Stephen's Comments on Story Structure

     Last week, I presented a story for the purpose of explaining its anatomy or structure. I condensed the story, omitted exposition, and identified the critical elements. The particular story form I used imagines “stories within a story.” In graphical form, it looks like this:

     I do not mean to suggest a rigid structure. On the contrary, story structure is flexible, but nonetheless it does have elements that authors should keep in mind. I have written about these before in this series, but a reminder might be in order.
     First, and very important, is to let the reader know the story problem. What is the situation these people are trying to resolve? Although not all instructors agree, I contend that the “focus” of the story should be identified early. By focus, I mean time and place.
     Then, move to episodes using scenes and sequels, each incorporating the basic story formula: Goal versus obstacle breeds conflict that leads to action and results in resolution. Along the way, emotion is critical to good storytelling. And then comes surprise; something unexpected leads to a turning point and the story moves in a new direction. This sequence repeats throughout the story with each conflict requiring a resolution. In the graphic, I have shown the resolutions at the end, but that also is flexible. The only one that must occur at the end is the resolution of the story problem, which follows the climatic or crucial event. Let the reader know; “This is how these people resolved this problem.”
     My final comment is to not leave conflicts unresolved. A recent letter from a reader of my new novel, Goad of Honor, had this to say: “ . . . as with any good novel, the loose ends are tied up very nicely.”

© Copyright 2005 by Stephen P. Byers