I’ve written this story before as a short story though I never got the chance to make it into a novel. I want to do that! I want to make this story into a novel, a standalone novel. Unless the story calls for a second book then sure, yet I feel that might not happen with this story.
Here is the idea:
Two siblings named Gretchen and Elias travel the post-apocalyptic world overrun by demonic monsters out to eat and slaughter anyone they can find. The siblings believe they are the last people on the planet, and that there is something bizarre about the world. As they travel together, the sooner they realize that there is more to this apocalypse and each other.
If you have any questions about how the short story went and more, feel free to ask in the comments. I shall do my best to answer.
The plot twist is that Gretchen is not the female main character’s real name, she has a real name that is a mockery and she does not like it. The apocalypse is the inner turmoil of her mind and the demons are the monster plaguing her. While her brother is a hallucination of her mind playing tricks on her since she murdered him. The story takes place in a mental asylum with Gretchen hallucinating everything. The themes are how mental health is viewed as an apocalyptic hell with demons and monsters. Another theme is how abuse causes those afflicted with mental health to become chaotic themselves.
It’s difficult to help without spoilers, as that is a very basic concept and hard to add on to, especially if you already have specific twists and plotlines in mind that you aren’t sharing. But the simplest way I can answer your question is just expand on the short story idea. Add more detail and subplots to the story. Maybe even continue further along the timeline than where you ended it with the short story, take it further. What happens next, when the curtains closed? Write that.
This is one time when you might want to try outlining. You already know the whole story, so putting it in outline form so you can add subplots to make it longer might help…? ¯\_(ﭢ)_/¯
Would you like to know spoilers too? Just to be well informed.
My only outline are chapter summaries. Not quite sure how to do a plot outline unless I treat it like a chapter summary, but in three acts; beginning, middle, and ending.
The plot twist is that Gretchen is not the female main character’s real name, she has a real name that is a mockery and she does not like it. The apocalypse is the inner turmoil of her mind and the demons are the monster plaguing her. While her brother is a hallucination of her mind playing tricks on her since she murdered him. The story takes place in a mental asylum with Gretchen hallucinating everything. The themes are how mental health is viewed as an apocalyptic hell with demons and monsters. Another theme is how abuse causes those afflicted with mental health to become chaotic themselves.
Sounds great! I don’t think there’s a right way or a wrong way to make an outline. I myself only list a few bullet points for each chapter to make sure something significant happens in each one to move the story forward. You could invent your own outline, whatever works best for you. (*＾-‘) 乃
Personally, with that being the twist, I think it would be better left as a short story. It has a message that is better left short and concise rather than dragging readers along for an entire novel only to have the ending be so similar to the “it was all a dream” cliché. Putting a character through a full length novel’s worth of traima only for it not to be real in the end would be concidered a cop out in anything other than a short story. It makes it feel like a cheap trick played on the readers. In a short story it doesn’t take so long to read that readers get super invested in a grand ending like they would a full length novel, so it seems more like a clever little metaphor rather than an entire book wasted because the ending was just that everything was in the MC’s head the whole time.
Honestly, the only way I could see it working as a full length novel is if you didn’t make that a surprise twist, but rather, a split narrative alongside whatever story is going on in the MCs real world too. If you build their reality into an equally exciting story that parallels their inner narrative, it might be something you could pull off well.
hmm have you considered making it episodic esque almost like a tv show? where each “episode” chapter is like an adventure on their travels?
if that doesn’t suit you- you could try plotting your story according to various known story structures. it doesn’t guarantee turning a short into a novel- but it can help you see areas where you could develop the story further.
if that doesn’t suit you and you simply want the same story longer. then it is essentially about taking more time to do the things you are already doing. for example in your summary you tell us their beliefs, feelings, and realizations- describe them not all at once. but sprinkle it throughout.
if that doesn’t suit you- you could consider shifting /playing with the perspective of the story. this could mean having a different character narrate. BUT it can also mean being more macro or more micro. alternating between 1st and 3rd person between chapters. etc. so like with your work the twist is the asylum. you could have chapters in another character pov or even just omniscent 3rd of the asylum and drop hints that it is the same person as your main character.
i can’t think of other ways at the top of my head other than combining.