In my creative writing class, we have spent a lot of time talking about where we get our ideas and how we take those ideas and turn them into stories. Most writers (I think? Maybe this is too much of a generalization?) fall into one of two categories: I have so many ideas and I need to include them all or I don’t have any ideas and that means I can never write anything... ever.
In figuring out what to do with these two camps of writers, I have been focusing on character, simple plot structure, and theme. These three elements can and probably should work together to become a story. The issue I’ve found is that all three of these ideas work in tandem. If you start developing one, you ultimately need to develop the other two alongside it. As one part of the story makes itself clear, it’s often helpful to begin looking at the other two. Here’s how we rolled it out in my class.
Character
Character is hard, especially when you are dealing with short fiction. I love developing characters and thinking about literally every facet of their lives including but not limited to whether they prefer Flaming Hot Cheetos or Takis.
The problem with this approach is that sometimes my character development takes up more time and word count than the entirety of a short story. So, for my learners, I have focused on keeping it simple. That means keeping my character information semi-limited to and connected to the theme.
They may begin with an idea for a character, but as they develop their theme and their plot, their character should become more solidified.
Plot
The Beginnings: What is ordinary life like for your character? And, what parts of that ordinary life have informed how they will react when the conflict they are about to face arrives? This can be as short or as long as necessary to set that up.
Hello Conflict: Something happens. How things were has to change. It can be an external conflict that forces the character to make some life changing decisions, or it can be a subtle conflict or internal conflict that changes the main character’s world view. Either way, it’s a change in routine which ultimately means a reaction followed by a change for the character.
Reaction Time: The character responds to the change. The conflict has arrived and the character either does something or doesn’t do something, but either way it is a reaction that they are responsible for. This leads to the end of the story where the writer leaves the reader feeling something.
Theme
For the purposes of my class, we have decided the theme has to be more than just one idea. Love is too broad. You can’t begin to scratch the surface of what love is if you are looking to write a short story. Heck, you can’t even really do that with a novel. To tackle this, we have a funnel.
Starting Point: Desire
Real Theme: A desire for revenge can ruin an individual’s life.
You can see how this difference limits what the writer will focus on. This also helps us limit the conflict. Once my learners develop their character, identify their theme, and then make sure they have developed specific aspects of their character that are related to that theme, they can brainstorm conflicts. I ask them to think about specific conflicts their character might encounter which would help them explore their particular theme.
So, it looks like this...
A desire for revenge can ruin an individual’s life.
What are some ways to explore how a desire for revenge could ruin someone’s life? Maybe the character is a football player, the former star quarterback, and then some new quarterback comes into town and takes their place. In an effort to get their spot back on the team, maybe they make this new kid's life miserable.... You can see how this could continue.
Or maybe, like the show AP Bio on Netflix, a former Harvard professor's career takes a turn after he loses his dream job and ends up teaching Advanced Placement biology in his hometown where his desire for revenge against the person who got him fired drives every decision he makes. (I’ve only watched the first couple of episodes, but it’s pretty funny).
The whole point of this process is to whittle away at the excess and focus on the story. As you add to the theme or the conflict, you are also adding to the character development. As you add to character and theme, you are inevitably setting up your plot.
It’s synergistic, you know?
How do you develop your characters, plots, and themes? Any advice I can take to my young writers?
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