CBSE Budding Author’s Programme: Guidelines for Phase I

Writing a story is one of the most amazing, joyous and expressive things one can do. While
developing up a story, there are several ingredients that are needed. They can be divided
into three categories.
1. Story Elements
Most stories are made up of five elements to help determine whom the story is about, where
it’s set and how a story progresses. These elements are explained in detail below.
2. Story Structure
The structure of a story is its backbone. It is the order in which events flow within a story.
3. The Process:
The process of writing a story is different for each writer but broadly involves ideation,
organization and structuring of an idea before building it into a story by using the various
story elements.
1. Story Elements
There are five major elements to keep in mind while writing a story. They can also be used
as broad guidelines for writers working on their story.
While these elements form a rough guide on how to write a story, not all elements have
equal weightage in a story. Not having an element in a story does not necessarily mean that
it would be a poor story. What is important is an understanding of which element(s)work best
for a story and adequately presenting them.
These elements are:
Let’s understand each element in a little more detail with examples from the famous
Harry Potter series.
a. Characters: The person / people/ organisms /objects that are a part of the story.

For example, the main character in the popular Harry Potter series is Harry Potter. The sorting hat,
which is an object, is also a character in the story.

A character can: A well-sketched character can have

- be living or non-living the following attributes:
- have any gender or not have a - looks and mannerisms
gender at all! - personality
- propel the story through their actions - traits
- cause a problem - behaviour
- solve a problem - attitudes
- add a twist to the story
- be positive, negative, or neither

Characters in a story can also be divided into various groups according to their role in the
story. Some of the broad categories include:
Primary characters: They are the one(s) not only experiencing all the events in the story
but also heavily influencing how the story progresses. For readers, the story unfolds through
the experiences of the main characters. Their arc forms an intricate part of the story.
Secondary characters: These characters are mainly defined through their interactions with
the main characters. They too have their own arc and own ways of influencing the events in
the story but in most cases, it is not as prominent as that of the main character. These
characters can be used to build up the main character, criticize them, as a foil to them…the
possibilities are endless.
Background characters: These characters contribute in many different ways to influence
both the characters and the events in the story. They could help develop the story
background, could be affected by an event in the story that could then set in motion the
other events in the story, or could only have a single interaction with one of the main
characters. They need not be as well developed as the main and side characters but they
contribute to making the stories more believable.
b. Setting:
This is the environment in which the story takes place. The environment of the story gives us more
information about the protagonist's worlds and their world views. For example, one of the main
settings of the Harry Potter stories is their school, Hogwarts. Some other settings include Diagon
Alley, The Forbidden Forest and Platform number nine and three quarters.

A setting can be: A setting can be used to:

- a specific place, fantastical location, - Provide a backdrop for the story and
and/ or time-period the characters
- add more context and details to a story
- help the reader imagine the story
better

c. Key Events:
This is the central plot of the story and can be of various types. It can be centered around
one moment or a series of moments–an interruption of a pattern, a turning point, or an
action–that disrupts the regular flow of events. This can be done in several forms, such as a
question raised in the story that would need to be answered by the end of the story or a
conflict (internal or external) introduced that raises dramatic tension and would need to be
resolved throughout the course of the story. All stories need not be dramatic or centered
around a conflict, they could also be simple, slice-of-life stories that just describe an event or
a day.
For example, in the first book of the Harry Potter series, Harry receiving letters from an
unknown source, talking to a snake in the zoo, and going to Hogwarts disrupts how his life
had been for the previous 11 years. The search for the sorcerer's stone and the associated
events with it form the main plot of the book, with the confrontation between Harry and
Voldermort and Harry’s discovery of the stone being a resolution to the events of the first
book and the beginning of the second book.
A story could also contain various subplots that contribute to the development of the main
plot.
For example: While the main plot in the Harry Potter series is the conflict between Voldermort and
Harry and the ideologies they represent, the entire series is filled with other developments that
contribute to how the whole plot progresses, the relationship between the characters, the death of
some important characters, the revelation of the motivation of some characters etc.

The key events of a story could be:

- An action or interaction that differently impacts the protagonist
- An event that impacts those around the protagonist
- A turning point that gives the story or the protagonist a purpose
- A solution or resolution which changes the story
- A discovery of some kind

d. Problem
This can be the disruption of events in the story that adversely impacts the characters or
events in the story. How the characters interact with the problem influences the events in the
story and how they take place.
For example: The petrification of the students in the second book of the Harry Potter series is a
severe problem that almost leads to Hogwarts being closed down. Different characters react
differently to this problem, the professors work to ensure the safety of the students, several students
choose to prepare to go home, while Harry and Ron decide to go in search of the Basilisk and save
Ginny. They all were posed with the same problem but how they reacted to it was what influenced
how they experienced the problem. And as readers, since we experience the story through Harry’s
point of view, we experience his reaction to the problem.

The problem must: The function of the problem is to:

- be presented such that it makes sense - Move the story forward, acting like a
in the context of the story. crossroads which allows for the
- Well set up and backed by the key elements in the story to develop further.
events. It must have an impact.

Resolution
The final element of a story answers the questions raised and resolves the problem/ issue
that was faced by the characters thus far. In cases where the stories don’t have a well
defined plot or conflict, the resolution is the conclusion or the logical end of the story.
2. Story Structure
All stories have a beginning, middle and end that are made up of the key events that have
been identified, and each of these sections highlight an important part of the plot. However,
writers need not follow the order: some writers might choose to start from the end, and some
might choose the middle. Structuring the story in advance helps ensure that the different
components of the story are explained clearly.
Experiment with different forms of structuring to create a story structure that would be the
most suitable for the story that’s being told.

S. no. Criteria Average: 1 Fair: 3 Very Good: 5

1. Creativity
(Evidence of originality and imagination)
2. Plot and structure
(Setting, rising action, clear falling action, resolution)
3. Conflict
(Clear and embedded in the plot)
4. Character(s)
(Well-developed characters, characters arc)
5. Organization and Expression
(Coherence and cohesion of ideas, sensory language, figure of speech, use of narrative
techniques- varying short & long sentences, transitions etc.)
6. Accuracy
(Grammatical structure, punctuations and spellings)
Average: 1 Fair: 3 Very Good: 5