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Do the sheet for your protagonist first. Then, make character sheets for your other main characters, like the antagonist. Characters are considered main characters if they play a major role in the story, such as influencing your main character or affecting the plot. Figure out what your characters want or what their motivation is. Then, base your plot around your character either getting what they want or being denied it. [3] X Research source You can create your own character sheets or find templates online.
For example, a story about a girl who wants to become a doctor would go much differently if it were told in the 1920s instead of 2019. The character would need to overcome additional obstacles, like sexism, due to the setting. However, you might use this setting if your theme is perseverance because it allows you to show your character pursuing her dreams against societal norms. As another example, setting a story about camping deep in an unfamiliar forest will create a different mood than putting it in the main character’s backyard. The forest setting might focus on the character surviving in nature, while the backyard setting may focus on the character’s family relationships.
Create a plot diagram consisting of an exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Make a traditional outline with the main points being individual scenes. Summarize each plot and turn it into a bullet list.
1st person POV - A single character tells the story from their perspective. Because the story is the truth according to this one character, their account of events could be unreliable. For instance, “I tiptoed across the floor, hoping not to disturb him. ” 3rd person limited - A narrator recounts the events of the story but limits the perspective to one character. When using this POV, you can’t provide the thoughts or feelings of other characters, but you can add your interpretation of the setting or events. For example, “She tiptoed across the floor, her entire body tense as she fought to stay quiet. ” 3rd person omniscient - An all-seeing narrator tells everything that happens in the story, including the thoughts and actions of each character. As an example, “As she tiptoed across the room, he pretended to be asleep. She thought her quiet steps weren’t disturbing him, but she was wrong. Beneath the covers, he clenched his fists. ”
You might start your story like this: “Esther pulled her medical text from the mud, carefully wiping the cover clean on the hem of her dress. The laughing boys sped away on bicycles, leaving her to walk the last mile to the hospital alone. The sun beat down on the rain-soaked landscape, turning the morning’s puddles into a dank afternoon haze. The heat made her want to rest, but she knew her instructor would use tardiness as an excuse to kick her out of the program. ”
For example, let’s say that Esther’s class is going to get the opportunity to work with real patients, and she wants to be chosen as 1 of the students who gets to do it. However, when she gets to the hospital, she’s told she can only go in as a nurse. This sets up a plot where Esther tries to earn her spot as a doctor-in-training.
For example, Esther might go into the hospital as a nurse, look for her peers, switch her clothes, almost get caught, and then meet a patient who needs her help.
In Esther’s story, the climax might occur when she’s caught trying to treat a patient who’s collapsed. As the hospital tries to remove her, she shouts out a correct diagnosis, causing the senior doctor to demand her release.
For instance, the senior doctor at the hospital might compliment Esther and offer to be her mentor.
Esther’s story might end with her starting rounds with her new mentor. She might reflect on what she would have lost if she hadn’t defied the rules to pursue her goal.
For example, starting with Esther walking to the hospital is a better place to start than when she enrolled in medical school. However, it might be even better to start when she arrives at the hospital.
For example, this piece of dialogue shows us that Esther is frustrated: “But I’m the top student in my class,” Esther pleaded. “Why should they get to examine patients but not me?”
For example, Esther being denied entry to the hospital as a doctor is a horrible experience for her. Similarly, being grabbed by security would be frightening.
For example, Esther could react to the smell of the hospital or the sound of beeping machines.
For instance, Esther has worked really hard for something only to be denied it based on a technicality. Most people have experienced a failure like this before.
Printing out your story may help you see it from a different perspective, so you might try that when you go back to revise it. Setting your work aside for a little while is a good move, but don’t set it aside for so long that you lose interest in it.
You can also read your story to other people and ask them for advice.
The people closest to you, like your parents or best friend, may not provide the best feedback because they care about your feelings too much. However, you may be able to find a writing critique group on Meetup. com or at your local library. For feedback to be helpful, you have to be receptive to it. If you think you’ve written the most perfect story in the world, then you won’t actually hear a word anyone says. Make sure you’re giving your story to the right readers. If you’re writing science fiction but have handed your story to your writer friend who enjoys literary fiction, you may not get the best feedback.
For instance, let’s say there’s a passage where Esther sees a girl in the hospital who reminds her of her sister. While this detail might seem interesting, it doesn’t advance the plot or show something meaningful about Esther, so it’s best to cut it.
