The problem or story goal is the most important element of any plot. It is the unifying idea on which the entire plot is based. The goal is crucial for any novel because it creates a sense of purpose – without it a novel will be just a mixture of haphazard scenes and characters meandering aimlessly. However, if a story has a clear goal, readers can appreciate the significance of every event that unfolds. A goal gets readers invested in the novel and it makes them care about the conclusion.

A story goal: what is it?

A goal is essentially what the story is about. However, this definition might not suffice if a story seemingly has several goals. Every person understands novels differently hence one person’s interpretation might not be the same as another’s.

For instance, take Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth: if a group of literature students were asked what the story is about, one student might say that it’s about fate versus free will, another might say it’s about ambition, and another might say it’s about hubris. These different opinions are as a result of one factor: literature courses focus on themes as the preferred way to interpret stories.

However, the theme of a story is important, but it must not be confused with the goal. Let’s use Macbeth again as an example. If you take a person who has never done a literature course to see Macbeth and ask him/her what it is about, you are more likely to get an answer like, “It’s a story of a Scottish lord who kills in order to make himself king.” This is a classic way to describe a story goal, but it’s not quite there. A story goal is mostly about what a character wants to achieve and less about what he does to get there.

Step 1: Choose a story goal

When you get an idea for a novel, the first thing you should do is to choose a goal. Only then can you start outlining the plot. There are many types of goals including external goals such as discovering something, doing something, bringing about a desired outcome, resolving a situation, or changing the direction of something. There are also internal goals such as resolving an aspect of one’s nature, changing an opinion or attitude, taking on a new role, or becoming a different person.

Step 2: Decide how a goal affects other characters

Confusion when choosing a story goal is common because a protagonist could have multiple goals and other characters might also have goals. However, the story goal not only involves the main character, it also involves all other characters.

After selecting your protagonist's main objective – the story goal – you must consider how important the goal will be for other characters in your story. Are the other characters facing the same issue that the protagonist is facing? Do the other characters join in to find a solution because a failure by the protagonist will also be their failure? These questions are important because there has to be cohesion between the story goal and the roles of every character in the story.