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- Planning a story
Planning a story
In the imaginative writing task (GCSE Paper 1 Section B; International GCSE Paper 2 Section B or coursework) you write a story or a piece about an experience. A quick plan stops you running out of ideas or time.
A five-part shape
1. Exposition: set the scene and character.
2. Rising action: a problem appears.
3. Climax: the moment of highest tension.
4. Falling action: the consequences.
5. Resolution: how it ends.
Keep the plot small. One setting and one event is often best.
2. Rising action: a problem appears.
3. Climax: the moment of highest tension.
4. Falling action: the consequences.
5. Resolution: how it ends.
Keep the plot small. One setting and one event is often best.
Narrative voice
First person (I, me): close to one character's thoughts.
Third person (he, she, they): the narrator can stand back or move between characters.
Stay consistent with your tense and person.
Third person (he, she, they): the narrator can stand back or move between characters.
Stay consistent with your tense and person.
Show, don't tell
Instead of "She was scared", show it: "Her fingers trembled on the door handle."
Open with a hook: action, dialogue, a question or an unusual detail.
Open with a hook: action, dialogue, a question or an unusual detail.
Turn "He was tired" into a sentence that shows rather than tells.
- Think about what tiredness looks like.
- Heavy eyelids, slow movement, yawning.
- "He dragged his feet up the stairs, his eyelids drooping with every step."
Answer: He dragged his feet up the stairs, his eyelids drooping with every step.
Plan in five parts with a small plot. Pick first or third person and keep it consistent. Show feelings through actions and details instead of naming them.
Check you have got it
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