The Basics and Process of Writing Fiction
By Ann Fields
The task of filling a blank page with words can be daunting if a methodology or process is not known. There are as many approaches to writing fiction, as there are authors. This section will provide one process or approach that is a hybrid of several methods. You may find this process works for you. You may find you’ll skip some of the steps but embrace others. You may not find it helpful at all. The point is to try it in hopes it will make writing a little less challenging.
I. PREMISE/CONCEPT STATEMENT:
The first step of fiction writing is to know what you’re writing about. Whether you’re writing a novel, screenplay, short story or any other form of fiction, you must have a general idea of the story you want to tell.
A premise or concept statement helps you define what you are writing about. It is a statement that basically tells others what your story is about. A premise/concept statement can range from three sentences to a robust paragraph, and it contains the who, what, when, where, how and why of a story. If that sounds familiar, it should. Those are the same elements that appear in the first paragraph of a newspaper story. It is Journalism 101. You may also liken it to telling a friend or family member about a movie you saw. Think about it. What was the last movie you saw? How did you describe it to someone who had not seen it? Writing a premise or concept statement is the same thing as describing the movie.
To help you define your premise or concept statement, it may help to start with four small words… “My story is about…”
Below is a sample of a premise or concept statement to start you on your way…
My story is about an ogre who must rescue a princess and deliver her to the king in order to remove storybook characters from his land so he can return to his orderly, yet lonely existence. After many trials, he achieves his goal only to discover he is a changed ogre who now welcomes others (storybook characters, donkey, princess) in his life. – Shrek
WHO: characters. In this case an ogre, a donkey, a princess and a king (major characters are listed in a premise/concept statement only).
WHAT: the goal to achieve and the obstacles to overcome. In this case, Shrek’s goal is to clear his homestead of all the storybook characters. The obstacles include finding the princess, learning to deal with another person in his life (donkey), rescuing the princess from the dragon, and trying not to fall in love with the princess. In essence, finding the princess, rescuing her and delivering her to the king.
WHEN: time period (contemporary, historical or futuristic) and/or length of time (i.e. 24 hours to diffuse the bomb or one week to come up with the money to save the business). In Shrek’s case, the “when” is based on how quickly Shrek can find, rescue and deliver the princess. Also, from the premise, it is understood this is a “magical” time that is more closely linked to an historical timeframe, given the presence of a dragon.
WHERE: the setting. In Shrek, it is understood this is a “magical” place because of the characters and setting.
HOW: what methods does the main character use to achieve the goal? How does the character overcome the obstacles? Shrek fought a dragon, submitted to the possibility of rejection, and overcame fear to realize love, and more.
WHY: the goal. Shrek wanted to clear his land of all storybook characters. He was used to being “an island unto himself” because of the fear and rejection of his neighbors, and he liked his safe, orderly, yet lonely life. Or so he thought until donkey and princess challenged his beliefs, prompting an internal change that allowed him to embrace others.
Now, write your own premise or concept statement. How does your premise or concept statement compare to the sample above? Try testing your premise by verbally sharing it with a friend or family member. Take note of the follow-up questions they may have. You can use those questions to further develop your premise.
NOTE: The terms premise and concept statement, are used interchangeably. Some writers use premise; others concept statement. You may also hear the words pitch and logline. They all basically mean the same thing, which is boiling your story down to a bite-size statement. However, the type of writing (screenplay, novel, short story, etc.) and length of words (25words, 250 words, etc.) differentiates these words. Use the word that fits your type of writing. Logline and pitch is associated with screenplays; the rest to all other types of fiction.
The Basics and Process of Nonfiction Writing
By Katerine “Kat” Smith
Goals of creative nonfiction:
Cultivate relationships with your subjects over a period of time to create trust, absorb information, note change, and know individuals so you can describe their thoughts, feelings, and attitudes correctly.
-You must never, never invent or change facts or events. The truth is stranger than fiction.
-Aim for a clear style with rhythm, “texture,” color, and a dramatic pace.
-Write for real people – real events and people to make them come alive and record them.
-Deal with an issue/problem people are concerned about or find a way to make them concerned or interested.
-Consider your audience.
-Use Nonfiction techniques to draw the reader in:
–narration
–characterization
–setting/place
–personal involvement
-Give background to educate your readers on who you are writing about.
-Give your readers new information to help them understand themselves, the world better.
Your Topic:
When choosing a topic, remember these simple tips:
-Choose a topic that is interesting to you and others.
-Choose a topic that you have expertise or experience in for credibility.
-Limit the topic to one field.
-Choose a topic that is easy to market and has a large enough interest span.
-Consider a sub-title.
-Research the market to make sure that the reach is large enough to sell books to the majority because the publisher will consider this first.
-Make a list of the pertinent ideas, facts, theories and research findings then consider whether or not you need more information, interviews etc.
Choosing a Title:
Your title is the second marketing strategy decision that you must make. The title will distinguish your book from all others on the shelves of bookstores and libraries across the country. Make it catchy or trendy, topically related and memorable but try to not get lost in the search. Also when choosing a title make sure it does not closely resemble another title that you could possibly cause a loss of sales in the search for your book.
Do your research to make sure your title of choice is not used by another author. Check Books-In-Print (A publication that list books registered by R. R. Bowker), the Internet, visit libraries and bookstores as well. Verify or if it infringes on a copyright or trademark.
Your work is copyrighted automatically through ownership. You wrote it, you own it and you can get it copyrighted. You can copyright before or when you have your book printed. The author should copyright their own work or have it copyrighted in their name.
Generally placing a notice such as: © 2008 by Your Name. All rights reserved, gives your work some legal protection. The author of a literary work (books, booklets, poems, journals, and databases), can request form “TX” (for books, manuscripts, speeches -TX DOES NOT STAND FOR TEXAS), or form “PA” (for scripts, pantomimes, choreography DOES NOT STAND FOR PENNSYLVANIA) directly from the Copyright Office either online, in writing or by phone from the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20559, (202) 707-9100 to order forms or call (202) 707-5959 for an information specialist. To register your work costs about $45 and you will need to send two copies of the work within three months of publication.
