What's The Story About Anyway?

So I told you all last week that I love to write and I really enjoy stories. I'm sure you're all wondering: What kind of story are you writing, Micah?
I shall tell you.
I am writing a story about pirates.

No, not that kind of pirate. This is going to be riddled with Princess Bride references. I just know it.
But yes, I am writing a pirate story. I will describe to you this epic tale of pirates with something called the Five Elements of Story. This technique is taken from OYAN.
So the Five Elements are:
Air
Water
Fire
Earth
And
The Avatar.

(Hey at least it’s a fandom other than Princess Bride)
No, I’m kidding. The Elements go like this:
Someone to Care About
Something to Want
Something to Dread
Something to Suffer
Something to Learn

Later when I have posts about these I’ll link the different elements to each Element so you can learn more, but alas, I have not made said posts yet. I’m afraid you’ll just have to wait.

 
 

(I can’t resist, it’s my favorite movie)

But to break it down simply:
Someone to Care About – The Protagonist, or main character, of the story. For example, Frodo is the protagonist of Lord of the Rings. Westley is the protagonist of Princess Bride.

Something to Want – This is the story goal. The story goal of Lord of the Rings is to destroy the ring in Mount Doom. The story goal of Princess Bride is for Buttercup and Westley to get married (but who gets Prince Humperdinck?).

Something to Dread ­– This comes in different forms: The obstacles the protagonist has to face as he or she goes on his quest and an antagonist. For Frodo, this comes in the form of many different antagonists and challenges along his way to Mount Doom. In Princess Bride, it comes in the form of the Fire Swamp, Count Ruegen, the Pit of Despair, and that rotten Prince Humperdinck.

Something to Learn – This is the lesson that is taught through the story. Please do not make it preachy. I absolutely hate preachy morals. However, many stories have morals that work even though they don’t preach it. The theme of Princess Bride is “Nothing can stop true love; Not even death.”

ISN’T THAT SO SWEET THOUGH

So concludes my rant about Princess Bride the Five Elements of Story.
See you next week!
Question of the week:
Do you like kissing books?
(I had to)