How Good Is Your Story Premise? Really?!
In story everything begins with an idea. And the best way to create a great story is to have a premise with big ideas.
To vet how good your story premise really is ask these 6 questions about it:
1) Does a clear protagonist have a big goal that drives the whole story?
2) What is the original new angle — the hook — in your story premise?
3) What is the terrible problem, obstacle, or action situation your protagonist must overcome?
4) What is the Character A vs. Character B main conflict of your story?
5) What are the great stakes of the protagonist and of the antagonist?
6) Is there a universal thematic idea that underlies the main conflict of your story?
The main reason most films fail and that stories are rejected by producers is that they have a weak concept. The creators of these stories never had their concepts properly developed and vetted.
All the best developing your story concept. The very first thing to do when writing a story is to create a layered, original, and dramatic premise. If you are having problems with your concept and theme development, let’s talk.
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Former producer Scott McConnell is a story consultant. Contact him at sam@scottamcconnell.com
