How To Write A Book...Step 3: Snow White's Problem

Okay. We've mapped out our route and we've begun our story. Now we're moving on to a part that, in my opinion, can be the most fun and challenging part of your book!

The Rising Situation. A problem begins, and it needs solving. This is a suspenseful part of the book, where things start building toward a climax. In our example...well, instead of telling you now, how about you read the actual example?

B: Rising Situation
1. The stepmother is furious when she realizes Snow White has escaped.
2. She wants to kill her stepdaughter.
3. The stepmother disguises herself as a peasant woman selling apples.
4. She sneaks to the dwarfs house as they are leaving for work.


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Meanwhile, the servant had returned to the castle, with the heart of a roe deer. He gave it to the cruel stepmother, telling her it belonged to Snow White, so that he could claim the reward. Highly pleased, the stepmother turned again to the magic mirror. But her hopes were dashed, for the mirror replied: "The loveliest in the land is still Snow White, who lives in the seven dwarfs' cottage, down in the forest." The stepmother was beside herself with rage.

"She must die! She must die!" she screamed. Disguising herself as an old peasant woman, she put a poisoned apple with the others in her basket. Then, taking the quickest way into the forest, she crossed the swamp at the edge of the trees. She reached the bank unseen, just as Snow White stood waving goodbye to the seven dwarfs on their way to the mine.

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Of course, when you're actually writing a real book the rising situation will probably be longer and more descriptive. However, this is a good example of the bare skeleton of a story.

They key to a rising situation is a problem. Of course, the problem here is that Snow White's stepmother wants to kill her. This problem will lead into the climax, where we see things come to a boiling point.

Stick around for How To Write A Book...Step 4!

Yours without wax,

Izori