The Writer's Guide to a Good Story

Can't You Write It For Me?

I've been seeing this kind of thing a lot, and I mean a lot, for a while now. It's been a cause of frustration for many, and I thought I'd touch on it. 

Let's say you're a professional reporter, or journalist, or whatever, and you don't know what to write about but your next paper is due in a day. 

First off, let me say, wow. Procrastination, much? Just kidding, I did the same thing with studying for several tests this week.

Anyway, back to our journalist. She has one of two choices. Or maybe she has more choices, but these are the ones she has to choose from.

A) She can ask her assistant, Bernardo, to find a topic for her to write about, give her a catchy title for her paper, and make him write the entire thing for her so she can take credit the next day. Then she'll give Bernardo a fourth of a Snickers bar as a reward.

B) She can find a topic to write about, ask Bernardo for advice coming up with a catchy opening line, and write the paper herself, possibly asking Bernardo to help edit before publishing it. Then she'll take Bernardo out to a movie and they'll split the money for the popcorn.

Which option do you think she should choose? If you picked A, please go dump your head into a bucket of very cold water right now. Seriously, only one fourth of a snickers bar? At least give him the whole thing for his efforts!

I know this doesn't have much to do with the actual writing of a story, but let me make something very clear. 

It is not wrong to ask people for help. It's not wrong to need advice on something. For example, since I suck at math, I ask my brother to help me figure out how to do problems.

What I don't do is hand him the textbook and ask him to do the problems for me. 

So you need help with a good name? Okay, that's fine. You know what I do? Go through names in my head, find websites that have good names on them, bounce ideas off family and friends.

You know what I don't do? Post my character's description and personality online, ask people to find a name they think suits it, and pick that name without thinking about it or asking any questions.

As for titles, think about it. No one knows your story better than you do. Why on Earth would someone else be able to come up with a better title than you without having read your story yet?

I mean, yes. It's okay to ask your friend "Which title do you think is catchier: The Orange Fountain or Chocolate Cake?"

There's a difference between asking for advice and flat-out taking character names and titles from someone else.

Need a character name? There are name generators online for fantasy names, boy names, girl names, old fashioned names, pretty much every kind of name there is. 

At least try coming up with something before asking for advice. Not being able to come up with great titles or names off the top of your head does not make you a bad or lazy writer. You know what does make you a lazy writer? 

Take a look at the exchange between an aspiring novelist and...some other random kid.

Aspiring Novelist: "Hey, John. My story's about a guitar. I didn't really try to make up a title for it yet. So give me a title for it."

John: "Sure, Brian! How about 'The Guitar?'"

Aspiring novelist: "Awesome! I'll use that."

WHAT? What's wrong with you, Brian? 

Seriously, guys! Making up characters and worlds is most of the fun of writing! Finding out what first name best fits with the last name of your character, coming up with a title, polishing your characters' personality, that's all fun. Maybe it's fun to other writers, maybe it's just me.

Just to make a point here, I'm not trying to bash or insult those of you that have done this type of thing in the past. No one can write a perfect book on their first try. If you're one of those people that don't need any help whatsoever while writing, then...yeah. I got nothing. Keep doing what you're doing.

Think about it, guys. We have the internet. Consider yourselves lucky. A lot of early writers didn't have the resources that we do now. We have name-generators, we have other books, we have Improve your Writing threads on Wattpad. There are so many things you can do before you even have to go to anyone for help, let alone ask people to make you characters.

Another thing, don't let people take advantage of you. Help is help. If someone is offering you genuine help, without you going to them,  then I don't think they should be asking for anything in return. 

The final product of whatever you're writing should come from you. If all your friends say that the title Chocolate Cake is catchier than The Orange Fountain, go ahead and choose Chocolate Cake if you want to. After all, the title was your original idea.

If you write a story with a plotline, characters, and title that were solely derived from another person, without any effort on your part, you are cheating, plain and simple. It is not fair to the writers, young and old, who spent many hours locked up in a room depriving themselves of vitamin D so they can put the final touches on the character of Billy Bob Joe, the CIA agent gone undercover as a bus driver, that they made up themselves.

So in conclusion, please do not be a Brian.