Luckily, we have the perfect activity to help our students to do this. This requires them to pay close attention to the world around them to slow things down enough to catch the endless possibilities for stories that exist all around. We just need to help students to know where to look.Īs writers, students must learn to see the world around them with the freshness of the eyes of a young child. Luckily, the inspiration for stories lies everywhere. This is the age-old curse of writer’s block.įiguring out what to write about is the first hurdle students will need to overcome.
One of the most common complaints from students, when asked to write a short story, is that they don’t know what to write about. Can they extract the major dramatic question from each? Ask the students to think of some classic or popular books and movies that they are already familiar with. It is good practice for students to attempt to identify the dramatic question any time they read a book or watch a movie. Practice Activity: Identify the Dramatic Question Whatever form a student’s dramatic question takes, it will provide the plot impetus and how the student will explore their story’s theme. This is the conflict that creates the crucial element of suspense necessary to engage the reader’s interest.
These obstacles can come in the form of an external obstacle, such as an antagonist or a negative environment, or the form of an internal obstacle, such as heartbreak or grief. But, whatever form it takes, there must be some obstacles put in the way of answering it. Often the dramatic question is of this will she/won’t she type. Can he become the Heavyweight Champion of the World? In it, an aging journeyman boxer, Rocky Balboa, answers two dramatic questions:Ģ. This dramatic question can take many forms, but as it will be the driver of the plot, it will be the single most important element of the story. Without a dramatic question, readers will have no motivation to read on as there will be no story. The first thing a student needs to do when writing a short story is to create a dramatic question.
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