The art of developing story, whether you’re starting with a blank page or giving notes to others in the industry, is an essential part of any writer’s toolbox. Writers use story development to brainstorm set pieces, develop characters and motivations, flesh out character arcs, and distill ideas into cogent plot points. If you can master the craft, stories will come to you more easily and you’ll have a greater chance of getting your scripts into production.
One of the most important aspects of developing a story is understanding your audience. What type of people will be entertained by your story and how it relates to their own experiences? This is often called defining your target audience, and it helps you conceive and shape the material in ways that will appeal to them.
Once you know your audience, it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty and develop some solid character arcs. Spellbinding stories feature believable, relatable characters that readers can empathize with. To do that, you’ll need to have a firm grasp on what each of your characters ‘wants’ is – their goals and ambitions – as well as their flaws and weaknesses.
You’ll also want to consider your characters’ personal philosophy and worldview – their constellation of religious, political, and philosophical beliefs that affect how they see the world around them. This will help you define their motivations and how those might change through conflict. For example, a character with a strong sense of self-determination may be able to rise up against an authoritarian government (a thematic statement), but might struggle to cope with a loved one’s terminal illness (an emotional conflict). By establishing all of these details in advance, you can then pair each of your characters’ challenges against their own traits and watch their transformation unfold.