What Makes a Story?

What makes a story? Many people have asked this question before. But, the truth is there is no set answer.

The “making” of a story varies for every person. What one person feels “makes” a story might not be the same for someone else. For example, some people feel a relatable and genuine character makes a story whereas some people feel a powerful plot makes a story.

In my opinion what really makes the story isn’t something specific, it’s the book in general. My favorite book is The Fault in our Stars by John Green. This book is my favorite because it is a book about cancer yet it takes a comedic form. Despite the fact that the book is about something as sad as cancer, it still never fails to make me laugh with its sarcastic and witty humor.

I also like that in the book John Green has the ability to create quotes. I love when I read a part of a book and I can find a quote that I really like. Some of my favorite quotes from the book are, “That’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life, in the middle of a sentence” and “As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once.” The way an author writes a novel obviously has a lot to do with the making of it. If a novel has a great plot but it’s written awfully then, it’s a wasted plot, in my opinion.

In books I feel having a strong character makes the book that much better. When the character is relatable or has a strong personality it’s much more interesting to read. In the book, Hazel was a teenage girl with a terminal cancer but you would forget that when reading because she is so sarcastic and sassy! The fact that she is not the cliche "cancer kid" makes her interesting.

Overall to me, what “makes” a story isn’t something specific. It’s the combination of everything; the plot, the characters, how well it’s written, everything has some part in the “making” of a book. When someone likes a book they like everything about it and sometimes there is nothing specific. But a “good” book fluctuates from person to person. Finding your favorite book is something special. No matter how many times you read it, you always discover something new! And re reading it, never gets old.