STORYMOJA

Readers of fiction want to find the writer’s work to be believable. It is the task of the writer to develop a story that does not jolt the reader into recognizing that the narrative is just the writer talking, just fiction. The writer should write about what he or she already knows through experience or can learn about through research. The narrative should read as if the writer really knows what he or she is writing about.

What makes up Stories

1. Plot is the organization of events that will take place in the story.
2. Characters are the people or animals that will be in the story.
3. Setting is the physical time and place in which the story takes place.
4. Dialogue is the spoken words of the characters in the story.
5. Point of view is the relative identification of the narrator with the characters.
6. Theme is the main idea or meaning behind a story.
7. Style is the writer’s use of the language.

Why is this blog editor taking us all back to the learning room? Hmm, well, one thing about a writer, any writer, is that the day you stop learning is also the day your writing dies, stops being interesting, bores your reader,… you get my drift.

You could win this book

Last week, we looked into aspects of your plot, just a little bit. This week, we look into your characters. The only difference is that this week, you will be responsible for the research, and the sharing. Please post your helpful comments on how to make characters in a story believable in the comments section on the blog post here. And what do you know; I will be reading your comments, and the one I find to be most helpful will win a copy of Martin Njaga’s Brethren of Ngondu, for which I will personally pay for. So impress me. And keep your comments to less than 120 words.

And now to this week’s reading:

What do you do if you don’t belong at home, and you don’t belong away from home? My Mother’s Songs – On the Fringes of a Nation by Abdinasir Amin.

Do you remember your first job interview, the nerves, the things that go wrong, and that final feeling when you are standing in front of your interrogators, I mean, interviewers? How to Bag an Interview by Jedidah Oneko

You have found the love of your life, the one, that one. Then, One Fine Sunday Morning… by Mercy Ojwang’

Do you remember your ‘I want to be…’ fantasies as a child? Lini of Stardom Dreams by Piraita Api’

Here is something a little unusual for this blog – The Curse by Moses Gathua.

Lastly, Marvin Tumbo has a rant about The Bullshit on the Rise.

Thank you for sending your ideas about how to make your weekly reading more fun. Please continue doing so to blogs@storymojaafrica.co.ke. And remember, all stories published on the Storymoja Blog will be eligible for the Crown of Story of the Week. The stories are posted every Monday. Please critique and vote for the story you believe should wear the crown. At the end of the week, the votes will be tallied and the story with the most votes will posted on the Storymoja Website as the Story of the Week on the Friday of the same week. To have your story in this weekly process please send it to blogs@storymojaafrica.co.ke before Friday at 4pm.

Here’s to a wonderful week, creative writing and good reading!