How can I make it so that my story isn't resolved so easily? [closed]
Closed by System on Oct 2, 2019 at 05:09
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I'm writing a screenplay for a project in my film studies class and I'm close to resolving the conflict, but as I near the end, it feels like it's being resolved far too easily. In summary, the storyline is based on a rule we have at our school (we are required to put our phones in a caddy during class); The protagonists all have something bad happen to them because they are without their phones, and they call a lawyer to convince the principal to allow students to keep their phones. In an easy ending to this, the principal just simply agrees to give the phones back, but I want it to be a little more complicated, like the lawyer has to trick the principal or something in order to complete the objective. Does anyone have any ideas to help me out?
Here is the full script so far: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1DICOlJ55SxyjhRwmolKpBPG7FwfQuLO5hL6Pb6qBHT4/edit?usp=sharing
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/48312. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1 answer
Your story is resolved too easily because no one pays a price for the ending. People face all kinds of practical problems every day and they resolve them in practical ways without much drama. Stories are about the kind of problems that are not solved by merely practical measures. At the heart of a story, the protagonist has to make a choice between values. For Lizzy and Darcy to get together, he must give up his pride and she her prejudice. This is hard for both of them. It is that kind of choice that makes the resolution of a story difficult and also satisfying. A merely technical solution that costs no one anything is not interesting or satisfying. This is why in every disaster movie, a dad separated from his family has to fight the forces of nature/evil/etc to save is wife/child/collie rather than taking himself to the nearest red cross shelter like a sensible person. He has to choose between personal safety and those he loves. That choice is what makes the technical solution he comes up with satisfying.
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