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There is always a journey.
I know it's been a while, but I got interrupted with a journey, of a sorts.
Most good stories have a journey. Most? I would say all. It can be as simple as going from one place to another, like in a road-trip movie. Or it can be a quest, like in many fantasy novels. Some go round and round, some go there and back again. Some never go home.
But just describing a physical journey is not much more than a travelogue. The real journey is how the characters discover and develop. They will learn things about those around them, and sometimes about themselves. They will achieve great things, as well as complete trivial tasks. They will try and fail and try again. Sometimes they never suceed. Sometimes they can only succeed further along their journey. Sometimes, especially in short stories, the journey is just a reframing of a scene. Sometimes such a journey is simply one of discovery for the reader.
Every story has a journey. Remember to watch out for it when writing.
Most good stories have a journey. Most? I would say all. It can be as simple as going from one place to another, like in a road-trip movie. Or it can be a quest, like in many fantasy novels. Some go round and round, some go there and back again. Some never go home.
But just describing a physical journey is not much more than a travelogue. The real journey is how the characters discover and develop. They will learn things about those around them, and sometimes about themselves. They will achieve great things, as well as complete trivial tasks. They will try and fail and try again. Sometimes they never suceed. Sometimes they can only succeed further along their journey. Sometimes, especially in short stories, the journey is just a reframing of a scene. Sometimes such a journey is simply one of discovery for the reader.
Every story has a journey. Remember to watch out for it when writing.