Beyond the Hero’s Journey: Making A Story People WANT To Read
Let me preface this saying I’m not a published writer. I just try to think like one. However, I am a Hollywood-grown visual artist and computer scientist. People have paid me for these things (thank you! i like to pay rent and eat!). But I like to read. A lot. So at @crashwong‘s request, I’m combining my weird brain and weird experience to give you tips on something people take for granted: story.
There will be examples of all kinds (books, movies, games from classic to contemporary). There might be spoilers, but I’ll try to keep that to a minimum. There will be big words. There will be links. There will be food metaphors. So let’s begin:
Writing has a low barrier to entry - if you have a pen, paper, typewriter, computer, and/or brain, you can write something. But how do you write a story people want to read?
I’ve broken story theory into layers that build on top of each other, like cake or lasagna. A single-layer cake is great, but why eat one layer when you can have four?!
—– —– | LAYER ZERO: Language| —– —–
Knowing a language forms the foundation for writing in it. There are two key parts to language:
VOCABULARY: The words you use. Your ingredients.
Words are sounds, represented by symbols, that hold meaning to groups of people. Picking vanilla or chocolate changes a cake’s flavor. Describing someone as “vanilla” instead of “pale” connotes plainness, not just lack of color.
This is how things are lost in translation - if sometimes there’s no ideological equivalent between cultures. See the French concept of “l’esprit de l’escalier” which translates uselessly in English to “the spirit of the stairs.”
GRAMMAR: The way you arrange words. Your knife skills.
Arranging words tells us what happened. The simplest English structure is “NOUN -> VERB -> DIRECT OBJECT”. We can add ADJECTIVES to describe what people and objects are like, ADVERBS to describe how actions are performed, PREPOSITIONS tell us where things happened. We also have little things like articles to help string things together.
“Passive Voice” reverses the simple structure above: “DIRECT OBJECT received VERB from NOUN.” Because it puts the receiver ahead of actor/speaker first, it feels ‘weaker’. “The book was nudged off the shelf by me” feels like deflecting the fault to the book, while “I pushed the book off the shelf” feels like admitting I did it.
Because simple structure helps build clarity “Layer 1: Plot″, I recommend avoiding passive voice unless required by “Layer 2: Character.”
Like the ingredients in a cake base will change its flavor and structure, the words you pick and the way you arrange them create VOICE (required for a solid “Layer 2: Character″).
Like the culinary arts, language arts is constantly evolving. Improve your language skills by reading. A lot. Everything. All the time. From classics to contemporary to blog posts to texts from last night. Shakespeare is one of English’s master chefs: his inventive use of vocabulary and grammar created phrases we still use today. But modern society has created new terms like “on fleek” and “spilling tea.”
—– —– | LAYER ONE: Plot | —– —–
Like a meal is made of courses, to make a story, we string sentences into scenes and scenes into sequences. As the reader progresses, the sequences’ actions and atmosphere convey the plot of the story. There are literally infinite ways to go about this, but two forms are most commonly found in mainstream media.
WESTERN: You may know Freytag’s Pyramid or Joseph Campbell’s THE HERO’S JOURNEY. These guys looked at lots of favorite classic myths to see what common thread made people like them. Both dictate a good story arranges scenes so that the next one has higher emotional, physical (or both!) tension than the last one, the RISING ACTION builds to a CLIMAX and then comes down to a RESOLUTION (hence the obsession with 3-Act Structure). I’ve heard our species gravitates towards this because it’s like sex, but uh, don’t quote me on that.
Western storytelling treats the plot as a CONFLICT to be resolved (either positively or negatively). Each inner scene a smaller conflict that echoes the larger one.
Resolution (”return with the elixir”, “denouement”, “falling action”) is important in Western media because it applies how the protagonist brings the change experienced during the journey to their original state in the first act.
For example, in THE RETURN OF THE KING by J. R. R. Tolkien, when Frodo returns to the Shire after disposing of the ring, he cannot fit back into Hobbit society and chooses to go into the West with the elves.
Resolution can also be negative. In one version of Arthurian legend, Arthur is killed by Mordred - his own son from out of wedlock.
As audiovisual experiences, our brains invest more heavily in movies and feel the story tension more deeply. Which is why sometimes you actually feel tired after an action movie. Successful modern directors and cinematographers have figured difference in tension between scenes actually increases emotional investment. By adding “quiet” rest scenes between building action, we actually end up feeling more. Watch Mad Max: Fury Road for an excellent example of controlling storytelling through action pacing.
