What Makes A Story Good?

Hey guys! How are ya’ll doing today? I’m just here with one simple question:
What Makes A Story Good?
Sometimes, I find stories that easily draw you in, like Maid For You, or Dead 7, or any story you can come up with that is actually AMAZINGLY good. How is it possible though? Is the author trying to stretch the ending somehow so you crave for more? Does the author add more “personal” choices in the story to make you feel happier? Currently, I’m a struggling author on Episode, so if you’d be nice enough to help me out, please do!
Comment down below what you guys like about your favorite stories, and it’ll help a lot to not only me, but to other authors reading this.
Thank you all!

  • Dasha
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Moved to Episode Fan Community! Carry on :v:t2:

Hi Dasha,

I would strongly recommend to write a proper outline of your story before starting to actually write it. Think about what it is about, where it will lead, what the main motive is and what the characters are like. What makes your MC laugh? What makes them cry? What are their biggest fears? The more a reader can relate to a character or is moved by them, the more they will be drawn in by your story.

Also, ask yourself what the main events will be. What will be a turning point for your characters? Where will the reader feel their heartbeat rise or tear up with your character or maybe even want to scream at them?

I always start by writing down the main idea and plot the beginning, highlight and resolution. That mainly means: Where do they start? What is their challenge? How do they solve it? Then I develop my characters and their main events which will lead them to change and develop.

Only then comes the actual writing of dialogue and narration, maybe the planning of the choices etc.

Of course this strongly depends on the kind of story you write. But the basics stay the same. The most important tip I can give: Know where your story goes and don’t rush anything.

I hope this helps!

Arrows

2 Likes

Yo, thx for the help!

1 Like

First off, I’d like to tell you that you should never strive to base your success off of others! I haven’t read Dead 7 but I know Maid For You is

  1. Do not rush character relationships, but don’t drag them along. In other words, if you have romance in your story (which I presume you do) then don’t have the characters in love by Episode 5 but also do not have the characters not make a move on each other until Episode 20.

  2. Make your characters consistent, but also let them evolve. For example, please do not have your character being shy one episode and then become super outgoing by the next. If you want the shy girl to become outgoing, let it evolve over time. Also, to go along with this, do not tell me through narrator what your characters are like. Let me get to know them and it will much more interesting.

  3. Be able to explain “dialogue-less” moments (such as kissing) in a beautiful way through narrator. Make me feel like I’m actually reading a book, and for me that makes the story not only more professional but also emotional. Read Dripping Mascara for 10 chapters and you’ll know exactly what I mean.

  4. This is more of an opinion I suppose, but don’t make your main character 100% dependent on other people. There are stories I’ve wanted to stop because the MC relied on another character to save her and not only is it just annoying to me that the MC magically has someone by her side 24/7, but also it just makes the character boring!

  5. Personally this is my must-have for stories, above all, make your very first episode phenomenal. I lose attention very easily, and if your first episode isn’t good, then I just won’t keep reading (especially since I have to now start giving my free passes). I find that a lot of authors let the first few episodes go when they should be laying the groundwork for what’s to come. If you have a mysterious or dramatic or beautifully directed first episode, I will likely stay longer!

  6. Make your title interesting. Even if your story is bad and cliche, a clever or unique title will draw me to it. I know that this is what specifically drew me to Maid For You, lol. So many stories are titled with “The New Girl” or “Pregnant by…” and I’ll just completely pass them.

  7. Don’t add in rather useless scenes. This includes home tours (I’m going to be living in it, I don’t need to know what it looks like room by room and these take FOREVER), eating breakfast, etc. Like I said I have a short attention span so I’ll literally get bored and exit.

To specifically answer your questions…

•It used to be a big deal for me, but now I don’t care that much about choices. In fact, if the story is good enough, sometimes I won’t even notice if there isn’t any. Maybe have like one big choice every few episodes and I’m okay. But do not add in choices that you will decide for the reader no matter what they choose. I hate those.
•I definitely would end with a bit of a cliffhanger, whether you’re anticipating a certain event to happen or you’re stopped at a huge plot reveal.

16 Likes

Oh my gosh, thx so much! This will be so helpful for me and other authors who read this! :smile:

I agree!

These are really good tips.

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