Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

Here is a technique to express a story (short story or full novel) in one sentence (or two). It is from Dwight V. Swain.

I have been reviewing some of the books on writing that I have read in the past decade. Good books are like that – you can review them and relearn wonderful things.

Here is a good starting point for a story from Dwight V. Swain’s Techniques of the Selling Writer (a 30-year-old book).

What elements do you really need in a story outline? You should have:

a. A focal character.

b. A situation in which this character is involved.

c. An objective Character seeks to attain.

d. An opponent who strives against Character.

e. A potential climatic disaster on which to hing the resolution.

For example, (also from Swain’s book):

Pursued by his boss’s amoral wife, Linda, Steve Grannis decides to seek a transfer, so that his home and career won’t be destroyed. But can he escape, when Linda swears that she’ll have him fired and ruined if he tries to leave?

Here is another example from a short story I am writing currently:

Matt is saddled with college debt, but he has a plan to work his way out slowly. He is doing well, but can he keep to the plan or will fatigue overcome his efforts?