WHAT MAKES A GREAT STORY GREAT?

Have you ever stopped to think about what makes a great story great? What keeps a reader reading past the first chapter or two? Of course, you have . . . Haven’t you?

Most writers think they know what makes a story work. Academically trained writers, those with MFAs, who took creative writing classes in college or grad school and studied character, dialogue, pacing, setting, and developed a myriad of craft tools believe they have the skills to write a prize-winning novel. The flipside of the MFA trained writer is someone who began her writing career after reading a mediocre novel and thinking, “I bet I can write better than that!” She bought a few books on writing, or she didn’t, and she dove into her YA, historical fiction or thriller, learning as she went.

Surprisingly, neither has an edge when it comes to our query list. We pass on submissions by MFA, Pushcart Prize-winning writers as often, if not more often, than those submitted by untrained writers with a passion for storytelling.

Why? Because their submissions–the first fifteen pages of their manuscripts–are missing some or most of the basic elements of storytelling. Both the MFA trained writer and the novice, more often than not, fail to define for the reader the who, what, where, when, or why of their story in those crucial early pages. When one or more of those elements are nebulous or are entirely missing from the first fifteen pages, we pass.

Why are these elements essential? Let’s look at a basic story. A story we might tell a friend or a co-worker.

“Oh my god! You won’t believe what happened to me on the way to work today. I was getting on the train and that guy, the really menacing looking guy I told you about, the one . . . “

Laura jumps in, “You mean the one who always wears the 1970s Adidas tracksuit and tennis shoes? The guy who had that pink and purple paisley kid’s backpack with him the other day?”

“Yes, that guy. Well, today I was watching him, wondering for the fiftieth time where he goes every day in his tracksuit with that odd backpack when I got a text telling me not to come in until 11:00 because they are fumigating the office and of course Tali forget to tell us all yesterday. So, I decided what the hell, I’m going to stay on the train and see what he does.”

“Are you crazy? He could be a murderer! Why did you do that?”

“I don’t know. Something just told me not to get off. So I pretended to be so engrossed in the book I was reading, I didn’t hear my stop called.”

“What happened?”

Well, I kept waiting and waiting. A ton of frickin’ stops went by. When we crossed the river, I thought, shit, he’s never getting off this stupid train what a waste of time. Finally, when we got to Prospect Park, he picked up the backpack and got off.”

“And? Did you follow him?”

“No by that time, I was running late for work. But as I was watching him walk down the platform, this other guy sitting on a bench at the far end of the stop got up and started following him. The whole thing is so weird. I’m going to take tomorrow off and follow him again.”

“I’m going with you!”

All the elements needed for a good story are there.

WHO — Two friends, a weird guy on a train, and a mysterious person at the train stop.

WHAT — Discussing the actions of an odd man one of the friends has been observing for some time.

WHERE — On a train.

WHEN — Earlier that day as one of the friends was going to work.

WHY — Because the actions of the mysterious guy have been intriguing to one of the characters for a long time-today she is on the train with time to kill and, she can follow the mystery man.

Too many submissions we read lack some or most of the essential elements of storytelling. When we read the first fifteen pages of stories and find it is missing fundamental story elements, we ask:

• “What is this story about?”
• “Who are the main characters?”
• “Why should I care about these characters or get involved in this story?”
• “Where is this story set?”
• “What is the timeframe for this story?”
• “What is the point?”

Let’s imagine the conversation between the friends again without the essential elements of storytelling in place.

“Oh my god! You won’t believe what happened to me on the way to work today. I was on the train when I got a text telling me not to come in until 11 because they are fumigating the office and of course, Tali forget to tell us all yesterday. So, I decided what the hell, I’m going to stay on the train.”

“Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know something just told me not to get off. So I stayed past my stop pretending to be so engrossed in the book I was reading I didn’t hear my stop called.”

“So what happened?”

“Well, I kept waiting and waiting. A ton of frickin’ stops went by.”

“And?

“By that time, I was running late for work.”

Your friend is wondering why you told them that story. What was so interesting about you riding on a train all morning? Without the intrigue and the decision to follow the mysterious tracksuit wearing guy, without the fact that you’ve been watching him for weeks, without the backpack, or your overly suspicious nature, this is merely a boring story about riding a train.

Unfortunately, that is true of many of the submissions we receive. The writer began with a captivating premise or character, but once the writing started, the premise or character was left hanging in time and space without any reason for being on the page. Without the details provided by a fully realized who, what, where, when, and why, we have no idea where the story is headed or why we should keep reading.

The essential elements of storytelling provide readers with signposts that keep us reading and wanting to know more. Without those key signposts, we stop reading because we are wondering where the story is going or if we should bother to keep reading. That is not the reaction we want readers to have. The questions we want the reader to ask are those that keep them focused on what happens next.

To get and keep your reader engaged in your story you need to provide necessary signposts for them in the first fifteen pages.

More on creating signposts for readers in the next post.

Sandra O’Donnell is the author of Your First Fifteen Pages. She’s read hundreds of queries and has a passion for helping writers create stories that connect with agents, publishers, and readers.