How do you write a great fiction story?

Great fiction stories have these parts: A cool title Sentences that tell about the main character. Sentences that describe the place where the story happens. Sentences that tell about the big problem. Sentences that tell how the problem gets solved. An ending that wraps things up.

Title

Main Character Hi, my name is Chuck and I am a guard dog. The neighbor kids call me the monster of Mabel Street. I’m basically about the size of a small horse. My hobbies are skydiving, barking and chasing small children.

Setting The home I guard is a beautiful little place in the suburbs. It is a two story house with a huge backyard. My masters name is Hank. Hank is married to a beautiful woman named Lucille. They keep their yard very neat and can’t stand it when the neighbor kids come anywhere near the grass!

Problem One night in late October a group of particularly ugly kids came to our house. Not only were they loud and obnoxious but they walked right across the lawn. Needless to say I was very mad. I started barking and would have chased them for blocks had I not been chained to my dog house. They ran away and dropped food all over the grass!

Solution This happened over and over until finally my master Hank came out of the house. I thought for sure he would reward me for being such a good guard dog. Instead he told me to calm down. He said, “It’s Halloween and it’s OK for kids to come into our yard.” I thought to myself, “Isn’t this typical, old Chuck’s always the last to know.” I’m hoping the next time Hank does something special like this he lets me know ahead of time.

Now it’s time for you to write your own story!

Main Character Ideas  Describe what he looks like.  Tell about his family.  What kinds of things does he like to do?  What is his personality like?

Setting Ideas  City or Country?  Cold or hot?  Inside or outside?  Night or day?  What does it look like?  What does it feel like?  What does it smell like?  What does it sound like?

Problem Ideas  Someone got mad at you.  You had an argument with a friend or family member.  Something got broken.  You made a big mess.  Someone got sick. Fiction author’s often write about things that happen to them in their real lives. Be sure to tell how the problem made each character feel.

Solution Ideas To finish your story you must describe how the problem gets solved. Be sure and give lots of details and tell how each character felt after the problem is solved.

Ending Tell what life was like for the main character after the problem was solved. Did he learn a lesson ?

Review  A cool title.  A character description.  A setting description.  A problem.  A solution.  An ending. Your finished story should have these things.

Grading Rubric These are the things I’ll think about when I grade your story.