The development of story is the process of taking a small seed of an idea and growing it into a fully developed narrative. The result is a story that has compelling characters, immersive settings and powerful themes.
The first step in developing story is identifying your central conflict and creating an outline of the events that will unfold in your story. This outline is known as the plot skeleton. You should begin by putting in key plot elements in order of their importance, rather than trying to fill in every detail of your story all at once.
Next up, you need to flesh out your character’s backstory. This includes their history, the things that have shaped them and the relationships they have with others. This information is used to create conflict and develop tension, as well as to give your reader a deeper connection with your characters.
Characters are one of the most important parts of any story, and you want to ensure that they have depth and dimension. One way to do this is by giving them something to lose. Whether this is their home, job or a loved one, this can add an extra layer of drama to your story.
It’s also a good idea to create an antagonist or bad guy to heighten the conflict between your characters. This can be a literal villain, or it could be an obstacle or a figurative enemy. Adding additional layers of tension can be achieved through narrative devices such as eavesdropping, half-heard conversations, notes and mistakenly understood messages.
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