Help on Making a Story

My name is candy176. These are some tips that I RECOMMEND, but I'm not asking/telling you to do them. I really think they'll help, though. If you see that I missed anything, or recommend something yourself, comment about it. Thank you!!

Vocabulary:

1) Try to use a lot of vocabulary. If you're reading another story and you see a word you don't know (this only works for iPods, iPads, etc.) then just highlight the word and press "define." Try to remember any challenging words, and when you're making your own story, try to use those words.

2) Never use the same word over and over again. For example: "Her expression was laced with concern." The word "laced" can be used in a lot of ways, but it can also be written as "her expression was full of concern" or "she looked concerned." Never use the word over and over again, as it can seem very repetitive--try, even, to use different words on each page. Never make a paragraph with one word and then reuse it in the next paragraph.

Characters:

1) Try to really create characters--what they act like, what they like, what they don't like, what they would do. Try to make them act in the same way, instead of being nice one second and then mean the next. Maybe they might like ice cream, or Justin Timberlake. What's their favorite hobby? Their favorite food? Their favorite kind of person? Envision asking them a question, and try to imagine what their answer would be based on their characteristics. Make them predictable by their character, but not too predictable.

2) If you're having trouble with making up a character, I suggest you take someone you know--yourself would be the best, as you know yourself inside and out--and try to imagine how they'd react in a certain situation. Then mix their qualities with character traits you like, and try to alter their personality with that. Don't make them too predictable, though, to the point where the reader is reading and they come to a choice and know exactly what the character is going to pick.

3) There is an entire chapter (chapter 9) devoted to characters: how to make one, how to develop them, etc. If you still are struggling, I recommend you read that chapter.

Realism:

1) Make your story realistic. And, no, I don't mean make sure it has no fantasy in it, etc. I mean, make sure that everything that happens in the story--everything that could happen, that isn't fantasy or science fiction or whatever--makes sense. Romance, personalities, and reactions are three important things that make things realistic. Mess up on any of these things, and your story won't be as big of a hit. An example is that a girl sees a hideous monster. She's little, about four. Will she run up to the monster, hug it, and call it her friend, or will she run away screaming? Don't choose the answer you want, choose the answer that's most likely to happen.

2) Make sure to make reactions. If someone's thrashing around on their bed, will their covers fall off? Will their hair be splayed across their pillow? Will they fall off of the bed? Will their sleeping neighbor wake up because of the noise? And why are they thrashing--bad dreams, or are they in pain? Think of reactions that would happen in normal life and play them into the story.

Deaths:

1) Death is a touchy subject. If you want none of your characters to die, I'm sorry, it just can't work like that. When a reader is reading and they get the sense that nobody died and nobody probably is going to die, it won't be as much fun to read. In a cliff hanger, the reader will know everything will be fine, and won't be as excited to read--they may even stop reading altogether. Make a few deaths here and there to liven things up and to make sure that the reader doesn't get too comfortable. And don't do that thing where everyone is easy to kill except for the leader--that's just cheesy.

Editing:

1) Once you're done with your chapter, I suggest you go back through it. If you see any grammatical errors, something that you don't like, or something that doesn't make sense or isn't quite clear, fix it. If you're re-reading a chapter after you've already published it, just edit it and press Save; it will automatically save in the Library when you refresh the page.

This is all for now. If I think of any other topics, I'll post them in the next "chapter." If you find that I left out a topic, put it in the comments. Also, just know that anyone can be a writer--no matter how old you are, where you come from, anything. Don't be afraid to show someone your writing. And peace out, dudes.