How Traditional Story Structure Works Across the Genres
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- In this video, Mariah talks about traditional story structure and how it works across the genres, with an in-depth focus on mysteries and hero stories. Along the way, she points out common pitfalls for the developing writer and offers tips for successfully writing a story's conflict. She also points out that hero arcs aren't just for fantasy or science fiction stories.
With examples from Star Wars, Maze Runner, Scoop and Gattaca.
0:00 Traditional Story Structure IN BRIEF + the key to ADAPTING it
03:23 On Mysteries / Detective Stories
07:20 On Hero Stories
12:29 The Comment Section & More
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Thank you so much for this video, it’s so helpful! Congratulations on another 60 subscribers 🎉
Thank you Adele! I'm so glad you found it helpful! And yes, it's wonderful, isn't it? A nice little community is building!
Awesome video - this channel has some of the most informative videos that I've come across, now that I'm starting to get serious about writing a complete book and not just writing for me. So what am I struggling with that I'd love advice on? How to define chapters (would you break up your draft at the end, or write to chapters?), how to name a book, how to find people to test read (beta readers, etc) especially during the process and not just after the whole 1st draft, how to keep focused on the big overarching structure without getting lost in the details (or maybe that's just me!), going from being a pantser to a plotter (again, could be just me), writing beginnings and endings (esp if you just like to go on and on with your story) ... okay I probably have 234239 more, but I'll start with that! Thanks again!
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're finding them helpful! And another big thanks for the video ideas-- they're all fantastic, keep them coming, all 234239 of them! 😉 😊
Even though I agree with you on the premise that the protagonist is usually the character that does the unwise thing, I am not sure if I can agree with you in that regard of the hero story. Sure, Star Wars works there, but looking at many other stories then the villain is more often the already established status quo that doesn't do anything. It is the dragon that the hero seeks to foolishly slay. I mean lets take the Iliad and the Odyssey for example. One could argue that Paris did the unwise thing in the Iliad, but the narrative barely revolved around that, the truly unwise thing that pushes the story is Achilles behaviour, and that is what has to be rectified at the end. Similar in the Odyssey, the wrath of Poseidon is more of the status quo, while the adventures are almost always based on some decisions Odysseus makes, thus very often despite all his cleverness he is the one committing also the unwise action. And I feel like that remains the same throughout the ages, sometimes less obvious like with Percival and the Fisher King and other times very obvious, like in Don Quixote. Thus hero stories have the hero struggle because of their unwise actions that they have to fix then.
I am so glad you brought this up! My definition of a hero story is one in which the hero doesn't change. (Some refer to such stories as having a flat arc. I avoid this term because many developing writers end up writing just that-- flat stories). But we mustn't make the assumption that all stories about heroes/warriors are hero stories! Or if a villain appears, that the story is built around them! For example, Spiderman is a superhero, right? But in most cases Spiderman movies are built around the foolishness of Spiderman himself! In Spiderman Homecoming for example he is foolishly trying to become an Avenger. Is there a villain in that story? Yes, but he doesn't drive the story. He is simply there to illuminate certain aspects of Spiderman's arc and ultimately help Spiderman understand what lies behind his own foolishness.
Anyway, thank you for bringing up this very important point!! I perhaps should've been more clear about it in the video.
Also, can I ask, are you a writer? If so, is there a particular genre you are working in? Thanks again!
@@eternalenglishmajor I am more of a storyteller than a writer. I come form roleplaying games, and currently write my own system, in which I focus more on the narrative elements than on the combat aspects that dominate the hobby. But I have a few ideas that I think could make solid novels, thus I might end up doing that eventually to. Developing a narrative framework for interactive fiction is certainly helpful to have a good grasp on all kinds of stories. And well, before I discovered roleplay I had been a theatre kid, thus stage plays are still dear to me.
Amazing stuff! I'm having some trouble with a mystery/supernatural thriller I'd love some insights!
I feel like I have a good hook/promise in the intro but the first few chapters may start off too slow.
I guess how to build tension, while trying to establish characters and relationships?
Thank you so much! 😊 And what a great question! I think I need to do some homework though before I attempt an answer. Could you recommend some mysteries/supernatural thrillers where you believe this is done well? I'd love to devote an entire video to it! (And anyone else who may be reading this, please add or second any recs!)
@@eternalenglishmajor Horrorstör and House of leaves immediately come to mind!
Brilliant, thank you!
@@eternalenglishmajor movies like Shaun of the Dead, at the world's end, attack the bloc, super 8
Stories that start out rather mundane but quickly become supernatural?
@@eternalenglishmajor where are the supernatural force is obviously just a metaphor for the human struggles
Me again lol 😂. I saw an interview with JK Rowling where she showed her plotting method, have you seen it and do you do something similar? I’ve pretty much plotted my story now but am faced with the daunting task of turning that into chapters with all their complexity.
If I’m honest, I’m procrastinating on it because I don’t know where to start. Do you have any advice in turning a plot point into a chapter? Thanks, Adele 😊
I don't believe I've seen that, no. The way I plot is exactly how I do it in my plotting demonstration. And yes, getting started can really be daunting, can't it? You just gotta jump right in, with your story structure in one hand and-- dare I say it?-- your subtext in the other and see what you can manage between the two! Good luck!