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Planning and organizing a whole story in your head or on paper may seem like an unnecessary bother. Many new writers feel it is easier just to sit down and start writing with a few characters in mind, then let these paper people take the story where they will. Isn’t that a far more creative way of storytelling? No!
Without some forethought on the part of the author, plots tend to play naughty tricks. They can wander, wind up at dead ends and become vague and/or confusing. They can even fail in resolving the problems and conflicts they set.
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There are many different types of story form and styles—but each may be described as consisting of the unified sequence of events having a beginning, middle and an ending. By creating a road map by outlining your plots, you maintain control over what happens in your story.<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 <![endif]--> You can use a lose outline or a very detailed outline. The main thing is to have a very good sense how the story should play out. For example, a typical magazine length for a middle-grade story is 1,200 words. Since we know an average typed page is 250 words per page, using double spacing, that means a manuscript can be no more than five pages long. <!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 <![endif]-->
By visualizing that limited space, you will see the affect it has on your plot. You will see right away how the story needs to jump right into the action and quickly as possible identify the conflict/problem of your main character, etc.
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Let’s briefly consider three elements common to storytelling.
Characters—It’s important to make your characters life-like. Whether they are human, animal or completely imagined, they are the lifeblood of your story. Main characters need to have more detail and a background/history. Note: When you create character for your own stories, remember that what a character thinks, feels, says and does is often more important than what they look like.
Setting—Denotes a story’s timeline and place. A setting may be merely a backdrop, such as a home, school, park, office building, spaceship, courtroom, etc. Another kind of setting is the action setting that either creates or is directly related to the story’s conflict, like the storm in “The Wizard of Oz.”
Theme—This is the point of the story. It’s important not to have your story be devoid of ethical or moral content (even in adult lit). By adding this element, you will have a more satisfying story and some degree of healthy growth or change in the main character(s)—about themselves, others, their world, and perhaps about the larger world beyond.
Children’s Authors: Young readers do not want to feel a moral is being taught while reading. The primary purpose of a story is to entertain…not point to an explicit moral. Let me say this again another way…stories entertain while hiding the moral being taught to the young readers.
It’s important to note a good story’s form will seem natural and organic to the reader. The opening paragraph leads logically into the second and then third; the middle, climax and resolution all seem part of the natural flow. Nothing feels added in as an afterthought or just there for the mere purpose of detail.
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It’s also important to remember the main character(s) resolve the problem and must go through some type of effort—a crucial action or decision that constitutes the story’s climax before the problem is resolved. A common term you’ll hear is the “Rule of 3”. This means your main character must go through at least three challenges (each one bigger than the first) before resolving the problem/conflict. This helps build climax and keeps the pacing of the story engaging for readers.
Many factors may determine the climax and resolution of your story from a lucky chance to a surprising turn of events. No matter the problem (which can take form as an urgent conflict, puzzle, question or challenge) the plot structure is the strongest and most compelling when it generates suspense for the reader. Master this classical story style first and then you can apply its lesson to other kinds of stories.
*****
VS Grenier is a Mom's Choice Silver and a 2011 League of Utah Writer's Silver Quail Award-winning author for her picture book "Babysitting Sugarpaw." In 2007 & 2008, Grenier was voted one of the Top Ten Editors in the Preditors and Editors Reader’s Poll, won 2nd place for her article on, “Yes, Virginia, There IS a Santa Claus" and 7th place for her article, “Dinosaur Tracks in My Backyard” in the Preditors and Editors Reader’s Poll for Best Nonfiction. Learn more at
vsgrenier.com
I teach writing for my local college's continuing educational program. I love meeting with beginning writers each week and sharing the basics. However, I'm always surprised to find many of them haven't even sat down to write the story building inside them or at least log the ideas they have for story lines.
So my advice to you today if you want to start down the road of becoming a writer...The Time to Start Writing is Now!
