Problems to Explore in
Fiction
Most published novels and short stories
are about two things:
 A particular person or group of people,
 And the particular problems that one or
more of them are facing.
Have you noticed this?
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Ponyboy Curtis is the main
character.
What are the problems Hinton
gives Ponyboy to confront?
The Outsiders 1
The Outsiders 2
Ponyboy confronts stereotyping, kid-on-kid violence
based on social class, the death of his parents, the
death of his best friend, terrible tensions with
Darry, the brother who’s acting as his surrogate
father.
Darrel Curtis
I’m not talking plot or
theme; I’m talking
difficulty: what will a
particular character do,
faced with a particular
challenge?
“Davy Crockett”
In one of the final scenes of the Disney version of “Davy
Crocket”, men supporting the Alamo discover that they
are low on food, water, and gun powder, and are about to
face the Mexican Army of about 5,000+ men.
How do you think Davy Crockett responded to this
problem?
Davy Crockett and the other men stay
to defend the Alamo knowing that
this will probably be his last battle.
Think about the book you are reading. What are some of
the problems the authors were exploring.
Tangerine by Edward Bloor: A dark family secret needs to be
exposed and dealth with.
Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen: An insecure girl has a
mother with a strong identity and national celebrity.
Tomorrow When the War Began by John Marsden: Kids see if
they have what it takes to confront an enemy invasion.
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher: A star football player is
asked by his coach to do something the boy knows is wrong.
What about the books you’ve read?
•Take out your Reader’s and Writer’s Handbook.
•Turn to the next clean page in the writing section of your
handbook.
•Title your page: Problems in Published Fiction: What if?
•Take out your Finish/Abandon logs and discuss the problems
the characters have faced in the books you’ve read recently.
What If?
“What about a chocolate factory that makes fantastic and
marvelous things– with a crazy man running it?” –Ronald Dahl
This What if jotting was the seed from which Dahl grew Charlie
and the Chocolate Factory.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Death in Fiction
Avoid using death as a short story problem.
•Death is so huge, as a subject, that it requires pages
and pages of the main characters’ thoughts and
feelings, reacting to such an overwhelming loss and
trying to somehow come to terms with it.
•You won’t have the physical space in a short story to
do death justice or make it convincing.
•So my suggestion is this: don’t go there.
Potential Problems in Fiction
I want you to create a list of potential problems in fiction
that intrigue you.
•What problems inspire your imagination?
•What what ifs? inspire the writer in you?
Examples
What If…
 Grandfather can’t do all the things he used to do– girl
deals with it.
 Best friends– boy, girl– teased about their friendship
& almost decide to stop friendship.
 Cousins move next door-- conflict with cousins and
main character.
 Only girl on track team, teased, but girl keeps trying
to win
 Siblings growing apart– different interests.
 Getting obsessed with a game– not doing homework.
 Friend has cancer– character struggles with friend’s
sickness– can’t do things he used to do.