Let's Power Up Your Storytelling!

Get Your Story's Scenes in S.H.A.P.E.!

(Originally published January 30, 2023)


Hey, storyteller!


As I write this, we're beginning a brand new year—a time when many of us think about getting in shape, physically or otherwise. Sometimes, our stories and the scenes within them need help in this area, as well.


So, how can you get your story or its scenes in shape?

To hook readers and keep them turning pages, every scene should include or hint at five specific elements. What are they? Keep reading to find out!

I Have a Gift for You!

First, I have a gift for you, just for visiting my blog. My free workshop, Six Essential Elements of a Powerful Story.


What is the main reason you need to make sure every scene in your story works and is effective? So every point in the story keeps readers turning pages.


This 25-minute video workshop helps you do so with tips on how to ramp up your characters, plot, setting, conflict, and theme, along with how to write all this in a way that makes readers feel like they're living the adventure of the story with your characters.


And be sure to stick around to the end of this post, so you won't miss this week's Power-Up, a super practical action step you can use right now in the story you're working on.Gift description & link


🎬 This post is Part 5 in our series on writing powerful scenes. 🎬

The S.H.A.P.E. Method

Today, I'll be introducing you to what I call the S.H.A.P.E. Method for making sure your scenes are working.


I developed this method with my friend and co-author Rebecca Bergman, when we were teaching a creative writing class to high school students. S.H.A.P.E. Is an acronym for those five elements I mentioned earlier, which every scene should contain or at least hint at.


Just note that I won't be presenting them in the order of importance, or even in the order in which you should develop them. The order just creates the acronym S.H.A.P.E.

Story Problem

The first element every scene should contain or hint at is the story problem.


What is the story problem? Well, think about the main theme and central conflict of your story.


The theme is related to the protagonist's true need—not what he or she wants or thinks he wants at the beginning, but the true need, which is often internal. The central conflict jeopardizes his or her initial want. The clash between these two forms the story problem (or question that drives the story).

Here are some examples:

  • Will Frodo be able to destroy the ring? (From the Lord of the Rings trilogy.)
  • Will Ella ever be able to choose for herself? (From Ella Enchanted.)
  • Can Lyssanne, Ill and banished from her village, use her gift of light to save others from the forces of darkness? (From my novel Keeper of Shadows.)

Individual conflicts or dilemmas may not seem directly related to the overall story problem. However, that central conflict lies at the heart of all the story's tension. Story tension, or dramatic tension, is a state of uncertainty in the mind of the reader that causes some level of anxiety, dependent on the consequences events may have on the characters.


Each scene should hint at, have an impact on, or be driven by the story problem.

High Stakes

The H in our acronym stands for high stakes.


The events of every scene must place something at risk for the viewpoint character, with these stakes increasing throughout the story.


If the viewpoint character is not the protagonist, the scene should have a direct or indirect effect on the stakes for the protagonist, as well as for the viewpoint character.


Stakes can either be public or private. Public, or external, stakes involve the values or safety of a group, country, or race. Group values can include things like freedom, national independence, civil rights, equality, justice, etc. Private, or personal, stakes are the things an individual values. Love, family, honor, individual purpose, privacy, etc.

Here are a few questions that may help you determine the stakes for a particular scene:

  • What matters to the viewpoint character or protagonist most in life?
  • What would he or she avoid at all costs and why?
  • What is his or her goal for the scene or story and why?
  • What will your character lose if he or she doesn't reach the goal or get what he or she wants? The consequence of failure must be a big deal, at least to that character.
  • What defining incident molded him or her into who he or she is today? This can affect or determine the internal consequences of failure or drive the character's need to succeed.
  • What does the character stand to gain if he or she succeeds?
  • What stands in the way of the character's goal?
  • What is the character risking in order to achieve the objective? This is different from what he or she may lose if he fails. This is something the character may have to sacrifice or put in jeopardy in order to succeed.
  • What are two opposing values the character holds dear? For example, family versus independence. Setting them against each other creates tension and raises the stakes.

Always raise the stakes!


