 Short Stories: August 16, 2017 Issue [#8447] |
  Short Stories
This week: A Classic Formula Edited by: Jay's debut novel is out now!  
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This Issue:
A Classic Formula
While it won't work for every story, there are a few quintessential plot formulas that can produce quality results.
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I'm still in the middle of the novel revision salt mines right now, so it's sometimes difficult for me to break out of that and start thinking in terms of short stories, but lately I've been working with one of the classic plot formulas, as crafted by Lester Dent. It works best for genre stories with some kind of action, but it is vague enough that one ought to be able to transfer the key elements into the format of one's choice!
One of the masters of the pulp short, Lester Dent crafted a formula for short stories in the 6,000-word ballpark, wherein the story was broken out into four sections of roughly equal 1,500-word length. I thought this was an interesting exercise and wondered how well it might work if we were to think about it in terms of a 2,000 word story (the maximum length for a story in the official Writing.com contests, for example).
The formula works in four stages, which I'll paraphrase here for clarity and ease of use:
1] establishing the main character, conflict, and any setting details that will enhance the overall story, as well as the mystery or intrigue that will lead the reader through the story;
2] add unexpected complications to the major plot that continue the action but add a twist or other angles to the story;
3] suspense or menace build up as the main character comes to their lowest point;
4] and while they are at their lowest point, the main character's heroic efforts will reveal the answers to the key mystery or intrigue that drew the reader into the story in the first place, such as they are, and work in any resolution required to make the story satisfying to read.
Now, I can already see some of you hesitating. "But my story doesn't do that!" "That's not how I write!" and all manner of other similar things. And that's fine! We all write just a little bit differently. This is really just a guideline, in my opinion; it is a blueprint that, when used effectively, will produce a satisfying and interesting story to read. The formula does very little work for you--trust me, I know, I'm testing it out with a side project myself!
What I think IS helpful about it, though, is the partitions! For me, I like the idea of knowing roughly how much story to put into each section of something that I'm working on, and I suspect that if I were to weigh out what I do while I'm working and see how it holds up, it would give me a good idea of how much story I have left to create in order to have a satisfying narrative.
Again, it's not exact and it isn't meant to be; if you needed to give slightly more weight to one section of the story, it would still work out, I think. As an example: if I got 500 words into a short story and had established my setting, characters, and plot through the opening actions of the story, being able to estimate that I need another 1500 words or so to finish the piece might be encouraging. And on the other hand, if I get 500 words in and I'm nowhere near ready to say I'm a quarter of the way through, I can easily project that my story is too big for the contest prompt.
What do you think? Would this help you keep your short story on the rails while you're drafting? Why or why not? Let me know!
Take care and Write on!
All the best,
Jay |
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Feedback from "Repurposing Structure and Form" !
Elizabeth  writes:
When I'm struggling to write, I find either adapting my short stories to scripts or writing narrative poetry tends to work the best. Trying to tell a story in a way I wouldn't usually tell it tends to give me quite the boost.
I really like this advice! A quick change-up can work wonders, for sure.
Lucinda Lynx writes:
That is exactly the reason for me to use the I - form. If I use the she - form, the structure and POV become a mess. The I form releases me to think other necessary things in the story.
Yeah, point of view can be much easier to control in first person!
brom21 writes:
Obviously what helps me with short stories is a scene by scene outline. The process of brainstorming is easy. That is what is used to make the scenes. So, yeah, that is the biggest tool I can think of. Thanks for the letter!
Yeah, this is a very common construction, I think! I have a general rubric I use to determine whether I'm hitting the points needed to match the structures well in a timely fashion.
Quick-Quill  writes:
I keep to my format. Goal, motivation and conflict. It applies to any length of story. Just fill in the blanks and add setting.
Glad you found something that works for you!
innerlight  writes:
I've five short stories I've written in the past where adding poetry seemed to add a more character. The main character used this for clues to solve the crime or sending a poem to his or her lover.
What an intriguing suggestion! Definitely one way to add dimension to a piece.
Azrael Tseng writes:
I usually focus on just 1 most important thing for a short story -- it can be the character, the action, the message, the twist or the how it should make the reader feel. Obviously they're all important elements, but in the space of 1000-2000 words something's gotta give. Everything else just falls in place around that singled-out element.
It's when I try to squeeze everything in that the result becomes diluted and the story just kinda flops...
I know what you mean! Especially with pieces just a bit over flash length, it is really good to have a focus so that you don't end up sprawling well outside of the containment area. 
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