What makes a good story? And by story I’m including books, movies, songs, even a story being told by word of mouth. What makes it a good story. Simply, it has to make the audience feel something; satisfaction, recognition, joy, sorrow, anger, fear, horror, amusement, surprise or maybe even wonder. In the absence of emotion can a story be good? I’d say no.
So, when writing a story how do you ensure that the story checks some of those boxes? Well, plot is one of the tools you can use to activate the reader’s emotions but more importantly, you have to build the characters so that they’re human. Certainly, any generic female character being thrown into a scene where she is being stalked by a psychopath will elicit at least some emotion from the audience but if she is first made into a real woman with the requisite and recognizable emotions then the scene becomes harrowing. Think of Agent Starling trapped in Buffalo Bill’s lightless room while he toyed with her in preparation for ending her life. She is a trained law enforcement agent but she’s also a terrified young woman trapped by a predator. The audience is on the edge of their seats. Her fear is the fuel to make the scene real for the viewers. It’s gripping.
And this is just as important for any emotion in any situation. To be considered a success the reader has to feel something strong enough to make the story in some way real. Let’s test my thesis. Is the movie, “2001: A Space Odyssey,” a good story? Does it make us feel anything? Yes, there are scenes in the movie where we feel a sense of wonder at some of the things happening. And there is a feeling of worry for Dave Bowman as he faces off against HAL9000. I guess there is sadness over the death of Frank Poole. But are any of these emotions particularly strong. I guess on reflection the sense of wonder at the technological wonders we are shown in the flight to the Moon and aboard the Discovery One spacecraft are pretty interesting. But none of the characters (except perhaps HAL) really activate our emotions. In some ways Dave and Frank appear more robotic than HAL. So, on the whole I wouldn’t call “2001” a successful story. It’s almost like a travelogue to inform the audience about some interesting things that will be seen during a vacation trip.
Now compare this to the earlier science fiction movie, “Destination Moon.” Technically, there’s no comparison. “2001” is astonishingly beautiful and seems like a documentary shot in space. “Destination Moon” appears woefully primitive in its special effects and graphics. But the story has engaging characters and a plot that creates emotional interest. The characters are placed in danger and the audience wants to see how the characters respond to this crisis. Now surely, this isn’t some great work of art. It’s melodrama and adventure. But it works. There’s enough there to make the characters real enough for us to care if they live or die. Compare this to Dave Bowman at the end of “2001” travelling to the end of the universe through some kind of acid dream followed by him getting very old and then becoming some kind of “space embryo.” To me all of that was meaningless from an emotional point of view. It was boring.
So, the lesson is humans like stories that make them feel human. Because it makes them feel.