Jonathan Levin Philadelphia based journalist is a master if storytelling and someone who has a wealth of experience in this field. Originally he actually trained to be an attorney but after he went to college to study journalism, he very quickly realized that this was were his heart lay. Jonathan is a serial writer who conjures up all manner of stories and we were lucky enough to meet with him last week as he was waiting for a client of his, to discuss how one could plan to write a story.
Learning
Before you get started with your story you must invest enough time into the learning process and the research process for your story. Try to expose yourself to as much written work as possible and try to highlight the styles which you like. In terms of the nature of your book, research will be vitally important so that you can tell the story accurately. If you are telling the story of a group of misfits in Philadelphia for example, you need to know what life is like, how culture and counter-culture is, and what makes that group of people tick. This prep work is crucial.
Characters
Characters will be the most important part of your story, beyond what they do and where they go. You need to think of each characters personality, character traits, their state of mind, what they do and where they have come from. In creating a life for each of the characters you will find it far easier to place them into the storyline. Try to use people who you already know and exaggerate their features or their ways, mix up stories from different people who you know in order to create your very own character.
Framework
A story is only as good as its framework and this is why you should be sure that you stick to one which you like. Telling a story doesn’t always have rules but for the reader’s enjoyment you should always look to tell it in a way that is easy for them to read and digest. If you tell a story that is flitting between the past, present and future, you can easily confused the reader. Keep it simple and on point, and create a framework which you believe will be the best way to deliver the story.
Styles
Finally you need to think about what kind of style you will write the story in, will this be a narrative? Expository? Descriptive? Try to think about which of these styles best suits the way in which you write, and consider whether they are appropriate for the story that you are trying to tell.
Final Tip
Few of us have the required funds to quit our jobs and write for a living and actually making time to write can be tough with a full time job. With this being said however, it is important that you make at least an hour per day to write, whether this is the planning of your story or the story itself. More time would be great but if you don’t have it, you need to make do with what you do have.
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