In Lesson 1 you were asked you to come up with as many ideas as you could for a story and so I trust you now have a great selection of story ideas to choose from. So, it is now time to start expanding your idea for a story by going back and having a look at all of your ideas and picking out one which inspires or interests you the most. Don’t discard the others – keep them safely because they may provide the basis for other stories.
In this lesson you will expand and develop your idea using the brainstorming and free writing techniques you are already familiar with. So let’s get started.
Free writing
Using the free writing technique, open a new document on your computer or take a blank piece of paper and write down the theme you have chosen for your story at the top of the page. Now scribble down everything you can think of that is related to your story idea. Don’t stop to edit, don’t worry about the order, don’t think about the grammar or spelling – just let your ideas and thoughts flow on to the page.
Bubble chart or mind map
Alternatively, write down your story idea in the middle of a blank piece of paper and then scribble down any ideas you have around your central theme using the bubble chart or mind mapping techniques. Let your ideas fly off the page in all directions.
Pick out some ideas
Once you have done one or both of the above you can start to pick out the ideas you want to include in your story. You will probably find some things that don’t really fit in with your story theme but hang on to them. They can probably be used in other stories.
Even though you should now have a theme for your story and a list of things you want to include, your ideas may change (some things you will decide to leave out, new ideas will come to you) but this doesn’t matter. The main thing is that you have started to formulate ideas for a story.
When you are ready, move on to Lesson 3 where you will learn about the importance of identifying your audience before you start writing.