Wikipedia:WikiProject Wikipack Africa Content/Help:Write a story

What are the ingredients of a good story? These points will help you to write your own stories in such a way that readers will find them appealing and memorable. And maybe you could win your school a prize!

A story has a range of important elements that you should consider - setting, plot, conflict, character development, point of view, and theme.

Setting

The setting is the time and place in which the story happens. So, when and where the story takes place. Often, the weather conditions is used to express mood, such as ‘on a rainy day’ or ‘stormy day’. For example, in the Jungle Book the setting is a jungle in India, and the time is in the past. In the Jack and the Beanstalk, the setting is a rural farm and village in Europe; in the middle ages. Ask yourself these questions … be descriptive!

Where is your story taking place?
When will it happen?

Character

Usually, in a story, there is only one main character. This main character is called the ‘protagonist’. Usually, the villain of the story, who opposes the protagonist, is called the ‘antagonist’. In the story, ‘The monkey and the Crocodile’, the monkey is the protagonist, and the crocodile is the antagonist.

The term ‘character’ is also used to refer to the characteristics of a person, which means his/her physical appearance, thinking, feelings, values, and behaviours. In very good stories, the characters are life-like (resembling real people), and consistent.

Ask yourself these questions … be descriptive!

Who is the main character?
What are they like? What are their emotions? What do they feel? How do they look at the world and other people?
Who are the other characters?

Conflict / Problem

Conflict refers to the struggle between two things or forces. This struggle becomes the problem in the story. In a story, usually there is only one problem or central struggle. This struggle can be between the main character in the story, and an external force, or it can be a psychological struggle within the main character himself/herself. A story about a man’s fight with a lion is an example of an external struggle. A person who is about to start a new job that they don't know how to do could make someone feel worried or insecure. A very common conflict in short stories and even in novels is the struggle between good and evil.

Ask yourself these questions … be descriptive!

What is the conflict that your character is facing?
Is the problem internal (an emotional reaction to someone else or something else)?
Or is your problem and external one (a natural disaster, losing a job, etc.)?
How is your character going to fix this problem?

The Action or the Plot

The events that happen during the story is called the plot. Ask yourself these questions:

What will happen first?
Then what will happen? And then?
What will happen at the end?

There are usually five elements to a plot.

Introduction: this is the beginning of the story, when the action starts. At the start of the story, you introduce the reader to the setting and the characters who are part of the action.
Rising action: this is where the story becomes complicated, or a problem happens or the conflict starts in the story. You will read about conflict later.
Climax: this is where the problem or conflict is at its most difficult. The story’s climax is where it is at its highest complexity. This is when the reader wonders what will happen and how the problem will be solved.
Falling action: this is where the problem begins to be solved.
Denouement: this is the ending or the outcome of the story. Where all the events and problems are finally iron out.

Remember, this is just a guide to the usual way that stories are structured.

Point of view/perspective

Point of view is how the story is told. There are many different ways of telling a story, here are a few of them:

First person: The story is told by the main character. You use the pronoun ‘I’. The reader sees the action from the way the main character does. This means that the story can only happen through what the character knows or feels.
'Omniscient: Here the reader can see it all. The story is told from all points of view, moving from character to character, and can include the thoughts and feelings of all of those who are involved in the story.
'Third person objective: Here the writer tells the story in the third person, using he, she or it. The reader is a spectator who watches the actions and the behaviours of the characters in the story, but does not know what goes on inside their minds. The writer does not explain all the events in the story; the reader has to figure them out.

Theme

For the StoryChallenge the theme is to write about something that has happened in your area. It could be a story about a boy from your school, or a girl who doesn’t go to school. It could be about a famous person from your area, or a local legend about something that happened. The sky is the limit … as long as it has something to do with your area.

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Guidelines and ideas for teachers