Showing posts with label structure. Show all posts
Monday, September 29, 2014
Story Structure: Pity, Fear, Catharsis
More than 2000 years ago Aristotle deconstructed drama in his Poetics. I only just came across it (well, the abridged version), but better late than never.
His ideas on what makes a good story boil down to pity, fear and catharsis, which more or less constitutes beginning, middle and end.
Greek notions of theatre back in the day weren�t exactly varied (I believe they only had three television stations�primitive times) but I think his core ideas still hold true today.
To start with, feeling pity for a character is the most direct way to get an audience to engage with that character and make them want to root for a happy outcome. Basically he�s saying to make the character sympathetic.
In Aristotle�s time what elicited pity was seeing a person of noble birth brought low by their own foolishness or maybe by a whim of the gods.
And has much changed in the intervening years? A sympathetic main character in a situation you wouldn�t wish on anyone (especially yourself) is still the starting point for 99% of all stories.
Once you have the audience willing the character to somehow get themselves out of whatever predicament they find themselves in what follows is much more �Oh no, he�s not going to make it� rather than �Hooray, it�s plain sailing from here.�
The fear Aristotle refers to is there to make the audience feel bad. You want them uncomfortable and not sure of the outcome. This means conflict, struggle and insurmountable odds.
The more the audience fears the worst, the better. The more the character suffers, the nearer he comes to losing everything, the more engaged the audience will become.
This doesn�t mean you have to pile on the misery page after page, but it does give an indication of what the middle of a story is about. Middles tend to be the hardest thing for most writers, and knowing the underlying purpose of it can help shape your ideas.
The reason for creating suspense, tension and even anxiety in the reader is so when you get to the end, you can let it all go. Catharsis is about releasing everything that�s built up over the course of a story, something you very often can�t do in real life.
In real life, problems persist and can last years if not a whole lifetime. You just have to learn to live with it. In fiction you get to simulate those feelings and then simply let go. This is why happy endings (even if it�s just the words �And they lived happily ever after�) are so satisfying. It gives the reader permission to not have to worry anymore.
Of course, it�s possible to write stories with unhappy endings and as long as they feel like a conclusion has been reached they also provide a similar release. More vague and open-ended endings, while often intellectually stimulating, tend to be less emotionally satisfying.
So while audiences are undoubtedly more sophisticated these days (well, some of them) the basics of storytelling are pretty much the same, I think. Pity, fear, catharsis. Sympathy, struggle, resolution.
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Thursday, September 12, 2013
How to Learn Story Structure Without Even Trying
Guest post by K.M. Weiland (@kmweiland):
Here�s a secret about story structure that you may not have realized: You already know it.
Many authors are intimidated by the mere thought of structure. As if writing isn�t already enough of a juggling act, now we�re expected to also make certain our plot fits into some nebulous framework. It can be daunting, to say the least.
But here�s the great thing about structure: it�s neither nebulous nor difficult to learn.
Here�s a secret about story structure that you may not have realized: You already know it.
Many authors are intimidated by the mere thought of structure. As if writing isn�t already enough of a juggling act, now we�re expected to also make certain our plot fits into some nebulous framework. It can be daunting, to say the least.
But here�s the great thing about structure: it�s neither nebulous nor difficult to learn.
If we view structure through the lens of the classic three-act approach, we can break it down into ten easy steps (which I discuss in depth in my book Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys to Writing an Outstanding Story). Once you get a handle on these steps, they�re easy to understand, easy to work with, and they allow us to purposefully mold our stories into their optimal shapes.
That�s the solidity of structure.
But what about this supposed simplicity?
Learning structure easily
Let�s make a little friendly wager. I�m going to bet you that, even if you�ve yet to learn anything about story structure, you�re probably already writing stories that adhere to it.
Say what?
That�s what I said too. I dismissed the whole notion of structure as a lot of hooey until one day I realized I was instinctively structuring all of my stories.
