Enhance Your Story Structure with Details

Similar to the way top artists create their remarkable paintings, you can add layers of details to enhance your story structure.

Artists add color and texture by layering oil paints. You can engage and thrill your readers by building up details in each scene. It’s easy when you use a checklist of questions to remind you of potential details to include.

You start with the raw draft of a scene and then layer in details that fit your story.

Story Structure Guides Your Layering of Details

There’s no single right way to select and add details.

I’ll share some time-proven questions and you can choose what will work with your story. From my view, each scene is an opportunity to create a mini-story designed for your target readers. However, only you can decide what is the best fit for your scenes.

For example:

Story Structure: Character Details:

• Scene POV: Who controls this scene’s point of view?
• Scene Date and Time: What is the date and time when this scene starts based on the story’s overall timeline?
• Character Descriptions: What character descriptions are essential in this scene and how will that information influence the story?
• Character Senses: Which of the six senses will the POV character use in this scene (e.g., 1. see, 2. hear, 3. touch, 4. smell, 5. taste, and 6. gut/intuition)?
• Signs, Symbols, Motifs, and Objects: If applicable, what signs, symbols, motifs, and objects will appear in this scene?
• Clues and Red Herrings: What (if any) fact-based clues or red-herring clues will show up in this scene?
• Character Misdirection: What (if any) misdirection will a character introduce in this scene?
• Setting and Climate: Where within the storyworld will this scene take place, what kind of weather is happening, and will the setting and climate influence the story and characters?

Story Structure: Writer’s Details:

• Scene Goal: What is this scene’s goal and how will it move the story forward?
• Scene Obstacle: What stands in the way of this scene’s goal?
• Story Beat: Which of the Story Beats applies to this scene?
• Genre Key Scene or Convention: If applicable, which key scene or convention influences this scene’s content?
• Main Plot/Subplot Name: How will this scene reinforce the main plot or use the subplot to amplify the main plot?
• Scene & Sequel Beats (1-8): Describe the influence of each of the 8 Scene & Sequel Beats. Note: Thoughts, feelings, and observations emanate from the character controlling scene’s point of view unless spoken by one of the other cast members.

Story Structure Scenes (i.e., Actions):

1. Hook (Action): How will the Hook snag readers’ interest (e.g., will it show action, foreshadow trouble, grab attention with dialogue, raise a dramatic question)?
2. Setup (Action): How will the Setup establish the characters and current location, and set up the potential for conflict (i.e., something blocks achieving the scene’s goal)?
3. Trigger (Action): How will the Trigger force to the surface a conflict that prevents the character from achieving some goal?

Story Structure Sequels (i.e., Reactions):

4. Emotions (Reaction): Which Emotions will convey the character’s reaction to the event (e.g., joy, elation, shock, fear, anger, rage, confusion, despair, panic, shame, regret, curiosity)?
5. Ponder (Reaction): What will the protagonist Ponder (e.g., prior choices, actions, obstacles) that led up to the event?
6. Expectation (Reaction): How will the character’s moment of reflection set an Expectation of what the individual could do to progress toward the scene’s goal?
7. Choice (Reaction): What tough Choice will the protagonist make, setting up what takes place in this scene’s CLIMAX, and may serve as the catalyst for action in a later scene?

Story Structure Scenes (i.e., Actions):

8. Climax: What action will the POV character take at the scene’s Climax, setting up the next Scene-and-Sequel-Sequence goal (e.g., ends with a cliffhanger, redirects with a revelation, presents a setback, reveals a secret or a lie, teases with a question, creates a plot twist)?

• Scene Turning Point: What is the turning point within this scene, and will it be a positive (+) or a negative (-) shift in value based on whether the POV character attains the scene goal?
• Scene Stakes: What is the POV character’s overwhelming reason (i.e., stakes) to continue making choices and taking actions despite the opposing force?
• Scene Twists: If applicable, what plot twist will take place in this scene?
• Scene Secrets: If applicable, what will happen that reveals a character’s secrets?
• Scene Intensity (1-10 Scale): What is the scene intensity based on a 1-10 scale, where 10 is the most intense rating?
• Scene Themes:
  • External: If applicable, how will this scene reinforce the story’s external theme?
  • Internal: If applicable, how will this scene reinforce the story’s internal theme?
  • Philosophical: If applicable, how will this scene reinforce the story’s philosophical theme?
• POV Character’s Want/Need: What will the POV character want and what is the progress toward fulfilling this goal? What lesson will the POV character need to learn and how much progress (if any) will the character make?
• Character Onstage/Offstage (i.e., Seen/Mentioned): Which characters will appear on-stage in this scene? Which characters mentioned in the scene will remain off the stage?
• Foreshadow (Opened/Closed): What (if any) foreshadowing will you promise in this scene? What (if any) prior foreshadowing promise will you fulfill in this scene?
• Question (Opened/Closed): What (if any) dramatic questions will you open in this scene? What (if any) dramatic question will you close in this scene?

Improve Your Book with Story Structure Details

When you view the list of questions, you may shake your head while one thought loops through your mind. This story structure stuff is not for me.

Wait!

• Are not the answers to the questions above what you find in bestsellers?
• Don’t your readers deserve the best of what top writers already figured out?
• Will you put in the effort to set your work apart from others?

If you answered yes, then doing the work is easier than you may think.

• You don’t have to think about these questions when you write your first draft.
• Instead, whether you like to outline or freewrite, get that first draft done!
• Once your individual scenes are in an editable format, you’re ready for fun.

Enjoy layering in story-structure details, turning each scene into a mini-story that is sure to engage and thrill your target readers.

---

---