In this episode, I'm sharing two of my favorite ways to test out a story idea before you start writing a single word. Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode:
[01:50] The goal of these two exercises is to find out which foundational pieces of your story still need to be fleshed out. Better to find out now than halfway through a draft!
[01:10] Exercise #1: Write a 1-2 sentence summary of your story. Try to capture the WHO, the WHAT, and the WHY of your global story.
[04:45] If you don't know all the answers, look to your genre for clues! Your story's global genre will give you the framework for these summaries (and so much more).
[06:00] If an idea does fall flat in this 1-2 sentence summary, this does NOT mean the story idea isn't good. It just means there's more work to do to flesh out the foundational elements required to write a full-length story.
[06:30} Exercise #2: Write a 250-word (or less) summary of your story. Take your short summary and expand the WHO, the WHAT, and the WHY. Add details about your setting, too.
[08:00] An example of a summary from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.
[11:20] Final thoughts and episode recapFollow & Review in Apple Podcasts
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Links mentioned in this episode:
- Ep. 2 - Understanding Genre: How to Write Better
- IMDB.com the Internet Movie Data Base
- FREE Masterclass: 5 Little-Known Mistakes Most Fiction Writers Make (+ What To Do Instead). Click here to save your seat!
Click here to get 15% off a 30+ page manuscript report from The Spun Yarn's beta readers! Use code SAVANNAHGILBO at checkout.
Support the showIf you enjoyed this episode of the Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast, please rate, review, and follow this show!
Follow me on Instagram @savannah.gilbo
01/11/22 • 14 min
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