Some time ago I wrote an article that described the difference between the two basic forms of story structure with the following phrase: You spin a tale, but you weave a story. The common expression “spinning a yarn” conjures up the image of a craftsperson pulling together a fluffy pile into a single unbroken thread. […]
Excerpted from the Book “Dramatica Unplugged“ By Melanie Anne Phillips, Co-creator of Dramatica The structure of a story, then, is the psychology of a single mind made tangible. For the story to be sound and ring true, the psychology must be complete and valid. But to make a complete argument, it is not enough to simply reproduce […]
Some time ago I write an article that described the difference between the two basic forms of story structure with the following phrase: You spin a tale, but you weave a story. The common expression “spinning a yarn” conjures up the image of a craftsperson pulling together a fluffy pile into a single unbroken thread. […]
By Melanie Anne Phillips There are four throughlines that must be explored in every story for it to feel to readers or audience that the underlying issues have been fully explored and the message fully supported. Objective Story Throughline: The Objective Story is the big picture – the situations and activities in which all the characters […]
Excerpted from Dramatica Unplugged: The Story Mind Imagine our Main Character soldier making his way across the field of battle. Suddenly, through the smoke of dramatic explosions he spies a murky figure standing right in his path. In this fog of war, the Main Character cannot tell if this other soldier is a friend or […]
Excerpt from the book, Dramatica Unplugged: The Story Mind The structure of a story, then, is the psychology of a single mind made tangible. For the story to be sound and ring true, the psychology must be complete and valid. But to make a complete argument, it is not enough to simply reproduce the Story […]
Some time ago I described the difference between the two basic forms of story structure with the following phrase: You spin a tale, but you weave a story. The common expression “spinning a yarn” conjures up the image of a craftsperson pulling together a fluffy pile into a single unbroken thread. An appropriate analogy for […]
A story “throughline” is a bit different than a story “point of view.” A point of view is an angle from which you wish your readers or audience to see the topics of your story. But a throughline is the entire unfolding of the story as seen from that point of view. Sometimes, this is […]
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A Dramatica user asks: Hi Melanie, In the [Dramatica] theory book you can find this text: “Just because we have absolute freedom, however, does not mean our decision will have no effect on our audience. In fact, the order in which each scene crops up deter- mines which information is a first impression and which […]