Write It Right: Don’t Tell Us a Story

One of the toughest things for newer writers to learn to do is create a story. A story is a specific kind of thing. It isn’t a synopsis, like the work stories you tell over the dinner table. It isn’t a vignette, like the funny story you tell of your daughter’s vocabulary gaffe. Writers aren’t born knowing what a story really is. Stephen King once wrote about his lack of success selling one of his early story attempts. He couldn’t understand why it wouldn’t sell at the time. An editor finally told him that he was a talented writer but that the piece wasn’t a story. As Stephen King came to understand stories, he agreed.

So, what is a story? How do you know if the characters and circumstances you have created come together to make a story? 

Let’s talk about it to today’s episode.

Listener Question of the Week

Janelle asks:

How do you incorporate social media without dating your book? In 10-15 years, Snapchat might not even exist, so how do you involve characters realistically in things that may change in the future?

Listen to the answer in the podcast!