To determine whether the stakes in a scene are high enough, ask yourself these questions:

  • What will happen if your protagonist fails?
  • What is your protagonist or viewpoint character risking? What might he or she lose?
  • How much does achieving this goal matter to him or her?
  • Are there external consequences to your protagonist's actions? What are they?
  • How will these affect other characters and the story world at large?
  • Is your story showing the biggest, most life-changing thing that happens to your protagonist? How can this scene help?
  • If the protagonist or viewpoint character succeeds in achieving the scene goal the first time, is there an adverse consequence lurking in the background? This would be a type of setback. The character would achieve the scene goal, but then something else happens that is either a direct or indirect result of that success.

Action

The A in our acronym stands for action.


One way to grab a reader's attention is to start a scene in the middle of the action, just before the height of the moment. Scenes can begin in lots of other ways, but something important must happen in each. Otherwise, let's face it, what's the point? (For tips on writing effective scene beginnings, check out this post.)

To make sure the action isn't delayed in a scene:

  • drop the viewpoint character into the middle of the scene's inciting incident.
  • For more on what an inciting incident is (for a story as a whole, but it can also work for a scene), check out this post.
  • Ask yourself what the viewpoint character could be doing, saying, or thinking right before the scene's main conflict or dilemma occurs, and show him or her acting on that.

Pivotal Characters

The P in our acronym stands for pivotal characters.


Every scene must either feature or affect one of the story's primary characters: the protagonist (or protagonists if you have more than one) or antagonist. This impact may be indirect if the scene features a significant secondary character, but it should still deepen the reader's connection to, or empathy for, the protagonist.


if the viewpoint character is not the story's protagonist, readers need to form at least a temporary connection with this character as well. Keep in mind, readers won't connect with a character unless you do.


Only include characters who have an important role to play in the scene or will have an impact on later events. Too many or too few characters can ruin a scene's effectiveness.

Environment

And the E in our S.H.A.P.E. acronym stands for environment, just another word for setting.


Each scene needs to immerse the reader in the story world.


Bringing a story's environment to life involves more than just identifying a change in location or the time period. To deepen the reader's experience of the environment that contributes to the events in a scene, try this exercise:

Test about topic

  • List the answers to these five Ws for your scene:
  • Who is in the scene? The protagonist, secondary characters, antagonists, et cetera.
  • What is happening?
  • Where are events taking place? Focus on details that stand out to the viewpoint character and why they are significant.
  • When does this scene occur? What time of day or year? When is this happening in relation to the previous scene or scenes?
  • And why is the viewpoint character in this location and situation?
  • Use the scene's environment to convey emotion. Characters often experience multiple emotions in a scene, but which is the main one you wish to show in this scene? How can your story world express that emotion? You can use imagery, atmosphere, objects for symbolism, etc.
  • For each of your answers to the five Ws questions, ask what emotions the protagonist, secondary characters, or antagonist would experience in relation to this.
  • Include the five senses. What might the viewpoint character see, hear, feel, smell, or taste in your scene in relation to each of the five Ws you answered earlier? This could include the temperature or a chill from fear; the texture of clothing, furniture, or the ground; the taste of food or bile rising into one's throat as a result of a strong emotion.

For more on describing sensory detail and how to use it, read this post.

This Week's Power-Up

For this week's Power-Up, make sure the scene you're working on, or the one you're revising, contains all five elements of the S.H.A.P.E. Method.


Here's a brief recap of some of the techniques you can use to strengthen your scene.

  • Hint at the story problem through action, dialogue, or the viewpoint character's thoughts.
  • Make the stakes of the protagonist and or viewpoint character clear in the scene.
  • Hint at what the character could lose if he or she fails to achieve the scene goal.
  • Begin a scene with the viewpoint character in the middle of the scene's inciting incident.
  • Begin the scene with a viewpoint character doing or saying something right before the scene's main conflict or dilemma occurs.

Another way to make sure a scene works or carries its weight in a story is to include a clear conflict or dilemma and an ending that moves the story's plot forward. For tips on how to do that, read this post on the one thing every scene needs.

And let's power up your storytelling!

A Helpful Resource

Some of the information I’m presenting in this series is based on the book Make a Scene: Writing a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time by Jordan Rosenfeld.

Make a Scene: Writing a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time

Related Posts

Make Your Story Powerful!

Watch my FREE 25-minute video workshop to learn the 6 elements every story needs so readers will experience the characters' journey with maximum emotional impact.

You'll also receive weekly writing tips and training via email. We'll never send spam. Unsubscribe at any time


© 2023 B Squared Writer Coaching