Some Idea Starters
For beginning writers (and something I learned when I studied at the Institute of Children's Literature), I have found using visual aids to spark an idea is always a great way to begin the process of writing. You can do this to draft an actually short story or book for submission to just using it as a writing exercise.
Study the pictures I have below or pick one of your own from a magazine, old photo album, etc. Study the pictures and select one that appeals to you most.
Also, keep in mind your target readership with picking a picture for inspiration. Young readers’ age groups may be roughly broken down into youngest listeners/readers (ages 3-7), intermediate readers (ages 8-12), and teen readers (ages 13-18).
Things to think about as you sit down to write:
2 Comments on The Time to Start Writing is Now!, last added: 2/27/2012
"It is the magic of fiction that allows the young reader to 'escape' from ordinary day-to-day doings and to live more fully in a heightened, highlighted version of life, with adventure possible at every turn of the page"
—Lee Wyndham, Author
Every time I think everything has been said about writing, something new pops up. I don’t mind admitting I’m wrong. Heck, I think that’s one reason why I love writing for children and teens, but knowing the nuts and bolts is important before you sit down to write, especially for the children and YA market.
Writing for children and teens can be a rewarding experience—both personally and professionally. The insight you gain as a writer is un-measureable. It also means opening yourself to a child’s point of view and rediscovering what it feels like to learn something new, to experience something for the first time, to let your imagination run wild. However, children’s writing isn’t all fun and games. In many respects, it is more difficult than writing for adults because the writer has so much less in common with the reader. Or so we think, and just because your readers will be children/teens doesn’t mean you can pay any less attention to the basics.
In fact, bright, curious young readers demand realistic, compelling characters and exciting plots just as much—if not more so—than their adult counterparts.
If you are thinking of taking up writing for children and teens, first be warned it is not an easy way to make money. If you’re in the game for money…then forget about writing in this genre. True, there are always stories of beginning writers (J.K. Rowling, Brandon Mull, Stephanie Myers) who will ship out a children’s story and sell it to a publisher on the first or second try, and wind up with a very successful book. But for the rest of us…entering this profession takes years of practice, self-education (I highly stress this part) and much frustration. And that’s only the beginning.
So here is my road map for those of you who want to start down this journey. The suggest material comes from my own research as I walked down this path and now reflect back on my own personal expertise/experiences. Much of the information will also apply to other areas of writing as well. I hope this road map will help your writing and personal growth.
Road Map to Becoming a Children/YA Author:
1) Buy books on the subject. There are many books on writing and many of them focus on different genres such as picture books, chapter books and YA novels. Some even focus on techniques for writing for young readers. You can never have too many of these books and even a few not specific to your genre but to writing in general. Here is the list of books I first started off with:
a) The Business of Writing for Children by Aaron Shepard
b) You Can Write Children’s Books by Tracey E. Dils
0 Comments on The Road to Writing for Children and Teens by VS Grenier as of 1/1/1900
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Robin Brande,
on 4/24/2011
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Why does everything take so long? Um . . . maybe because I put it off forever?
But today my choices were clean off my desk (never) or finally update my Book Store (okay, yes). So what you’ll find there are not just some random selection of novels, biographies, science books, food books, etc., but an actual thought-out list of recommendations for some great reading in a bunch of different categories.
What have I read most recently that I absolutely loved? Why, Judi Dench’s memoir, of course. If you’re a fan of Dame Judi–and really, how can you not be?–then you’ll enjoy her book AND FURTHERMORE, even though those of us who aren’t British may not be as familiar with all the names she drops from her days in the Royal Shakespeare Company and all that. But I’ll tell you what, thanks to her memoir (which I’m now re-reading a week after I finished it, because I just want to), I’m on a Judi Dench movie kick lately. This weekend it was CASINO ROYALE and QUANTUM OF SOLACE, because even though Dame Judi was fabulous as Queen Elizabeth in SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, really there’s nothing better than watching her as M in the James Bond flicks.
And thanks to one of her scenes in QUANTUM OF SOLACE, I really want to start answering the phone, “What is it?” That’s right, Judi, make them get right to the point.