That�s right: instinctively.
Story structure is hardwired into the human brain. Most of us intuitively understand what makes a good story: the hook in the beginning, the rise and fall of action, the importance of major plot points, and the gallop to the climax. We�ve been learning structure all our lives. From that first board book Mom and Dad read us at bedtime to our Saturday morning cartoons and right on through every novel we�ve read and every movie or TV show we�ve watched�we�ve been learning story structure via osmosis all our lives.
Not only are we learning structure without even trying, we�ve been learning it without even knowing it. How cool is that?
Learning structure purposefully
Say what?
That�s what I said too. I dismissed the whole notion of structure as a lot of hooey until one day I realized I was instinctively structuring all of my stories.
That�s right: instinctively.
Story structure is hardwired into the human brain. Most of us intuitively understand what makes a good story: the hook in the beginning, the rise and fall of action, the importance of major plot points, and the gallop to the climax. We�ve been learning structure all our lives. From that first board book Mom and Dad read us at bedtime to our Saturday morning cartoons and right on through every novel we�ve read and every movie or TV show we�ve watched�we�ve been learning story structure via osmosis all our lives.
Not only are we learning structure without even trying, we�ve been learning it without even knowing it. How cool is that?
Learning structure purposefully
But we can (and should) take this several steps further. In order to maximize this inherent understanding of story�and to make our wrangling with those first drafts about a thousand times easier�we need to quantify our instinctive knowledge.
Once I started studying structure, learning its ins and outs, and solidifying in my conscious brain what my subconscious already knew, my writing process was revolutionized. Suddenly, I understood why certain things worked and others didn�t. I was able to look at plot problems and immediately see the solution, instead of just trying to feel my way to a workable answer.
Our subconscious brains are powerful. But until we understand how to use that power, we will often have a difficult time harnessing it.
Learning structure organically
Once I started studying structure, learning its ins and outs, and solidifying in my conscious brain what my subconscious already knew, my writing process was revolutionized. Suddenly, I understood why certain things worked and others didn�t. I was able to look at plot problems and immediately see the solution, instead of just trying to feel my way to a workable answer.
Our subconscious brains are powerful. But until we understand how to use that power, we will often have a difficult time harnessing it.
Learning structure organically
Once we have an understanding of the basic parts of story structure, we get to jump right back into the �not even trying� stage of our learning. Read books. Watch movies.
Tough assignment, right?
But don�t just read and watch. Instead, read and watch with purpose. Pay attention to how other authors play out the aspects of structure in their own stories. Try to get a sense of the timing. Watch for the way the characters� arcs shift around the plot points within the structure.
Re-read and re-watch some of your old favorites. Since you�re already familiar with how these stories play out, you can gain an even better perspective of their structure as you anticipate plot points yet to come.
The only rule of good storytelling is write a story that works. When we study the stories that work for us, we deepen our already innate understanding of story structure. The deeper that understanding, the more likely we are to write that power into our own books.
Tough assignment, right?
But don�t just read and watch. Instead, read and watch with purpose. Pay attention to how other authors play out the aspects of structure in their own stories. Try to get a sense of the timing. Watch for the way the characters� arcs shift around the plot points within the structure.
Re-read and re-watch some of your old favorites. Since you�re already familiar with how these stories play out, you can gain an even better perspective of their structure as you anticipate plot points yet to come.
The only rule of good storytelling is write a story that works. When we study the stories that work for us, we deepen our already innate understanding of story structure. The deeper that understanding, the more likely we are to write that power into our own books.
K.M. Weiland is the author of the epic fantasy Dreamlander, the historical western A Man Called Outlaw and the medieval epic Behold the Dawn. She makes her home in western Nebraska.
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If you found this post useful please give it a tweet and don't forget to visit K.M. Weiland's very helpful website Helping Writers Become Authors. Her books Outlining Your Novel and Structuring Your Novel are available now.
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