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Stories may differ in message, content and characters, but each one is required to have these 16 different elements. This article will equip you with a checklist that will be worth keeping - although it is not necessarily in order.
- Stories must have a workable theme to succeed. This is the thread that weaves seamlessly throughout the story, revealing the general theme.
- It must also have a plot, which is another name for the center climax.
- Every story must have an arc. This is the gradual increase of momentum and interest that builds at the beginning, reaches a fever pitch in the middle, and declines into resolutions of story conflicts at the end.
- Some stories move fast and some move slow, but all of them move at some rate of speed – usually a mixture of fast and slow. This is called pacing.
- Storytelling usually requires some sort of outlining, whether proper, or just making notes in your head.
- The resolutions at the end of the story sum up the questions raised within.
- If you don't hook your reader in the first or second paragraph, you won't have a reader for very long.
- All stories are told from a point of view; either first person, second person, third person limited or third person omniscient. At this time, editors are buying third person, past tense.
- The story will always dwell on characters and their problems.
- And stories also have this tricky little thing called dialog. It's tricky to write believable dialog. Become a good eavesdropper and you will write excellent dialog.
- All stories have characters, and they all come with their own bag and baggage of physical, mental and emotional disturbances.
- It would be a challenge to write a story without some degree of research. Always count on research, as every story and article will call for it to some degree.
- Every story will have some kind of timeline. While some authors may dwell on the same scene for a whole chapter, others will skip years in a single sentence.
- You will have scenery and settings in every story, and if you're good, you can turn it into imagery.
- You may not like it, but your story definitely has verbiage - every story does until you edit it out. Out of every 2,500 words, you can cut 300-500 words.
- Perhaps every story doesn't have Show, Don't Tell, but the ones written by advanced writers will have it. Show, Don't Tell is one of those things you can't tell, so I'll show you another time. I'll save that for some other time.
If you have included all of these things in your story, it may not be good, but it will certainly be complete.
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How I Used The Fresh Papaya (PawPaw):
The fruit was to be consumed ‘As is’ because we always have a small plate of fruit everyday around 5 pm.
I planned on adding a teaspoon of seeds into my Yogurt at lunchtime.
The ‘Coleslaw’ I would add to any Salad (even in a sandwich) as it’s summertime in Oz and we are eating a lot of Salads. Don’t know what I am going to do in the Winter though? If you have any ideas please add them as a comment so everyone can benefit.
I had also planned on five serves per day because I thought it would be better to ‘Drip Feed’ it into me, as my wife thinks I am a ‘Drip’ sometimes anyway – so that should fit.
Now… Continue reading Prostate Cancer Diary - My Papaya Recipe
Monday 6th Feb 2012: My Prostate Cancer Diary.
So here is the problem. I have dismissed Surgery completly and that leads me to Radio Therapy as the only available conventional medical alternative.
My Oncologist want me to have Hormone Treatment to:
- a: Slow the Growth of the Cancer cells by (basically) chemically castrating me. Ouch!
- b: Shrink the Prostate down to a smaller target for his magic Death Ray.
I didn’t want to do that with Hormone treatment, but can appreciate why he wants to do that.
So I’m looking into all types of Natural and Alternative medications.
The best I have come up with is PawPaw (Papaya) as there have been quite a few studies with very promising reasults, PLUS it has been… Continue reading Prostate Cancer Diary - My Natural Alternative
Prostate Treatments and Me.
Long time coming since my last post – but I have been kinda busy…. Tests – tests and more tests 
So this is the latest:
My Urologist sent me to the Radio Oncologist because I decided I do NOT want surgery. Apparently I can’t have Brachyatherapy (my original choice) because my Gleason Score is 8 – too high, so External Beam Therapy is the only option, even though they only found cancer cells in ONE of the TEN Biopsies they took.
HOWEVER: (I am discovering LOTS of ‘Howevers’), the Oncologist wants me to have Hormone Treatment first to bring my enlarged prostate down in size.
An ‘Average’ prostate is about 40mm – about the size of a small Plum -… Continue reading My Personal Prostate Cancer Treatment Options
Great article. Concise and to the point. I like how you say the 16 elements are not listed in order. This is definitely a ‘keeper.’
I would think that the size of the outline is directly proportional to the the depth of the characters and story. I want to write and have always dreaded that outline. *LOL* Your checklist, however, organizes the whole process into doable steps, regardless of order!