Copyoftemplateshortstoryplanning

LI: to plan out my short story prior to writing
All short stories follow a particular format:

1. It has a main character (protagonist) - can be an animal, an alien, a person etc.
2. There has to be a problem
3. The main character strives to solve the problem.
4. The main character either succeeds or fails at solving the problem.
5. Main character changes in some way.
What is plot? It's the road map that takes your story from point A to point B.
Steps to creating your story:
1. Invent your characters; think about your setting
2. What is the change that the character experiences (this is also part of the conflict)
3. How does the story begin
4. How does the story end
5. Develop a logline for your story
Short story plot ideas:
1. Tell the story of a scar, whether a physical scar or emotional one.
2. A group of children discover a dead body. Good writers dont turn away from
death, which is, after all, the universal human experience. Instead, they look it
directly into its dark face and describe what they see on the page.
3. A young prodigy becomes orphaned. Orphans are uniquely vulnerable, and as
such, they have the most potential for growth.
4. A middle-aged woman discovers a ghost. What do Edgar Allen Poe, Ron Weasley,
King Saul from the Bible, Odysseus, and Ebeneezer Scrooge have in common? They
all encountered ghosts!
5. A woman who is deeply in love is crushed when her fianc breaks up with her.
In life every ending is just a new beginning, says Dakota Fannings character in
Uptown Girls.
6. A talented young mans deepest fear is holding his life back. Your characters
biggest fear is your storys secret weapon. Dont run from it, write about it.
7. A poor young boy or girl comes into an unexpected fortune. Not all fortunes are
good. Sometimes discovering a fortune will destroy your life.
8. A shy, young woman unexpectedly bumps into her soulmate (literally bumps
into him). In film, this is called the meet cute, when the hero bumps into the
heroine in the hallway, knocking her books to the floor, and forcing them into
conversation.
9. A long journey is interrupted by a disaster. Who hasnt been longing to get to a
destination only to be delayed by something unexpected? This is the plot of Gravity,
The Odyssey, and even Lord of the Rings.
10. A young couple run into the path of a psychopath. Monsters, whether people
who do monstrous things or scaly beasts or a monster of a natural disaster, reveal
whats really inside a person. Let your character fall into the path of a monster and
see how they handle themselves.
11. What if? What if Vampires lived in Nazi Germany? What if an earthquake hit
Auckland? What if aliens visited our school? What if animals took over the world.
Create a Logline for your story Idea
My logline:
An exceptionally intelligent cat, Clement, witnesses the murder of his owner and goes
on a quest to communicate what he knows to a human.
Plan your story:

Character
Setting
Plot
Clement, an introverted
ginger cat.
Nice, France. Clement is

living in an apartment until
he runs away after his
owners murder.
How does it start?

Clements intelligent mind is
bored with the world he
lives in and wishes for more
excitement
What happens next?
Clement starts to notice

suspicious comings and
goings from the apartment.
What is the conflict? (the

exciting part of the story,
when the character
changes)
Clements owner is
murdered. Scared, Clement
runs away into the city and
is desperate to tell
someone of his owners
murderer
How is it resolved?
Clement befriends a small

girl, Adalaide, and she helps
him.
Develop success
criteria for your
writing.
What will make your
writing excellent?
Recrafting
Advanced writers:
Create a connection
with your reader
Include a main
message or theme
Success Criteria:
An engaging opening hook
A good description of one particular character
A well described setting
Figurative language
Interesting descriptive words
Uses show not tell (5 senses)
Good sequencing
Paragraphing
Punctuation - full stops and commas
Punctuation - speech marks
Joe is a professional scuba diver. He is passionate about scuba diving but he hasnt had
much luck in other areas of his life. One day, he gets the opportunity to go on an
expedition dive in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. While he is there, he discovers a famous,
ancient rock statue from the Easter Islands.
What could happen next? E.g. the conflict
a) He brings the statue back to the people of Easter Island and is regarded a hero to
the people of the Island. He stays with the people and becomes their leader.
b) The statue talks to him and grants him 3 wishes ...
c) Next to the statue he sees a small box which he keeps for himself and discovers it is
full of gold coins, which transforms his miserable life.
d) The statue brings bad luck to anyone who finds it and Joe gets eaten by a shark!
Logline:
Character/descriptor: Joe, down and out
Event: Finds an ancient Easter Island statue
Conflict: ends up as a hero to the people of Easter Island.
Joe, a down and out man from California finds an ancient Easter Island statue during a diving
expedition. He returns the statue to the people of the Islands and ends up a hero.

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LI: to plan out my short story prior to writing

All short stories follow a particular format:

Plan your story:

Nice, France. Clement is

How does it start?

Clement starts to notice

What is the conflict? (the

Clement befriends a small

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