What Is a Story?
An idea by itself is not a story. Neither is a world. Characters are not a story, even if they're alien. Their problems are not a story, either.
All right, then—what is a story?
A story is what happens to the characters, in their world, in the face of their problems. A story is a series of events, with all of the tension and color and excitement that go along with it; a story is the changes that your characters undergo, or resist. The story is what keeps you on the edge of your seat, turning the pages.