The other book I’m absolutely rabid about right now is Laura Hillenbrand’s UNBROKEN: A WORLD WAR II STORY OF SURVIVAL, RESILIENCE, AND REDEMPTION. That book will amaze, horrify, and most likely change you. I’ll tell you one thing, it certainly makes you want to stop complaining about every little thing in your life. I listened to the audio book on a long car drive recently, and it not only made the miles fly by, it also made it a little dangerous at one point because I was crying so hard I probably should have pulled over. Sorry, Safety Monitors. But that book was so inspiring I’m probably going to read the print version next, because I really need to experience it again.
Both the Judi Dench memoir and the Laura Hillenbrand biography can be found in my book store under the category “Burly Adventurers Who Inspire Me.” Because you don’t have to be a mountain climber to make it into that group–you just have to lead a remarkably bold and fearless life.
My final current recommendation, listed under “Favorite Books on Writing,” is James A. Owen’s DRAWING OUT THE DRAGONS: A MEDITATION ON ART, DESTINY, AND THE POWER OF CHOICE. Owen is the bestselling author and illustrator of the CHRONICLES OF THE IMAGINARIUM GEOGRAPHICA series, starting with HERE, THERE BE DRAGONS. His new book grew out of the inspirational talks he gives to middle school and high school students, encouraging them to pursue their dream of being writers and artists. I’m already pursuing that dream, but dang if I wasn’t re-inspired. It’s like one of my other favorites, Stephen King’s ON WRITING, but without the drugs.
So there! Another item I can mark off my to-do list! Now what else can I do instead of cleaning my office?
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A friend passed along a contact who needed some editing. As I've been putting the word out that I am taking on more editing projects, I was excited to get started with a new client.
The initial conversations, as you would expect with a new client, were a tad long. I was happy to explain some of the ins and outs of publishing. The author of the piece wasn't quite sure what she needed, but she was sure it was a book that every publisher would want. All she knew was that someone had told her that she needed to get it published. She'd never thought much about wanting to be a writer. She had just sat down to write one day. To tell a story, she said to me.
Ah, I wish it were so easy. Write it and they will come. But it is not so fast or convenient for most writers.
The story was about a controversial subject, pushing an agenda. Once I saw the piece, it was clear that the writer needed to expand her story into a novel (or novella) or shorten it to make it marketable as a short story.
She wasn't willing to make those changes. She wasn't convinced.
All she wanted was her work published. Although I didn't feel I was being discouraging; I like to think I'm more of a realist. I happily would have worked to expand the story or help to shorten it into a short story and determine the market she could approach to place the short story. Or to help develop more substance outside of the controversial subject matter. But she wasn't willing to take those paths. After discussing some of the costs associated with the different packages I offer, we amicably parted ways.
My almost-client had wanted to see her words in print, that is all she knew. She wanted a book, even if (according to the publishing world definitions) she only had the beginnings of a book.
The same week, I heard Patti Smith's acceptance of her National Book Award. I wished my almost-client had been with me. I could have used the awards as a starting point to discuss the amount of work involved in getting a book published. The hard work spent toiling in the draft stages. The tireless hours many writers spend at the keyboard putting in, taking out, nipping and tucking. The constant eye on finding an agent or publishing markets.
During one of our conversations, she seemed amazed at what she would need to do to get her piece published by a traditional publisher.
She had written the story that was the end of that. She had wanted me to check her spelling and punctuation. Then she was positive someone would publish her work.
After all, to her, it was a great story.
In the end, she planned to print it from her computer, bring it to a copy center for copies and then distribute it, hopefully making some money to offset the cost of the copies.
Then she would have her book. And I wish her the best.
Elizabeth King Humphrey is a writer and editor, who lives in Wilmington, North Carolina.
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What an intensive post! It's like a whole workshop in one go. Thank you for sharing this information.
Wagging Tales
Thanks Charmaine. I hope this helps to inspire you and many other writers.