You might have an idea for writing a work of fiction, but is it flash fiction, a short story, a novel, or an epic trilogy? It can be frustrating to begin what you hope will be a short story, but soon it’s grown too long, and you don’t have time for a novel right now. Or, you might start a novel and run out of steam because there isn’t enough of an idea to fill all those pages.
Here are a few ways to help you evaluate your idea before you start.
• How many scenes can you imagine? A novel might have 80 scenes of 1,000 words each, and a short story just a few scenes.
• How many plot points can you imagine for a three-act outline, Hero’s Journey, or other novel plotting tool? A shorter piece may have only one or two pieces of the plot.
• Can you imagine the story as a picture? The artist El Greco will help illustrate this concept.
A simple picture can be a short-short story. Boy Lighting a Candle, by El Greco, 1571.
This story might be:
“The little glowing fairy was fragile and needed help to stay alive.”
Add a few more characters, and you have a longer short story. An Allegory with a Boy Lighting a Candle in the Company of an Ape and a Fool, by El Greco, 1577.
This story might be:
“The little glowing fairy was fragile, but it attracted too much attention, and the boy didn’t think he could keep it safe.”
With more characters and more conflict, you might have a novel. The Miracle of Christ Healing the Blind, by El Greco, ca. 1570.
This story might be:
“The protagonist’s unusual but successful medical techniques often got him into trouble, and eventually he faced a death sentence.”
A big canvas with a lot happening could well be a trilogy. Burial of the Count of Orgaz, by El Greco, 1586. The painting is 15 feet / 4.5 meters tall.
This story might be:
“The Count’s death unleashed an epic conflict between men and God.”
(Notice the lack of women at the Count’s funeral. That could become an important plot point in the story.)
Exercise
Think of an idea you’ve been playing around with. Try to imagine it as a work of art. Would it fit nicely on a postage stamp? It might be flash fiction. Would it fill a wall-sized mural? You might have an epic. The goal is to avoid unpleasant surprises when you finally start to write. If you need an idea, here are a few:
• A medical team must decide if it can ethically flee a deadly situation.
• A technology company begins to operate in increasingly illegal activities, but the change is so slow and the money is so good that one of the engineers, who becomes deeply troubled, can’t afford to quit.
• A family living in a haunted house refuses to believe in ghosts.
• Two individuals initiate a series of gift exchanges, and the gifts tell more about the givers than they realize.
• Friends witness the breakup of a family from different perspectives and have different opinions.
Sue Burke 