Hello, I am new to this site and just wanted to see if anybody could help me get a better idea on how to progress my short story. The MC is a young boy, raised in an orphanage in the slums. The cities are patrolled by police, but there is a special unit for when things get particularly violent or out of control and these men are know as the 'reapers'. One day after being abused by the owner of the orphanage, the boy goes to his favorite hiding spot where he witnesses a reaper at work firsthand. On some sort of instinct the boy reveals himself and tells the reaper he wants the power to not be oppressed anymore. This is when the reaper tells the boy that he doesn't want to live this life and disappears into the shadows. My confusion is about how the next scene takes place. Should the boy pursue the reaper, or should he simply wait for a span of time before coming into contact with the same reaper again? Also, the boy could take up training on his own, to become some form of a sloppy reaper, and then be discovered again. Any help is welcome! What direction should I go?
Maybe try writing a couple of thousand of words of each and see which way the story is going. Which one feels more comfortable to write? Which one does your character want to do ?
^ that Also, think about what experiences the boy would have in each, and how they would effect the later plot. If there's a direction you have in mind, something he does might contradict that later. Like, if he goes running after, then he might get tangled up too fast, and you'll have to make unsubtle info dumps to keep the reader up to speed. Keeping him in his "safe" place a while might allow you to reveal more plot without having to slow down the action, since it's already slower and the tension is a more subtle waiting sort of atmosphere... But yeah, you might write one, and come back and change it later to the other - either is fine. What matters is you get where you need to be with the story.
^ that Also, think about what experiences the boy would have in each, and how they would effect the later plot. If there's a direction you have in mind, something he does might contradict that later. Like, if he goes running after, then he might get tangled up too fast, and you'll have to make unsubtle info dumps to keep the reader up to speed. Keeping him in his "safe" place a while might allow you to reveal more plot without having to slow down the action, since it's already slower and the tension is a more subtle waiting sort of atmosphere... But yeah, you might write one, and come back and change it later to the other - either is fine. What matters is you get where you need to be with the story.
Before you even start the story, you should have an idea where you want it to go. At least have a beginning, a middle and an end. You can deviate along the path if you want to as long as its within the bounds of what your character would be expected to do. You are really asking people who don't know your story, don't know your character, to tell you what to do next. If you don't know - how is anyone else supposed to know? I'd suggest you get to know your character, think about where you want the story to go, write an outline, write a lose plan and then write. It doesn't sound to me as if you are actually ready to write this tale. You need to know more about your characters, the setting and where you intend to take this. Bit more preparation will make a big difference.
