I have came up with some ideas for my story that I will write this semester, and I have organized them through the outline below.
Exposition: My story starts off with a young teenage girl who is in her last month of middle school (Grade 8.) She is the protagonist. I have not decided on her name yet, but I will soon. Before the story begins, you should know that this girl dreams of making it big in Hollywood one day as a famous actress. However, before she gains fame and fortune, she must live under the roof of a whole family who doesn’t like her for who she is.
Point of Attack: The conflict this main character faces is school life and home life. She is not doing very well in school and her parents constantly yell at her because of this. Even the thought of suicide once crossed her mind, but as she thinks of her role models that have inspired her so much, she decides to keep going and persevere until she achieves her biggest dream in life.
Rising Action: The first rising action would be home life. The girl’s siblings are extremely selfish and doesn’t care about anyone other than themselves. Her parents think that life is all about getting into the best university and college and they babysit her in doing her schoolwork. The second rising action would be her school life as she enters high school. She finds every teacher strict and they do not give her the grade she thinks she deserves. She also doesn’t have any friends to talk with her about her problems.
Climax: A few years go by and the girl just barely manages to graduate high school. She decides to move to Los Angelos to pursue her dream and attend college there. The third obstacle would be living by herself, without her parents for a while before starting her own family. She perseveres with her acting dream and finally manages to land a role as the leading character in the new movie.
Falling Action: The girl has finally achieved her goal! Now that she has done it, she is able to land even more roles and become the famous movie star she once dreamed of becoming.
Resolution: Looking back at all the hardships the girl had to deal with as a child, she realizes that no one’s life is perfect and beating yourself up is not going to change a single thing. Instead, trust life to take you in the right direction and believe that you will get there someday.
Hi Julie, you story outline sounds so interesting! I love how it is about the growth of your main character from grade 8 to becoming successful in adulthood. The time during high school and college is really when one discovers their passion, matures as a person, and pursues in their dreams, which I think is a very interesting transition to write about in a story. I also think the preserving and over coming obstacles process of the protagonist will also be inspiring, and many people may find relatable.
One suggestion for you is to include details on some experiences the girl goes through in college (regarding her passion and not just family). Adding some details on examples of obstacles the girl goes through, as well as her choosing to be persistent I her passion and choices might create a richer story line:)
Overall, I really look forward to reading your story!
Hello Julie,
I think your story sounds great! Looking at your resolution, I really like your moral. It will be a really powerful story if you can write it in a way that doesn’t resemble a fairytale. What I mean by this is don’t let the happy ending erase all of the development that we got with the struggle. You say that you want your protagonist to realize that no one is perfect and to not beat yourself up but I think your theme statement would be more along the lines of “the environmental conditions that people are dealt are early in life not fixed.” I would also recommomend if you want that feeling of hopelessness throughout the struggle of the story make sure your protagonist uses all the resources around them (ie. they try and get help). Without that, readers are going to wonder “what if problems with a person’s homelife can only be solved with out of the blue opportunities”. If you take my suggestion, make sure the help proves at least a little helpful so that the resolution isn’t ONLY the opportunity the protagonist got.
Good luck!
Hi, Julie,
Your story outline is imposing, and I think the story will come out to be very good too.
Here is a little advice from me; I hope it can help you improve the story a little bit.
During the stressful high school days, the protagonist had one thing to look forward to, the new movie her favourite actor/actress just finished. After her parents did not agree to let her see the film, she sneaked out at night and went to the cinema, but she forgot her wallet, and some stranger ended up helping her. on her way back home, she almost got caught by her parents. something like that would spice things up a bit. 😀
I’m looking forward to a great story, good luck