a question that needs to be answered and they must commit to the whole story to discover the answer.

I have provided just a few tips on how to write a dynamic opening for a story in a way that will capture your reader’s imagination.

 

Next week: We will explore the creative possibilities for your story’s ending.

 

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How to Write a Dynamic Short Story

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One of my favourite narrative formats is the short story.  This fondness had grown out of my continual battle to complete a story.  I had no trouble starting the story, but once I had written about a hundred words or so, I would lose the plot – literally!  But after writing a few stories, I think I have finally vanquished my nemesis.  So if you like to read short stories and would like to write your own, then read on and discover how you can write an engaging and short story in four easy steps.

The short story is an artistic product that contains a fixed sequence of words and is known for its particular format: length of words, structure, viewpoint, or tone of voice, etc.  It provides a small literary window onto an observed dramatic event or a personal experience. 

The short story has a long history, starting off in oral tradition long before writing and the arrival of the printing press.  Some well-known forms are Homer’s Iliad, folk tales, fairy tales etc.  Many of these short story forms were used for didactic or teaching purposes– such as Aesop’s Fables, or in a biblical context – the parables of Jesus. 

Folk or fairy tales were originally designed as subtle social commentaries on exploitation against the lower/middle classes throughout history.  Of course, these social commentaries had to be cleverly disguised so as to protect their authors.  Feudal lords, kings, and queens were transformed into the fantasy characters we know so well today – giants, evil step-mothers/witches.  And the passive captive princess – just an example of their fateful prey.  There is more I could say about the dubious representation of gender roles in many of these tales, but for our purposes, we will stick to storytelling.

As folk and fairy tales have been passed down through history, they have been subject to revision, due to socio-political change.  Many of The Brothers Grimm tales in the late eighteenth century were censored and re-packaged towards children.  I apologize for demystifying or removing the magical aura that surrounds the fairy tale.  But seriously, would a prince really climb up a tower with a girl’s long blonde hair???  Don’t get me wrong – I am a fan of fairy tales too, but sometimes it is important to know the ‘why behind the what’. 

I believe short stories are great narratives for the 21st century as they do not require so much reading time as novels do.  They may not provide as much content as the novel, but a short story can exist for the sole purpose of just presenting an idea or a question to the reader.

A story tip to remember.  When it comes to the short story: form and content are important!

When you start to craft your story ask yourself these two questions:

No. 1

 

Where will I start my story?  From the beginning?  In the middle of the action?

No. 2

How will I end my story?  Will it close with a satisfying conclusion – with all the loose ends tied up or will I defy traditional storytelling techniques and leave the reader wanting more? 

You are the creator of this infant literary world – it is up to you!

Personally – I like to challenge traditional storytelling methods.

Overall, form and content are important because a short story is determined by a specific word count.  When I was at university most of my creative writing assessments were 1000 words.  That may sound like a lot, but considering a novel is 70,000 words plus, 1000 words can be challenging for an author to create an intriguing storyline and a dynamic characterization.  It can be a lot of fun seeing what you can do in 1000 words. Of course, some short story competitions accept stories up to 5,000 words.

Remember!  A story was never meant to exist in a literary vacuum – it was meant to be read by others. When you start writing your short story, consider your audience and their overall reading experience.

DISCUSSION ZONE: 

Your task, if you choose to accept it, is to come up with a theme or an idea for your story.  Brainstorm your narrative structure.  Choose your setting.  Pick one character. Yes – only one character!

 

NEXT BLOG:  ‘Digital storytelling‘ – Creative Storytelling for the 21st century.

 

If you would like to read my version of the fairy tale ‘Rapunzel’, head on over to the BOOKS tab, and in my free eBook, Exploring the Narrative World: Writing the Short Story, you will find the short story, ‘The Tale of Ruthie and Grace‘.  Let me know what you think?

 

READING LIST:

Grimm, J 1982, Fairy Tales from Grimm, retold by Peter Carter, Oxford University Press, Oxford, New York. Available from Google Books. *

Zipes, J D 2002, Breaking the Magic Spell: Radical Theories of Folk and Fairy Tales, 2nd ed,
University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA. Available from Amazon Books

 

* You can find a book of fairy tales at your local library or an eBook through Apple iBooks.

 

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Top 10 Building Blocks for Writing A Story

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Welcome to the world of creative writing and storytelling!  The art of storytelling flows from the very heart of the human condition. We cannot help but create and tell stories.  Robert McKee, the author of Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting said it best, that telling [or writing] a story is “a universally human experience [that is wrapped] inside a unique, culture-specific expression.”

Storytelling Photo

 

We love to tell stories. Whether it is sharing with a friend about what we did or experienced during our day; listening to a grandparent tell us an unexpected tale from their past to reading a book or watching a movie – storytelling is all around us. 

But when it comes down to writing our own story, whether it is fact or fiction – a blank page or a computer screen can be very intimidating.

So as you begin your creative journey, you may ask: How do I write a story? Where do I start?  Here are some really basic, but essential building blocks to get you on your way to your own creative destination – your story.  And not just any story – a story that will entertain, inspire, and yes, even challenge a potential reader.

THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF NARRATIVE

Building Block1. Antagonist – The opponent of the protagonist. The antagonist or villain is the main provider of the conflict in a story. He or she is commonly the enemy of the hero. Here are a few well-known antagonists: Wile E. Coyote in The Road Runner cartoon. Loki versus Thor in The Avengers, Darth Vader in Star Wars.

2. Character Archetype – A character type that repeatedly occurs in various literary genres – such as the hero or villain.  The basic characteristics of a character archetype that has been drawn from folk and fairy tales continue to be reproduced in modern day texts.  

3. Character – Character is a text or media-based figure in a storyworld, usually human or human-like. The term “character” is used to refer to participants in a storyworld and in contrast to “persons” or individuals in the real world.

4. Characterization – the personality/idiosyncrasies of a character. Characterization also includes the external description of a character, as well as their thoughts and feelings.

5. Focalization – A selection or restriction of narrative information in relation to the experience and knowledge of the narrator, or the characters in the storyworld. It is through a character’s focalization that the reader can ‘see’, ‘hear’, and/or experience events in the storyworld.

6. Narrative – The representation of a story (an event or a series of events)

7. Plot – the order in which the story events are arranged in the narrative.

8. Protagonist – the hero or heroine of a story. Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games.

The protagonist can also be an anti-hero.

9. Setting – The background for a narrative’s storyworld. E.g. A beachside setting, an alien world.

10. Story – a chronological sequence of events involving characters. Story should not be confused with narrative discourse, which is the telling or presenting of a story. Traditionally, a story unfolds in a linear fashion, with a clearly defined, beginning, middle and end, but these rules or techniques can be broken.

Like in many films, a writer can start at the end, or even in the middle of all the action.

Stay tuned for more creative building blocks for storytelling.

 

References.

Porter Abbott 2008, ‘Glossary and topical index’, The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative, Second Edition, Cambridge University Press, New York.

Garry, Jane, El-Shamy, Hasan M., Eds, 2005, Archetypes and Motifs in Folklore and Literature: A Handbook, Sharpe, Inc., Armonk, NY, USA: M.E, ProQuest ebrary.

Hühn, Peter, Pier, John, Schmid, Wolf, Eds. 2009, Narratologia / Contributions to Narrative Theory: Handbook of Narratology, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, DEU, ProQuest ebrary.

McKee, Robert 1997, Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting, First edition, Harper-Collins Publishers, Inc., New York.

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