1. PLANNING SHEET: WRITE YOUR OWN GOTHIC STORY
Name
Teacher
Class
Date
Protagonist (main character or hero; wants/needs something and faces an obstacle/conflict; usually changes or learns)
Antagonist (person or thing working against the protagonist achieving what he/she wants) Should be mysterious, scary, or creepy.
Point of View (1st = I, me; 3rd = he, she, and they; 3rd can be limited or omniscient)
Main Conflict (the struggle between opposing forces) Pick one…
Man vs. the supernatural
Man vs. beast
Man vs. self (insanity/mental health issue)
Man vs. man
Theme (central message or moral conveyed through the story)
Title:
Mood (feelings the story makes the reader feel)
Tone (attitude conveyed by the narrator toward the subject)
Change? (If the protagonist changes, how does he/she change?)
Learned? (If he/she learned something, what was it?)
Author:
Genre:
Somebody (the protagonist): Wanted (what’s his her goal/need?):
But (what’s getting in the way?): So (how’s everything turn out?):

2. Characters: insane, damsel in distress, zombies,
CLIMAX: the moment of highest tension. The turning point. Here, decisions are made, and there’s “no going back.” Must be horrifying and intense.
RISING ACTION: conflicts or struggles building toward the climax. Must contain 1) supernatural elements that cannot be explained by science, 2) unease, & 3) terror.
In this part, decisions made in the climax are worked out. All events occurring after the climax are called
the FALLING ACTION
SETTING: the time and place in which the story takes place. Must be creepy, isolated, or remote…
Characters: insane, damsel in distress, zombies,
creepy or mysterious stranger, ghosts, living dolls/toys, monsters, mummies, vampires, werewolves…
How are things at the end? Mysteries are
cleared up and conflicts are resolved. This is
the RESOLUTION. It must heavy-handedly lay out the theme message of the story.
How are things at the beginning? Introduce the setting, characters, and their relationships in
the EXPOSITION