{"id":5003,"date":"2020-09-23T13:21:07","date_gmt":"2020-09-23T17:21:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/?p=5003"},"modified":"2021-08-09T17:35:57","modified_gmt":"2021-08-09T21:35:57","slug":"story-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/story-draft\/","title":{"rendered":"Journal 4 Story Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

Writing the First Draft<\/h3>\n

Using the past Journal assignments you’ve written about your story, in other words, the Premise, Seven Steps of Story Structure, Character Web, write a thoughtful but quick and rough first draft of your story. \u00a0Your job is to try to find the story by writing down as much as you can about what happens and why. Use the tips below.<\/p>\n

Aim for 5 pages<\/strong> (about 200 words per page)=1000 words. \u00a0But this is just to give you a limit for the size of your story. \u00a0You should write until you finish telling the story as best you can. \u00a0Use placeholders for name\/places\/facts you don’t know. Use lists or outlines for sections you can’t yet flesh out. \u00a0But try to get to the end!<\/strong><\/p>\n

You can change your mind about your topic if your first story idea is no longer appealing, but you should sketch out Premise, Seven Steps of Story Structure, Character Web to help before you attempt a first draft.<\/p>\n

Tips for your First Draft<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Get the story out.\u00a0<\/strong>The best way to get Writer’s Block is too try to write a reply good first draft–because your “editor” will be on call and your messy andrich “creator” will be intimidated and possible shamed. \u00a0So give your “editor” a temporary vacation. A thoughtful, rich and messy first draft leaves gaps and opening for more creativity. \u00a0Write with focus, with a plan, but quickly and roughly.<\/li>\n
  2. Forget Polish.<\/strong> Don\u2019t worry about the language or \u201cwriting well,\u201d even for a moment. Don\u2019t strain after metaphors, don\u2019t worry about symbolism, forget your love of language. Concentrate on what the language is meant to convey: the story itself.<\/li>\n
  3. Keep your premise in mind.<\/strong> Focus on your Premise<\/strong> as you write. \u00a0All stories make a point, and everything in a story \u2013 in one way or another \u2013 builds toward it. \u00a0If you know what you\u2019re trying to say, chances are much better your story will actually communicate it.<\/li>\n
  4. Perspiration not Inspiration.<\/strong> Don\u2019t expect \u201cthe force\u201d to write through you. You are not a channel for some otherworldly energy, you\u2019re a writer, and everything you write comes from you. Work hard to bring out your best. That’s all you need. hard work, effort, a confidence you can access your best effort.<\/li>\n
  5. Nail the Conflict.<\/strong> \u00a0Know the overarching problem your protagonist will face. Use your Seven Structure Steps<\/strong> to clarify this. A story is about how someone solves a problem they can\u2019t avoid, and what he or she has to overcome, internally, in order to do it. It\u2019s this overarching problem that gives a story context.<\/li>\n
  6. Know your ending first.<\/strong> If you don\u2019t know where your story is going, how will you have the slightest idea whether it\u2019s moving at all? How will you know what turns to take? How will you know what needs to happen next? Or at all? You won\u2019t. Without a target to aim for, chances are high your story will idle in neutral.<\/li>\n
  7. Choose a Point of View POV.<\/strong> Know how your protagonist sees the world, and also who is telling their story and why. Your Character Web<\/strong> can help with this. If the overarching problem is what gives your story context, what gives it meaning is how your protagonist navigates that problem and how she interacts with other characters on the journey toward her goal.<\/li>\n
  8. Find your story\u2019s third rail<\/strong>, and make sure everything touches it. Plot<\/strong> should push the character to encounter this third rail as often as possible. Here is the essence of a story: the protagonist is forced, by circumstances outside her control, to deal with a problem she\u2019d really rather avoid. This forces her to dig deep and overcome the inner issue, wound or\u00a0 misconception that\u2019s holding her back. Everything in the story impacts this quest. Think of it as your story\u2019s third rail \u2013 everything must touch it, giving it juice and causing sparks to fly.<\/li>\n
  9. Concentrate on the \u201cwhy\u201d<\/strong> and not the \u201cwhat.\u201d Your Theme or Moral Argument<\/strong> helps clarify this. When something is about to happen, ask yourself, \u201cwhy?\u201d Why is this happening now? Why is my protagonist reacting the way she does? Why does the reader need to know this? Stories aren\u2019t about \u201cwhat\u201d happens, they\u2019re about \u201cwhy.\u201d<\/li>\n
  10. Establish a Story World<\/strong> that raises the stakes somehow for the protagonist. \u00a0The place should matter, as the Forest is critical in Princess Mononoke. \u00a0Usually some aspect of the story work links to deep feelings of home or loss of home (alienation) and are key for story meaning to be deeper.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    –adapted from Lisa Cron, Wired For Story<\/a><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Writing the First Draft Using the past Journal assignments you’ve written about your story, in other words, the Premise, Seven Steps of Story Structure, Character Web, write a thoughtful but quick and rough first draft of your story. \u00a0Your job is to try to find…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5008,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[97,99,86],"class_list":["post-5003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-97","tag-fall2020","tag-journal-4"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/firstdraft.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pahVGy-1iH","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5003","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5003"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5003\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5522,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5003\/revisions\/5522"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jolineblais.net\/nmd343\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}