Ever since I wrote The Taleweaver, I've been thinking about writing. More specifically, my personal style of writing. I like to brag that I can make a story out of literally anything. Seriously. I once made a story out of a dirty old pop can. You might say I have an overactive imagination.
The question to be answered is... how do I write my stories? Where do they come from? And what makes a good story?
The answer to the second question is easy. I have no idea. Sometimes dreams, sometimes randomness that pops up while watching movies or inane kids' shows. They just seem to happen without a whole lot of effort. Even when given a direct challenge to come up with a story based on a specific prompt, such as the aforementioned pop can, I really don't know how they just "pop up" in my head. Yes, it was a bad pun, I couldn't resist.
To answer the third question... I can't really answer that, either. I know what I think is a good story, I have a pretty good idea what my kids seem to think is a good story, but there are as many opinions about writing as there are stories! Probably more, truth be told. However, there are a few common elements between most literature that is considered "good" by the industry and the public. And in discussing that, we will explore the first question: how I write.
First, I want to make clear that I very rarely try to write, and even more rarely do I start writing at the beginning of a story. Most often, a story idea will just come to me, in bits and pieces, and I'll record those bits and pieces on paper or digitally. Or the occasional napkin, church program, even on my hand. Yes, my media varies. But the point is that my stories don't need a lot of effort to get started. I'll start working on a climax, or a tense confrontation, or at the introduction of the main protagonist. Deaths and funerals are, oddly enough, some of my favorite scenes to write. They are soul-wrenching, and getting the description correct without sounding sappy, cliched or overly dramatic is a tricky balancing act.
Not all of my stories get finished. Most don't. The vast majority are nothing but a few scenes, a rough outline, and a lot of metaphoric dust. I have a few that I could swear were put there by someone else, because I don't remember them at all.
A few, a glorious, wondrous, mentally exhausting few, have been turned into a complete saga. Actual books, completed end to end, then edited, chopped, shredded, and reconstructed. When a story turns into an entire world, it becomes far more than just a book. It is a place to visit, a place for my mind to wander and even play. The characters become friends, and I am so much more mentally invested in their journeys. While I have complete control over the stories, and I really hate having to kill off good characters, sometimes the story demands a sacrifice, and I agonize over it for days before finally acquiescing to the unknown forces that have produced the story, and write it the way it is meant to be.
So what is it that makes a "good" story? There are many elements, but the three that I consider most important are: a compelling plotline, beautiful and easily visualized settings, and a troupe of engaging characters that make you want to laugh, cry, scream, and send them to the woodshed all at various points in the story. Personally, I feel that if the main characters or main supporting characters don't make you absolutely furious with them at least once in the story, then you aren't doing your job as a writer.
Conversely, if your "bad guy"--who doesn't necessarily have to be an actual villain, just antagonistic toward your main character-- doesn't make you feel sorry for him at least once, again, you aren't doing your job. The best characters are the ones that feel real. That make you feel like they could be friends, or at least make you feel actual emotions. If my stories make you feel like you want to simply close the cover, walk away, and instantly forget the book's very existence, then I have utterly failed. At the least, even if you don't like the book, the characters, or the story, it should be memorable.
As for the settings, if the reader can't visualize even the faintest sketch of what the main character sees around them, the settings are ineffective, and therefore, it will drag on the book and make it nearly impossible to draw in the reader. World-building can be challenging, but it is worth the investment of time to do it well. It may involve hours of research, but nothing is more jarring than a character that brings a sword to a gunfight, or vice-versa.
The plotline must likewise be engaging, compelling, at the very least, interesting. The plot may be about the main character. It may be about some events in the world. Or some combination thereof. But it has to make a point. What many writers fail to realize is that everything they write carries strands of their personal beliefs and ideals. Even if the story seems to exist simply for its own sake, even if it exists merely to entertain, it will teach a lesson. For example:
This is the story of Freddie, my friend,
Who jumped out into traffic, and that is the end.
I'm afraid I can't recall the name of the author. I read this in a book many years ago.
Did you catch that? MANY years ago, and yet it has stuck in my mind this entire time. Why? It is funny, it is macabre, it is vaguely outraging... and there is a lesson in there, even if the author's intent was simply to be darkly amusing. Don't jump out into traffic.
I remember the main character. Freddie. I remember what he did, and what the implied outcome is. He was an idiot, and he died. But I remember.
Whether your story is short and simple, or whether it is a multi-book saga spanning centuries of time, it must be memorable. THAT is what makes a book truly great. Your reader may hate it, they may love it, or it may simply make them thoughtful. But if they remember it, then you have done your job properly.
In future posts, I will dig into these subjects more in-depth. Greater discussion about character development, plot, and world-building. If you can remember the base points, to have a memorable plot, setting, and characters, then you are on your way to being a truly great writer. It may seem elementary, even insultingly obvious. But there is a reason. It's true. It is the core of what writers do.
Happy writing!
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