This is Story Fanatic, a collection of articles covering story structure and analysis for
creative writers. Published weekly.
Having unlocked the purpose of a Story Goal, attention now shifts towards exploring the different iterations available to Authors. Moving beyond the simple goal of winning something new, these new areas offer insight into the kinds of inequities that can also be found in the external world. The lens encased within each grants a writer the opportunity to dial in the exact story they want to tell.
Many insist that the most important thing an Author needs to know about their story is what their Main Character wants. That drive, they maintain, gives a story its flow. Yet, there is a different way to look at the Goal of a story, one that provides a more holistic view of a story’s true purpose and one that works in concert beautifully with a Main Character’s wants and needs.
Great stories balance point-of-view. They focus an Audience on one perspective, then swoop in from the other side to provide a better understanding of the unfolding events. Shocked with the cognitive dissonance many try to avoid, those sitting in the theater have no other alternative than to simply absorb the experience and become one with the message of the story. Great stories…like Chinatown.
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When a story feels like it is slowing down or somehow gets lost in the middle of the 2nd act, chances are there is an issue with a weak or undefined Protagonist. Understanding what the Goal of the story is can go a long way towards establishing this essential character and therefore insure that an audience remains riveted to their seats.
Conviction misinterpreted as supremacism defines the plight of all those enthusiastic towards a better world. If there is a way stories can provide greater resonance for a hopeful audience, why not proclaim it? Fanaticism and passion. Equals in a world entrenched in outdated and outmoded techniques.
In an attempt to understand the various machinations at work behind the scenes of a well-told story, many look to the Hero’s Journey, or various models thereof, as the answer. Unfortunately, the analysis that comes as a result is severely lacking in meaningful content and accuracy. The key is truly understanding what problems the Main Character of a story faces.
To some, story theory seems pointless. One template after another, each building upon the previous with information irrelevant to the art of writing. Yet still the exploration of greater understanding continues. Could there be a reason many find themselves driven to uncover the forces behind great storytelling?
The first in a series of 2-minute instructional videos that cover the often discussed, yet unfortunately misunderstood concept of “character arc.” And what better way to start off this new channel on StoryFanatic then to cover the classic meta-hero from Star Wars, Luke Skywalker. Future installments will feature even more complex characters, but each will maintain the short bite-sized approach to understanding story structure.