I’m, of course, writing a story on the writing platform. I’m not having any problems scripting or anything (thank goodness), but just need help with story progression.
I am bursting with ideas for the story I’m writing but just don’t know how to structure each chapter. I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s difficult to start a story and figure out how to get it going.
Any suggestions or outlines? What should the first three episodes look like? How do you write a slow-burn so you don’t give every brilliant idea running through your head away?
for your first episode i strongly suggest you use some kind of foreshadowing or a little hint of the conflict but don’t give away too much. really try and pull the reader in without hardly telling them anything!
I would say follow the “what, who,how and where” outline. What does the scene need to accomplish, Who is in the scene, How do they accomplish it and Where does the scene take place? for your basic outline. Then figure out how to work one or two of your ideas into every other episode (ex: 1 episode starts the brilliant idea and it carries into the next episode for resolution but give the next episode a problem to solve, or vital information or another idea and so on.)
Your first episode is what catches your reader and makes them want to continue reading- so I suggest going over it with a fine-toothed comb for any errors (a loopy zoom, a frozen animation, choppy dialogue etc.) and make sure that it flows from one scene or idea into the next. Don’t overuse narration .It’s okay to describe things like a setting or like a voice-over for things you can’t work into the animations we have but stick to show don’t tell as much as you can. Ending on a cliffhanger or a question is a good way to get people onto the next episode but again-overusing this tactic can get tiresome to readers so I’d save the cliffhangers for major events. Foreshadowing an event that happens several episodes later is also a good way to capture the reader- they’ll want to know how the MC got into that situation or when it’s going to happen.
As far as your subsequent episodes, try to write them so that it’s a seamless transition. When a story is choppy or uses too many time jumps, it can feel rushed. A good way to keep your story on track is to look for a plot outline chart (there are a ton on Pinterest) and use it to figure out where to work your brilliant ideas into your story- where they’d make the most sense- so that it keeps you from rushing through one idea to the next.