Beyond three and four act story structure, lies the Hero's Journey.
The Hero's Journey is the most usable story structure consisting of at least 106 stages and the template for successful contemporary stories, from Star Wars to Al Pacino Scarface to The Incredibles to War of the Worlds to The Dirty Dozen to Midnight Cowboy. The Hero's Journey is a valuable template because:
a) It attempts to tap into unconscious expectations the audience has regarding what a story is and how it should be told.
b) It gives the writer more structural elements than simply three or four acts, plot points, mid point and so on.
c) Interpreted metaphorically and symbolically, it allows an infinite number of varied stories to be created.
One critical stage of the journey is the Final Conflict.
In the last act, the hero must finally battle with the antagonist.
Whether fiction or non-fiction, subtle or direct, psychological of physical, the confrontation follows a familiar pattern that encompasses time pressure, impossible dilemma, polarization, final antagonism, three catharses and possibly the Afterlife Act.
The Final Conflict contains 81 common steps that bring the story to a satisfactory close. This is very valuable, as the ending can be the hardest part of a story to write.
Often the hero is under time pressure to battle the antagonist. In classic good versus evil the antagonist will force the issue, by holding an ally hostage (Spiderman), attack with superior forces or similar. But time pressure is nearly always an element of every story, no matter what. In Midnight Cowboy for example, it is created by Ratzo Rizzo's illness and the need to get to Florida.
The antagonist will often put the hero in an impossible dilemma. He will have to save himself, his love or the world ? he cannot do both. This seemingly impossible task is overcome and prompts the antagonist to take the threat more seriously.
There is also usually a polarization between the good and bad. The difference between them is highlighted visually, verbally and symbolically. This helps the ultimate catharses (there are three) have more impact.
The three catharses allow the audience to attain maximum emotional fulfilment. Catharsis 1 usually involves the antagonist realising he has lost and pleading for mercy on some level. Catharsis 2 usually involves the death of the antagonist, following a deception to regain control. Catharsis 3 involves the death of the lieutenant or some symbol representative of the evil. This process is very obvious and common in Bond films, for example.
The Afterlife Act is less common in modern stories but it still has a valuable place (Out of Africa, Conan the Barbarian). It is an ending that briefly informs us what happens to the hero after we leave him. This will be discussed in another article.
The 81 common steps of the Final Conflict and other story structure templates can be found at http://www.managing-creativity.com/
You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.
Kal Bishop, MBA
**********************************
You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author's name and site URL are retained.
Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. His specialities include Knowledge Management and Creativity and Innovation Management. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller.
recurring cleaning service Wilmette ..How do you describe a scene without slowing down the... Read More
I just finished to read a book. A story for... Read More
There is an image most people carry of the artist... Read More
You are the only one who knows what being a... Read More
In the 7th grade I wanted to be an architect... Read More
So, you want to freelance as an editor, writer, copy... Read More
The first step in the writing process is to put... Read More
Last week I was having a quick browse on eBay... Read More
How many times have you checked out a job board... Read More
Do you suffer from writer's block? Is there a pending... Read More
ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number. It is a... Read More
9 out of 10 professionals and small business owners have... Read More
Mixing and mingling with industry professionals is an opportunity that... Read More
Punctuation, when used creatively, is powerful. Note, however, that when... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?I have said above that if a... Read More
Every writer expends a great deal of creative energy developing... Read More
The process of developing a working title for your nonfiction... Read More
If you're getting rejections from your submissions, please don't quit... Read More
When one population in one century survived five wars, two... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?How we usually begin the preparation stage... Read More
Arrogance has a bad rap. We think of arrogant people... Read More
So you want to be a successful author? You want... Read More
Sailors had it for years. Great explorers had it as... Read More
User documentation is all too often written by programmers for... Read More
As an International language, English has been used widely in... Read More
reliable maid service Morton Grove ..1. What Is A Premise?A premise is the point you... Read More
Being a great writer is no longer enough if you... Read More
How many times have you checked out a job board... Read More
Writing is hard work, and like all hard work, one... Read More
Over the past eight years or so, I have tutored... Read More
You sink back into your favourite chair with a new... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?Writing is a creative process and how... Read More
The Scanning ReaderWriting for the Web is different than writing... Read More
What Makes a Great Headline?Headlines are far more important than... Read More
Do you have trouble getting your thoughts and ideas down... Read More
Rudolf Flesch, a specialist in writing skills, ran classes... Read More
1. Make your goals achievable.By achievable, we mean realistic and... Read More
Screenwriting is a competitive trade. To distinguish yourself as a... Read More
First impressions count in writing too! So it is always... Read More
Working on my first humorous novel, I started with a... Read More
1. Turning your idea into a bookWith non-fiction books the... Read More
My dad was wrong. I just discovered that I am... Read More
1. Set aside a time to write and keep it... Read More
Most people can easily identify with the dreaded "writer's block".... Read More
No matter what you are writing, the first priority is... Read More
When you write for international audiences, mainly directly in English,... Read More
It's 6:00 p.m. You're dead tired, but instead of an... Read More
Questions and answers on writing life experiences for ourselves and... Read More
A UK based freelance proofreader should be able to provide... Read More
Joyce Carol Oates. Langston Hughes. Anne Sexton. F. Scott Fitzgerald.... Read More
Writing |