What Makes A Good Story?

This will all be my opinion. I'd love to hear yours! Do you agree with me? Do you have a completely different opinion? Let me know in the comments!

I'm an avid reader. For most of my life, I've read fiction. How do I decide what to read? What kinds of books make it onto my "favorites" shelf on Goodreads? This will be a good exercise for me, as I'm not completely sure how I pick what my favorites are :)

Right off the top, the best books will be clean. No language, no objectionable situations. On occasion, there will be a book I really like that will have language, but those are non-fiction. I have a very low tolerance for bad language in fiction, as I'm reading for entertainment. 

An element I can readily identify in my favorite books is that they draw me into the world. I want to live there and be one of the characters. A good world is one that the reader wants to visit. When an author can make their reader feel like they've entered the story, that makes for a good story. 

I'm in the "happy ending" camp. For me, books and movies are ways to experience life how we'd like it to be. I live life everyday. I don't need to experience it in "realistic" books and movies. A book doesn't have to necessarily end perfectly, but hopefully is good. I'm reading a series that is not completed yet, and even though the author leaves things unfinished - so she can write more books - each book ends with hope. You don't have awful cliffhangers and sad endings (I'm looking at you Rick Riordan and Shannon Messenger!). 

The exception to the above generality is The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine. I LOVE that book and based on my preferences, I shouldn't. It does not have what I would consider a good ending, but I really, really like it. As with music, my general preferences have exceptions. It's probably best not to try and understand me. I don't fully understand myself.

I like stories with morals and characters that learn. It's even better when I can learn something from the story. Some of my favorite books have spiritual applications and life applications. The entire Life of Faith Girls series has lesson after lesson that the reader can try to apply to their life. The caution with fiction is that you have to realize that it's the ideal. As long as you keep in mind that the person is made up and you can never be as good as them, I think it's well and fine to aspire to be like them. Also assuming that they are good characters and nothing they do is against the Bible ;)