-
Worksheets
CHARACTER DATA SHEET
Full name of character
____________________________________________________
Age, gender
_______________________________________________________________
Ethnicity
__________________________________________________________________
Religious orientation
_____________________________________________________
Sexual orientation
________________________________________________________
Marital status
_____________________________________________________________
Physical descriptionFacial details
_______________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
a. Height, weight
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________Body
type __________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Behavioral characteristicsGeneral temperament (moody, easygoing,
neurotic, other) ________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
2Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
b. Noticeable eccentricities, tics
_____________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Type of voice (screechy, whining, gruff, sonorous, other)
___________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________Speech
habits (e.g., stutters, says uhm or you know a lot) ______
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Education
________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Occupation(s)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Ambition(s), dreams
______________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Favorite foods, drinks
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Favorite clothes
__________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
3Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
Biggest accomplishments
_________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Most serious flaws, fears, or phobias
_____________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Most serious mistakes
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Role in the story (novel, memoir) being planned:Goal in the
story ___________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
c. Underlying motive(s)
______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
d. Obstacles he or she faces
__________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________e.
Tentative plans for overcoming the obstacles ______________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
4Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
OuTlinE TEmplATE
Story Title (tentative):
____________________________________________________
Story Premise (one sentence):
____________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Segment I: Conflict situation (protagonists goal vs. antagonists
goal): ____
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Segment II: Backstory; underlying problem leading up to the
present
situation:
_________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Segment III: Unfolding of the present circumstance leading to
climax (show-
down; revelation):
________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Segment IV: Resolution, consequences of the final showdown or
revelation:
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
-
5Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
CHApTER OBJECTiVES pROmpT SHEET
CHAPTER
_______________________________________________________________
TARGET DATE FOR COMPLETION
_____________________________________
What is taking place in this chapter
________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
The principal actors in this chapter and what each intends to do
and/or tries
to do and/or actually accomplishes or fails to accomplish
_________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Ideas, themes, conveyed either directly or indirectly in this
chapter ________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
The setting(s) for this chapter (interior, exterior)
__________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
6Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
Plot progression: advance(s), setback(s), new complication(s) in
this chapter
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Teaser ending/transition to next chapter
__________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
7Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
FiRST DRAFT CRiTiQuE SHEET
Working title:
____________________________________________________________
Name of reader:
__________________________________________________________
Overall strengths of the draft:
_____________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Basic problem(s) with the draft:
___________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
[Specific suggestions for improvement]
Opening segment (snags interest? conflict situation clearly
established?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
8Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
Characters (fully delineated? behavioral and physical
characteristics de-
scribed in sufficient detail?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Setting, internal and external (realistically and vividly
depicted?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Goal (urgent? vital? challenging?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Conflict situation (sufficiently developed? reader interest
sustained?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
9Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Concluding segment (conflict satisfyingly resolved? loose ends
tied?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Mood, tone (lighthearted? serious? satirical? consistent tone
throughout?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Theme (so what question answered?)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Style (sentence structure, word choice, paragraphing)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Other comments:
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
10
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
mYTH-TO-STORY WORKSHEET
I. Summarize the original myth in one paragraph:
_________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
II. Explain what intrigues you most about the myth:
_______________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
III. In a separate paragraph transpose the myth into the modern
world. What
will change? What will stay the same?
_____________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
IV. Profile each of the principal characters in your story (you
may want to pre-
pare separate worksheets for this). Consider including
comparisons between
each character and his or her mythological
counterpart.___________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
V. State the premise of your myth-inspired story in a single
sentence. ______
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
VI. What lasting theme do you want your story to convey? Is it
the same as
that of the original myth? Is it different?
__________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
11
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
DRAFT mAnAGEmEnT WORKSHEET
I. Title of the story:
________________________________________________________
II. What the story is about (one sentence):
________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
III. Summary of the story (one paragraph):
________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
IV. Outline of the story
(openingmiddle/complicationending/resolution)
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
V. Character cast list, their physical and behavioral
attributes:
1.
____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2.
___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
3.
___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
4.
____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
5.
___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
-
12
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
mEmORABiliA pROmpT SHEET
(Separate sheet for each object)
Your age:
_________________________________________________________________
Type of object:
____________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Description of the object:
_________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
How obtained: Gift/Award/Heirloom/Found object/Something I
created __
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
If a gift, who gave it to you?
_______________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
If an heirloom, from whom did you inherit it?
_____________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
13
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
Significance that the object has for you:
___________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
-
14
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
nOVEl DRAFT mAnAGEmEnT WORKSHEET
I. Working title for the novel:
______________________________________________
II. What the novel is about (one sentence):
________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
III. Summary of the novel (one paragraph):
________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
IV. Central symbol(s) if any:
_______________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
V. Chapter-by-chapter summaries:
Chapter 1:
_________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 2:
_________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 3:
_________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
15
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
Chapter 4:
________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 5:
_________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 6:
________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 7:
_________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 8:
________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 9:
________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Chapter 10:
________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
16
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
[etc.]
______________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
VI. Character cast list, with physical and behavioral attributes
(brief sketches
here; more elaborate profiles on separate worksheets)
1.
__________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
2.
__________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
3.
__________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
4.
__________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
5.
__________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
-
17
Where Do You Get Your IDeas?
A CHECKliST FOR GEnERATinG AnD DEVElOpinG YOuR iDEAS
Have I taken a mental inventory of the subjects that interest me
and probed them for possible story ideas?
Have I asked probing questions about the objects, events, and
phenomena I encounter?
Do I routinely peruse newspapers, magazines, dictionaries of
quotations, and the Internet for story ideas?
Did I free-associate enough to generate ideas within an idea
(ideas about characters, incidents, and settings [historical,
geographical, cultural])?
In developing my idea, have I gathered enough background
information about the subject?
Have I considered more than one way of transforming each of my
ideas into stories?
Have I reflected on the thematic implications of my idea?
Did I develop my preliminary idea through listing, mapping, and
outlining?
Have I worked out a satisfying plot based on my idea?
Did I storyboard a sequence of events based on my story
outline?
Did I write a chapter-by-chapter synopsis for my novel?
Do my characters come across realistically? Are their physi-cal
and behavior characteristics fully delineated?
Is my narrative voice engaging, distinctive?
