This applies to my reading of stories but also to writing my own. Certain factors emerge when I've come across and/or written a story that doesn't seem to be working for me.
- The characters aren't engaging enough. They don't necessarily have to be likeable but there should be something about the character that grabs my interest.
- The story isn't strong enough. Almost certainly a sign the writer hasn't thought the story through enough and so hasn't spotted the weaknesses in it.
- The story tails off, rather than ends "properly". Again a sign of not having thought things through. These days I outline most things before I begin writing and that helps overcome this as I get to see where the weak points of the plot are and I can then work out how to fix them. I do know I want an "oomph" to be the ending of any story I write, a kind of feeling that the story couldn't end any other way.
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