• sociologically_speaking said on Jun 26, 2006....

  The best story is one that is so realistic that you completely get lost in it--even if it's short story. The best kind if story is one in which you can identify with the characters, even if you are totally different from them.

• starlightstarbright said on Jun 26, 2006....

  I can definitely relate to your dilemma. I started a romance novel about three years ago and had absolutely no idea where I was going with the characters, the setting, or the plot. I had a basic idea of what I wanted to do, but no matter how much I worked on it, I just didn't have much inspiration for it. Since then, I have stopped working on that book, because the topic didn't really inspire me that much. What has helped me recently, though, is reading fiction novels that are of the romance genre. Basically, if you read other books, you can get inspired. Characters, plot, and big events all play a part in making a great novel, but you have to know how to illustrate that. Don't just say something like, "Jane walked down the street." Try to say "Jane walked down the street," in a more descriptive and intuitive way. I'm sure you remember your English teachers saying, "Show. Don't tell. " Always remember that. If you say "Jane walked down the street," the reader will not hunger to know what happens next. They will simply put down the book and leave it at that. For more ideas on how to write a novel, take a look at "How to Write a Damn Good Novel" or "How to Write a Damn Good Novel 2."

• hunter_boyce_chandler said on Jun 26, 2006....

  This is easy. The best story lets me see intimate details of another persons thinking in a Tess Gerritsen sort of way. Add in a Koontzian cool dog, with a King tingle at the curtain rustle and the Straub bump in the kitchen. Awe me with new Crichton and Palmer technology and a couple of Cornwell explosions. Then wind the whole thing up with a magical Irving backstory. I've been working on this for about 20 years to no avail.

• hotaka said on Jun 27, 2006....

  I have read a lot of books that were very well writing and some that made me flinch from time to time. But no matter what, the stories that I enjoyed best were the ones that made me either sympathize with the characters or really dislike some of the characters. I felt that I was experiencing the lives of real people. If the story proved to be interesting with a plot that was made believable by the context of the setting (ie Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings) and one that moved along swiftly enough to keep me from getting bored but slowly enough to keep me from getting lost then I could enjoy the book. I find constructing a basic background setting for your story (timeline of previous events, general character profiles, rough outline of where each chapter is going) you will find it easier to move along with things. With a lot of preparartion your story and characters may just grow naturally and you will find yourself propelled along at times, surprised at where all this information is coming from.

• hotaka said on Jun 27, 2006....

  Very well written! Blast! I should have proof read first.

• Michaela said on Jun 27, 2006....

  What makes a story "good"? I think a lot of it depends on the perception of the individual reading the story. What one person finds interesting, another may not (kind of like; one man's trash is another man's treasure!). Individual differences in personality types will certainly dictate individual interests in one kind of story line or another. I venture to say that one will never be able to write a story that will be considered "good" to everyone; all the way across the board. I call a story "good" when it delivers a profound moral message. In the mid 1900's, a brilliant gentleman by the name of Rod Serling wrote many really good stories that were broadcast on television, and every one of his stories delivered a strong moral message; through the general theme it conveyed along the way, and then at the end of the story, in one statement of conclusion that would really drive the message home. He also wrote stories that spoke of our hopes and our fears as humans; and stories about the unfairness of the social injustices that exist in our society; and he wrote stories that reminded us about things we've forgotten and shouldn't have. A lot of the main characters in his stories were people that were down on their luck; at the end of their rope; and spiritually broken .....and within the story and by the end of it, he'd reveal something to them about life (and/or death) that would renew their zest for living by giving them a new and wonderfully innovative way in which to view life; and they would then be able to continue on with an adjusted frame of mind. Rod Serling died when he was just fifty or in his early fifties - oh, to think of the stories he'd be treating us to now had he not died so young! You can find a lot of his stories in the old "Playhouse 90" series and then, of course, in his own show, "The Twilight Zone." To me, Rod Serling was the epitome of the good story-writer because he wrote stories that made a social statement about our society and the variety of individuals within it - and the dilemmas that we all can encounter, and he'd usually give the character a choice in decision-making towards an end to the dilemma - a lot of "right versus wrong" kinda stuff . I think more than anything, his stories made us think about the things we do and the way we treat other people, and the subsequent ramifications that result from doing the right or wrong thing. He would reward the character who'd do the right thing and the person who'd make the wrong decision would suffer dire consequences for doing so. For a youngster watching his shows as I was then, it really taught me that doing the right thing in life was definitely the way to go - powerful stuff to teach a child. The television is an extremely powerful device for influencing people, most especially our children. When I think to compare the effect his stories had on me versus what kind of effect one of our present-day TV shows can have on the individual viewing it, (whether adult or child);I shudder to think what some of today's ridiculous shows are teaching our children. Getting back to your question, I think it would behoove you to have in mind what it is that you want your story to say. If you come up with a general story-line, such as, "I want to write a story about a small town and the people that live there, and how their lives change because of a circus that comes into town and affects everything." With this general story-line in place in your mind, you can now create the town, the various characters that live there, the people that work in the circus, etc, etc. I think it would be very hard, indeed, to try and write a story about something when you didn't have a clear understanding in your own mind as to who you were writing about,or where they lived. And, you can hardly know how your characters are going to react to events when you don't know who they are! You kind of answered your own question in your own statements about the confusion you're experiencing in writing the story; you're having difficulty because of the reasons you stated! It's not that the chapters are hard to write - the story itself is almost impossible to write when you don't know what you're writing about! I think you'll find that if you set these things down in place first, you'll take off like there's no tomorrow!

