Story fields
Event. What happened?
Story hypothesis. What might this really be about?
Problem. What pressure already exists?
Character. Who must act?
Constraint. What cannot be ignored?
Initial model. What does the actor believe?
Choice. What action tests the model?
Consequence. What follows?
Complication. What does not fit?
Reversal. What moves opposite to expectation?
Recognition. What becomes newly understood?
Boundary. Under what conditions does the insight apply?
Ending. What action, image, or judgment resolves the piece?
Scene test
Ask these of each scene:
- What changes during the scene?
- Which detail carries evidence?
- What does the reader know afterward that they did not know before?
Backstory test
Ask these of each passage of backstory:
- What present question triggers the backstory?
- How does the past change the present when we return?