Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Writing Tip Tuesday

According to scriptwriting "formulas", one of the critical elements in the setup of a story is the central question.

  • The central question is simply what the story is about or what the problem is.
  • The story should ask a question in the setup that will be answered in the climax.
  • The central question should be revealed as early as possible. (This is particularly true for young readers. They don't want to have to keep reading and reading to find out what the heck the story is about. In fact, if you take too long to reveal the central question, they will stop reading and go watch Sponge Bob.)
  • The central question must be clear. (Again, if it is not clear, young readers will go watch Sponge Bob instead.)
  • Once the central question is raised, everything that happens in the story after that should revolve around or relate to that question.
  • The climax of the story answers the central question (e.g. solves the problem).

4 comments:

Sara said...

Thank you so much for leaving your comments about Letters From Rapunzel at my blog. I left you a reply there, but just in case you didn't see it yet: thank you again.

And now it's either back to work or off to watch Sponge Bob...

Heather said...

Thanks for the great tips, Barbara. Keep 'em coming!

I just blogged about (and linked to) your interview with Brian Lies at my blog. I never fail to find something inspiring here. Thanks so much!

Barbara O'Connor said...

Sara: Yes, I saw your comment. You're welcome (and I vote for Sponge Bob.)

Heather: Thanks for the nice words and the link!

Heather said...

You're so welcome! ;o)