• Oldawg said on Jun 27, 2006....

  First of all, I echo everything written by Michaela. Next, I always trust in the following advice: write about what you know. This advice can simply be translated into: write the truth. In "Moveable Feast," Hemingway describes how he would sit and write sentence after sentence, sometimes for long stretches, until he'd finally produced what was, in his mind, something "true." If you can pen a flow that rings true to your conscience, then I think you will be impressed with the results. We are internally aware of certain truths, readers and writers alike, and even if something has not happened directly to us, we are turned on by words that evoke the presence of truth -- a real emotion, for example, or a real sense of place. Of course it is a great challenge for writers to avoid misstepping into tangents and aimless plot developments and every other obstacle that we face, but I think the task is becomes easier if we can stick to writing about what we know. This is based on what we ourselves have experienced and considered, and what we sense is a shared thread for all of human life.

• anonymous said on Jul 06, 2006....

  how bouta story on how the bloggers bursted when they read that their works were nothing but a christian scam to witness to the world and how a nobody like hunter got his days of fame with such a reckless and prejudiced blog of slur?

• silverwhisper said on Jul 14, 2006....

  all IMHO...i think you need to be able to make your reader want to turn the page/click next. this can be accomplished through: 1. superior characters. 2. sparkling dialogue. 3. creative/inventive plot. 4. well-realized setting. most published authors are particularly gifted in one of these areas. a handful of lucky ones may hit 2. i'm unaware of anybody that i would say has hit the "grand slam", so to speak. so i guess this is kind of a non-answer, in that it doesn't say [x] and/or [y] and/or [z] make a good story. as a

• dreamtime said on Jul 21, 2006....

  I'm not an expert on this but I have read that many authors work on their characters in a rather detailed manner. Even before they start writing, they formulate a complete character sketch of each participant in the novel.. where does he live; how many siblings he has; are his parents alive; what is his educational background; what kind of jobs he has held; which places he has travelled to; how many relationships he has had; has he been dumped recently; does he like to eat crab; what's his political leaning... so much more.... The fact is that when you have Characters A, B, C, D & E as fully formed individuals it becomes easy to see how the conversation between A and B would go if they were to meet or how it would go if B, D & E meet. The dynamics of interaction would differ according to the personalities of the individuals. Each would contribute to the conversation according to his own biases, pretentions and other assortment of coloured perspectives. Your ability to observe and understand real individuals would be a great asset. Even greater would be your ability to replicate that reality in the interactions that your characters undergo. I believe that this is how good authors get us to empathise with their characters.

• mysterious said on Jul 28, 2006....

  When reading a book, my interest is captured by characters that have personality, vibrant with life.

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