Have you ever wanted to write a story, but can't get an effective outline? This strategy is a good way to get a basic outline from the beginning to end of your story.
Step 1
Know the 5 parts of the witch's hat diagram. There are Five Parts to the witch's hat diagram: The exposition, the rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
Step 2
First, you must have an idea in your head. Thinking of the plot as you go along is perfectly fine, but you *will* have to do some editing later on.
Step 3
Draw the beginnings of the hat. This diagram gives you a visual aid to the basic outline of your story. First, you will need to draw an up-side-down "v" shape on a piece of paper. Hold the paper sideways, so that it is in "landscape" form.
Step 4
Then draw two horizontal lines that connect to the edges of the "v" shape that reach across the paper. They both should be about 3 or so inches long.
Step 5
On the first line, on the far left, label it Exposition. Underneath it, write out the name of your protagonist, and a trait that makes them distinctive. Do the same for the antagonist. Then list the other important characters and their interaction with the protagonist or antagonist.
Step 6
On the slope on the right of the up-side-down "v", label it "falling action" and write all the events the character faces, leading up to the climax.
Step 7
At the climax, label the moment of biggest suspense, when the protagonist achieves his goal, or achieves something very important. Remember, this is the biggest event in your story.
Step 8
Lay down the falling action. Then comes the falling action. This is usually the last conflict that the protagonist encounters, and towards the end of the story, where he defeats the antagonist. This will be on the right side of the "v" on the witch's hat.
Step 9
Decide on the resolution. Finally, there is the resolution. This is the ending of the story, where all the conflicts are resolved. This is on the right horizontal line of the diagram.
This is what the final product should look like. The witch's hat diagram is good for novels+ and short stories. NOT for books that are in or part of a series.
Tips
- Writing short stories or novels is a good way to pass time, and can be a good hobby for anyone.
- You may experience writer's block while thinking of your plot. That's okay, what you do is Take a break for awhile, and try to think of something. Don't abandon your story, it may turn out to become great!
Warnings
- Do not write anything that is derogatory to any group of people, or ideas. Even though you may want to, and hundreds of people may agree with you, There are also hundreds who disagree, and if you spite them, you lose half your audience. If you want to express an opinion, do it in a civilized manner.
Things You'll Need
- If you are typing...
A computer, and Microsoft word.If you have a mac, use word·mac or Appleworks. - If you prefer not to type it up...
a pen/pencilPaper
