Ms. Deb, as her students affectionately call her, is the CEO & Founder of Creative Writing Institute, and the former A-1 Writing Academy (now defunct).
"The A-1 Academy was a pilot program built within the virtual walls of a large writer's group," said Deborah. "In the first year we drew 600 students, but I wanted to reach the public. In another year Creative Writing Institute was created. It is a high-quality, low cost writing school with full-time mentors and small classes. Even distressed students and seniors can afford our prices."
Creative Writing Institute now partners with http://bookpleasures.com to bring the best and most up-to-date information available to creative writers everywhere. Check out the new school by Clicking Here.
All creative writers are bound to an
invisible law of journalism. From the beginning of time, the same
structure has been used. All of the great writers use it. But after
this lesson, you will see that story structure is far more than the
initial breakdown:
· Exposition – the beginning,
what the story is about
· Conflict – conflict with man
vs. man, man vs. nature, or man vs. internal conflict
·
Climax
· Resolution
If you Google "story
structure," you will find variations of the story structure. You
might find plot, conflict, conclusion – or theme, climax, and
conclusion. No matter how you word it, the basic answer is the same.
Without any one of these elements, the story will flounder.
But
you must expound on the following things, no matter what kind of
story you are writing:
· Point of View
·
Plot
· Theme
· Setting
·
Characterization
· Dialog
· Action
·
Writing style
· Genre
If you want to transfer your
reader from their sofa or chair to the scene in your mind, you must
use settings. This can be anything from an open window with a curtain
blowing in the breeze to a murder scene in progress. The best idea is
to open midway of an action scene. This will grab your audience
quicker and keep them longer, as they read to find the outcome of the
actions.
There is a difference between plot and theme. Plot
is the series of events that occur in the story. Plot is what the
story is about. Theme, on the other hand, is the underlying
motivation that drives the story. The open window with the curtains
blowing in the breeze is part of a setting, which in turn is part of
the larger picture, the plot. Every time there is an event in the
story, you must ask yourself these questions: "Why is the window
open? How did the window get opened? Obviously, someone opened it.
But why?" – then you are in the theme of the story. Always ask
yourself, who, what, when, where, why and how. The answer to these
questions is the theme that drives the story.
Point of view
is how the reader sees the story. If you tell it in first person
point of view (I went the store… ), the reader will see the story
through your eyes. If you tell it in third person point of view, (He
went to the store… ), the reader will see the story through the
character's eyes. New writers usually like to write in first person,
but most editors are now buying mostly third person. This new trend
makes a huge difference in choosing your POV.
A few brief
words on some of the above: Characterization – make your characters
real to the reader by concentrating on descriptions, attitudes,
failures, and quirks. Dialog – it's okay to use accents, but
preferably not on the main character. And for settings – use
anything that describes where a person is, or will be.