Try authors like Ray Bradbury, H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, and Andy Weir. Ask an English teacher or a librarian for suggestions on books or authors. Read writers for the format that you want to write, such as screenwriters if you want to do a screenplay or short story writers for a short story.

Watch older movies like Jurassic Park, Blade Runner, Alien, or Star Wars, as well as new movies like The Martian, Ex Machina, Interstellar, and Arrival.

Look for journals that cover multiple areas of science, such as Nature or Science. See if you can subscribe to a digital version or archive of the journal if you want to access them easier.

For example, if news came out about the discovery of a new supervirus, you could write a story about the last few survivors or how finding a cure went wrong.

For example, the “What if” question for Jurassic Park is “What if dinosaurs were brought back to life for our entertainment?”

Using the far, far future will give you the most freedom to explore ideas while setting your story in the past will restrict you. If you set a story in the past, make sure to research the time period to see what technology existed, what events were taking place, and how people spoke. Check for what clothing they wore and what customs they followed.

For example, The Handmaid’s Tale is a futuristic society, but the themes of treatment of women and slavery come from real culture. Experiment with mixing different cultural practices when creating an alien race. For example, you may blend a nomadic culture that dresses like the Vikings.

If you’re introducing new technology that is completely foreign to readers, make sure to describe it in detail so they understand it. For example, The Martian uses real science to send a man to Mars and for how he’s able to survive once he’s stranded.

Make lists of what your characters would experience when they first arrive in your setting. What sights would they see? Who would be there? For example, if your story takes place in a world where the oceans dried up, you could describe the heat, the taste and smell of salt in the air, and the large salt deposits and valleys where the oceans once were.

For example, if you were going to do a brief description of Pandora from the movie Avatar, you may write: “Pandora is a large jungle planet inhabited by a tall, blue humanoid race called the Na’vi. The Na’vi exist in a tribal society with chiefs and spiritual leaders guiding them. They worship and bond with the lush and colorful wildlife around them. ”

For example, Superman’s flaw is that he’ll do whatever he can to save the world, but he will not kill. Putting him in a situation where he may have to harm someone makes your hero go through an interesting choice and keeps the reader on the edge of their seat.

For example, HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey sees the human crew endangering their mission and chooses to wipe them out. Remember that the villain is often the hero of their own story. If your villain is a monster, they do not need to have a redeeming quality, but it could be interesting if they do. Consider having a monster feed its children rather than hunting people for fun.

If your character has an especially odd quirk, like having to pour water on themselves to stay hydrated, you may need to explain it so readers aren’t left in the dark.

For example, a character may be motivated to travel across the universe to find a cure for a rare disease in their homeworld.

Sketch out what you want your character to look like if they’re an alien race or unfamiliar to a general audience.

You can find the 12 steps of the Hero’s Journey here: http://www. tlu. ee/~rajaleid/montaazh/Hero’s%20Journey%20Arch. pdf. The Hero’s Journey is not a set in stone way to write stories, but it will help guide you if this is the first time you’ve written. This works best in long-form writing, like a novel or screenplay.

A third person limited point of view allows you to write as a narrator, but the reader only gets the thoughts and feelings of your protagonist. A third person omniscient point of view uses a narrator, but you can switch to the thoughts and feelings of any character in your story. While you can use second person, where the reader is the protagonist and the word “you” is used, it is not very common.

Examples of tone include sarcastic, enthusiastic, indifferent, mysterious, wry, somber, acerbic, smug, pessimistic, and so on. The tone can also be formal or informal. Your writing’s voice can be shaped by what point of view you’ve written your work. For example, you may be able to use more slang or informal language if you’re writing in the first person.

Make sure each of your characters sounds different or else your readers will have a hard time telling which character is speaking. Avoid clichès like, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” or “I have a bad feeling about this. ” Listen to how people talk in real life so you have an idea of how people speak. Ask if you can record a conversation and try to transcribe the audio.

Use detailed language, but don’t be over-explanatory or else you risk bogging down your writing. Vary the length of the sentences throughout the piece. Shorter sentences are read faster. Longer sentences, like this one, will make it seem like the story is going slower and will affect how readers feel while reading your story.

Ask others to read your story so you can get a different perspective on your writing. They may catch things that you may not have noticed.

Make multiple revisions until you feel like your story is completely finished. Find an editor or copywriter if you can to help look over and revise your drafts.