A friend sent me the following inspirational tidbit.

A six year old was asked to create a story for her homework project using “The Story Telling Game.” This simple game has profound application to anyone who wants to write a compelling screenplay or novel.

The child was instructed to ask family members to play along. To create a story each person was supposed to say a sentence in turn starting with following words:

ONCE UPON A TIME…

THEN ONE DAY…

BUT SUDDENLY…

AND NEXT, UNFORTUNATELY…

THEN THINGS GOT MUCH WORSE BECAUSE…

FINALLY IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT…

AND LUCKILY IN THE END…

Simple and effective! Story and structure comes innately to children. The child got the concept immediately and was able to create any number of stories.

Sometimes we need to think like children and remember that storytelling is all about the excitement and joy of discovery. It is the delight in finding out what happens next, who it affects, and learning how it all comes out in the end.

Here is another version of the same idea–