“Ability” in Story Structure

What’s “Ability” have to do with story structure? If you look in Dramatica’s “Periodic Table of Story Elements” chart (you can download a free PDF of the chart at http://storymind.com/free-downloads/ddomain.pdf ) you’ll find the “ability” in one of the little squares. Look in the “Physics” class in the upper left-hand corner. You’ll find it in […]

Watson and Dramatica: Building an Artificial Mind

Watson and Dramatica: Building an Artificial Mind By Melanie Anne Phillips Some twenty years ago, upon realizing that the structure of stories was actually a model of the mind itself, Chris and I began to wonder if that model could serve as a blueprint and instructions for creating a truly artificial mind. Today, with the debut of […]

Creative Writing

Our most popular articles on creative writing provide tips for finding your Muse, beating writer’s block, and getting in touch with your story. You can also explore our newest creative writing articles or search the entire library. Is Story Structure a Myth? Writing from the Passionate Self Tricking the Muse: The Creativity “Two-Step” Finding Inspiration Finding Your Creative Time […]

Characters

Articles on Building and Understanding Characters: Creating Characters from Scratch Protagonist & Antagonist Character Arc 101 Characters – The Attributes of Age Creating Characters from Plot Characters vs. Players (Video) Introducing Characters: First Impressions Writing from a Character’s Point of View Character Dismissals Conflict Can Limit Your Characters Love Interests and the Dramatic Triangle Character […]

Dramatica Class 16

The following  excerpt is taken from The Dramatica Class Transcripts Dramatica on World Wide Web Overview of Dramatica Theory Different Views of Story — 4 Throughlines Plot, Signposts, Storypoints Story Engine – How the Software Works Differences Between Lite and Pro. Dramatica : Evening, SPS! SPSman : Howdy Dramatica : Got some questions about the […]

Dramatica Class 15

The following  excerpt is taken from The Dramatica Class Transcripts Domains Obstacle Character Story Engine Do-ers and Be-ers Problems Having More Than One Main Character. Mental Relativity Tenders500 : Hiya Dram! lookin’ forward ta meetin’ ya! Dramatica : Okay! Well, any ol’ questions on the theory or software tonight? Byron123 : ? Dramatica : You […]

Dramatica Class 2

The following  excerpt is taken from The Dramatica Class Transcripts 3 Act Versus 4 Act Structure    The Story Mind: Objective and Subjective    Main Character Review: Change/Steadfast and Start/Stop    Main Character: Do-er or Be-er?    Mental Sex: Male or Female?    Using Dramatica Dramatica : I’ll start tonight with a brief review of last week’s class. First of […]

Mental Sex: Male or Female?

The following  excerpt is taken from The Dramatica Class Transcripts Dramatica: Okay, we move on to Mental Sex… This question is not about the gender of the main Character. And, it is not about their sexual preferences, AND, it is not about masculine or feminine. It is about problem solving techniques,linear, or holistic. More often […]

Dramatica Class 16

The following class was hosted by Melanie Anne Phillips, co-creator (along with Chris Huntley) of the Dramatica Theory of story. Dramatica on World Wide Web Overview of Dramatica Theory Different Views of Story — 4 Throughlines Plot, Signposts, Storypoints Story Engine – How the Software Works Differences Between Lite and Pro. Dramatica : Evening, SPS! […]