Week 6 Story Lab: 10 Tips for Retelling a Classic Tale

This week, I decided to take a break from writing a story and decided instead to do a story lab assignment. As I was browsing through the website "Writers Write," I stumbled on an article called "10 Tips for Retelling a Classic Tale," and thought it was a perfect read for everything we do in this class. While it might not be an interesting re-telling of a story this week, I hope you get lots of important pointers from this article like I did to carry over into retelling stories in all of the weeks to come!

10 Tips to Retelling a Classic Tale

1. Read the original
1. While this may seem obvious, reading the original is a great starting point to make sure you fully remember the original story and not any new versions or remakes. Go back and read the original, taking notes on pieces you may or may not want to use in your version.
2. Make a list of characters
1. As you read through the original, make a list of all of the characters – literally every single one of them. Main characters, side characters, and that person who was barely mentioned just in passing. You will be making characters of your own based off of the original ones, so it's important to have that foundation to build your new ones off of. 
3. Make a list of settings
1. Make a list of all of the settings where events take places. Keep detailed notes on locations, descriptive words and any years or dates mentioned. Another thing to take note of is what was happening at that location, the mood of it all – was it something good, bad, a low point, or a low point?
4. List all of the major plot points
1. Make a list of all the important events that occur in the story:
1. The Inciting Moment: this gives you a story goal
2. Surprise One: this is where things either get worse and the goal changes, or the goal stays the same but the odds are increased
3. Surprise 2: the point where you didn't think things could get worse, but they did, the goals also change or stay the same, and the odds increase again
4. Surprise 3: where you thought things couldn't get worse, but yet they do again
5. Ending: wraps everything up in a hopefully satisfactory manner
5. Scenes and sequels
1. Make note when there's action or points or laying low and being calm. This is capturing the overall flow of the story.
6. Identify the theme
1. Every story has a theme, which is the central idea – it sums up what the story shows us about the human condition. It should be easily summarized in a short sentence. Your new story will share the same theme as the original!
7. Decide on a motif
1. A motif is a recurring object, sound phrase, action or idea in a story. Make notes of anything that recurs in the original and decide how you will repurpose it in your story.
8. Come up with the twist
1. Think about how your story will be different – sex change of the characters? Change the setting of the story? Change the genre? 
9. Plot the new story
1. A plot is a series of events that make up the story. Plots have beginnings, middles and ends. Here's 10 places a new plot should occur in your story:
1. Taken by somebody (your antagonist)
2. Has a negative impact on somebody else (your protagonist)
3. This creates a problem
4. That your protagonist must solve (story goal) by acting
5. Which leads to confrontations with the antagonist (conflict in scenes and sequels)
6. This goes on for approximately 60-80 scenes and sequels
7. Your protagonist is supported by somebody (confidant)
8. And made aware of his or her weaknesses by somebody else (love interest)
9. Until he or she achieves, or fails to achieve, the story goal (ending)
10. Write your story!
1. Now that you've planned everything out, it's time to start writing your new story!

Picture of a wall full of pens

(Taken by Andrew Seaman on Unsplash)