Even though the current incarnation of the Dramatica Story Table of Elements is based on Dynamic Pairs, there are other relationships that exist within the model. Two of these are Companion Pairs and Codependent Pairs. While the theory book does a great job of explaining it, some authors still have difficulty writing these kinds of relationships.

In Chapter 9, these two pairs are discussed in detail, but for now here’s the gist of it:

Companion Pairs are the most compatible - what one does not need they will offer to the other (positive); or one may use up what the other needs (negative). Codependent Pairs are the most complementary - one character provides strengths to compensate for the other’s weaknesses (cooperation/positive); or one character may require the presence of the other in order to proceed (codependent/negative)

Let’s take the easiest quad of all - Pursuit/Avoidance,Control/Uncontrol (found in Physics/Obtaining/Self Interest).

Pursuit and Control, Uncontrolled and Avoid are Companion Pairs in this context (Horizontal Relationships). Pursuit and Uncontrolled, Control and Avoid are Codependent Pairs (Vertical Relationship).

Imagine a group of characters involved in a land race - all concerned with winning - all dealing with issues of Self Interest. For my examples I’ll use Archetypal Characters - the Protagonist character (containing the Pursuit and Consider elements), the Reason character (containing the Logic and Control elements), and the Emotion character (containing the Feeling and Uncontrolled elements).

Companion Relationship

Along this race you could imagine how the Protagonist would benefit from the calm and controlled influence of the Reason character (positive Companion relationship). When things get crazy, its always nice to have someone cool-headed keep your head focused on the goal.

Likewise, this Reason character could be so controlling as to perhaps insist on controlling the accelerator or even better the shifting of gears. Here, the Reason character’s actions manage to interfere and disrupt the Protagonist’s move towards the goal (negative Companion relationship).

Codependent Relationship

Now lets look at the relationship between the Protagonist and the Emotion character. Positively you could see a Protagonist so focused on achieving their goal that they miss out on the random or chaotic happenstance that just may be exactly what they need to win - the Emotion character could provide that (positive Codependent Relationship).

Likewise you can imagine a codependent relationship wherein the out-of-control Emotion character would require the presence of a Protagonist to ever see their Self-Interests looked after (negative Codependent relationship).

Hopefully these examples give some idea of how to write these kinds of relationships.

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