STORYMAKING

By Rio

Creating A Story
Putting together a story is simple in it's bare-bones. Putting in the details is what makes it harder. Let's start off
with the general layout of a story.

Beginning - You introduce the main character(s) and the setting of the story.
Problem - Your character is faced with a problem, sometimes more than one.
Dealing with Problem - Your character goes through certain events on how to solve his/her problem.
Solution - A solution is reached after a setback or two which leads to the conclusion and...
The End - Happy ever after (in most cases)!

There are some stories that like to interlap the conflicts, basically starting another one (or at least a
foreshadowing) while the current conflict is just ending. Writers like to do this to keep interest in the story
going for their readers. Here’s what this may look like in graph form:

Another case of interlapping conflicts are minor conflicts that are character building and “The Big Picture”
conflict that wraps up the story in a neat little bundle for the reader in the end. RPGs tend to have this type of
story pattern with a big problem set upon the main characters in the beginning. As they travel, they encounter
smaller, minor conflicts and in the end, they will usually end the story resolving the problem they’ve been
initially set out to do.

© 2003 MangaTutorials.com unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. This tutorial is for personal use
only. For other uses, please contact the author for permission. PAGE 1
Story Type
Since manga generally can be about anything, here's a full list of genre's in the literary world.

Some additional genre's are: Action, Adventure, Romance, Comedy, Martial Arts, Drama, Western, Detective/
Crime, Mystery, Suspense, Adult, War, Political, Magic Girl, Horror, and Anthromorphic (aka Furries).
Genre’s can be a combined to form a vaster array of story types such as Historical Martial Arts, Fantasy

Horror Mysteries, and Steampunk Science Fiction.

Making a Story
To make a story, here is a basic checklist for you:

1. Plot—what’s the point of your story? Slice of life? Growing up?

2. Characters—how many characters? What are they like?
3. Settings—where does the story take place? What is that place like?
4. Story (Outline, Dialogue, etc) - How does the characters speak? What’s the outline of the story? How will
the story progress? What is the ending?

Think about each section carefully and write each part down. The more details you can add, the better but
don’t get stuck in creating every aspect that you don’t ever get the time to write your story. If anything,
remember to make your story realistic and believable. If you are doing a fantasy or science fiction story, at
least base your story on facts so people can relate and “swallow” the story better.

For character ideas, check out Stereotypical Ren’ai Character article and get to writing already! And have fin
while you’re at it!

© 2003 MangaTutorials.com unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. This tutorial is for personal use
only. For other uses, please contact the author for permission. PAGE 2