As often said, there is no "template" or real "formula" for creating a story. There are some guidelines (Beggining, Middle, End) and there are some clearly defined plot lines.

Please see Loren Niemi's The New Book of Plots. This is a wonderful boook with great insights to storytelling and a specific list of many "plots" that may help you decide on a structure for your story. And the updated version has exercise at the end of each chapter to help you place your story in a particular mode.

But if we go back to the basics of storytelling, one of the most important thinigs we need to do is connect the dots.

This means paying attention to at least three things:

1. What's the story about?
2. Does each part connect to the what the story is about?
3. Does each part connect to the previous and subsequent part?

What's the story about?
I have often said that this is crucial. Once again, I will cite Doug Lipman, the Storytelling Coach, who asks us to understand what is the Most Important Thing (MIT). Keep this simple! Remember, it's not about the succession of events: this happens then that happens.

What is the underlying theme? Is it about true love; unrequited love; forgotten memories; how anger destroys things; the indomitable human spirit? This is a decision that must be clearly made. Remember, after much crafting and many, many tellings... THIS MAY CHANGE! I mentioned recently that Bill Harley discovered after several years of telling a story, that it was really about something different than he had thought!

Does each part connect to what the story is about?
Find a way to make each part or section of your story connect to the MIT. Make sure it is linked, and not somewhere out there in left field, like an unused appendage. Be careful of veering to far away from the main trunk of your story to a branch or limb so far out, the audience (or you) may fall off.

Does each part connect to the previous and subsequent part?
Make sure there is a logical progression from one dot to the next. This doesn't necessarily mean chronological. There can be flashbacks or flash forwards, but make sure the navigation has some clarity; that each piece follow and leads in an understandable way.

It can be helpful to list all of the scenes or moments in your story on a sheet of paper and follow the connections. Even better - put each moment on a sticky note and place them all on the wall. Make note of how each one connects to each of the concepts identified, and to each other. If the flow doesn't fit, try changing the order. Add or delete pieces. But make sure you connect all the dots!