“TROPES” are types of scenes commonly used to advance action. For example, “killing the parent/mentor” increases tension by forcing the protagonist to go on alone. Like Cinderella’s dead dad or Gandalf falling to the Balrog. If you’re stuck, go grab a trope off this website but try not to be too cliche. Because come on.
When a story is “HIGH CONCEPT” that means it has an easily-summed-up plot (”elevator pitch”). This is super important in Hollywood because it helps sell ideas quickly to investors and audiences.
ALIEN by Ridley Scott was pitched as “JAWS in space.” “Comp titles” use previous work to describe the work you’re pitching.
LAST CALL AT THE NIGHTSHADE LOUNGE by Paul Kreuger was pitched as “a secret society of bartenders fights demons with alcohol magic.”
EASTERN: However, Freytag and Campbell focused on Western myths. If you watch a lot of anime, you are probably subconsciously familiar with the REVERSAL (”twist”). Most succinctly demonstrated in Japanese haiku, Eastern stories will set you up in one mode of thought and then present you with a contrasting one (see this 4-Part Structure called “Kishotenketsu”). The reader fills in the story by interpreting the difference between these two ideas. Our brains are great for this - it’s how we “see” what goes on between two comic book panels depicting two different actions.
Eastern storytelling focuses on SPACE the reader and/or character moves through. As a result, it’s less linear, but you can see a stronger focus on atmosphere. This kind of story does not require a resolution.
For great visual examples of Eastern storytelling through spaces, check out JOURNEY by thatgamecompany and any film by Hayao Miyazaki or Satoshi Kon.
NOTE: People too used to Western storytelling often critique Eastern work as “obscure” or “boring.” It’s not. It’s just different. Eastern work asks the reader to make their own individual correlations instead of explaining things directly from the creator’s viewpoint.
UNCONVENTIONAL: There are also a bajillion stories that don’t follow either formula. Here are some examples:
Caucher’s CANTERBURY TALES uses tells us several stories framed with another story.
THE RAVEN CYCLE by @maggie-stiefvater and THE KINGKILLER CHRONICLES by Patrick Rothfuss purposefully meander, creating narratives that closer mimics real life (constant, building action in incredibly unrealistic).
While most Western story is linear - one event coming after the other, Christopher Nolan’s MEMENTO tells its entire story backward to replicate its protagonist’s memory loss.
The two original STAR WARS trilogies (yep, those prequels) use ring storytelling to directly contrast Anakin’s downfall to Luke’s rise.
Short stories in particular are often great examples of more experimental plot styles.
—– —– | LAYER TWO: Character | —– —–
As a social species, we are biologically predisposed and culturally conditioned to empathize. So good stories center around characters. Hell, scientific studies have shown reading fiction improves empathy. But what makes a compelling character?
NOTE: This applies to all characters, not just the main ones!
At their core, a character has two things give MOTIVATION to their actions (no actions = no plot = no story).
WANTS: External goal, drives action/physical plot points.
NEEDS: Internal goal, drives emotional plot points.
The CHARACTER DIAMOND by Linda Heys and Steve Turnbull turns these motivations into actual traits, which is a good guide to manifesting character feelings through actions.
FLAW - A negative personality trait the audience can relate to, deep enough to permeate all aspects of a character’s life. Thus, it manifests in the actions they choose to perform.
Charles Xavier from X-MEN: FIRST CLASS is arrogant. He shows off his powers and retracts his help, even to the CIA, if people don’t meet his demands.
Erik Lensherr is angry. He believes rage activates his powers, so he cultivates it by pushing others away and murdering Nazis.
The flaw is negative behavior meant to protect them from their…
FEAR - Weakness the character may not recognize within themselves. “Failure” and “Rejection” are two common fears.
Charles fears being ignored. His family does not pay attention to him growing up, so he surrounds himself with people who approve of his opinions - first, college students and then, the X-Men.
Erik fears failure. Young Erik cannot to save his mother in the Nazi camp, so he spends adulthood training for vengeance, even after the war ends.
Fear generates discomfort the character wants to get rid of, which generates a …
NEED - Emotional evolution the character must go through to advance or feel complete.
Charles needs to have a cause. He needs to stop using his powers to impress people and put them to a better use.
Erik needs to accept his mother’s death and his role in it. He blames his mistreatment on humanity, but he cannot achieve peace unless he forgives.
To achieve their emotional need, the develop a plot-based…
WANT - External goal the character develops to quell his or her discomfort, often the driving plot of the work.
Charles thus wants to stop the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Erik thus wants to kill his tormentor, Sebastian Shaw.
Western storytelling creates INTERNAL CONFLICT by having a character’s wants oppose their needs. As a character goes further and further down the incorrect “want” path, he or she experiences more and more “fear” until an emotional climax occurs, positively or negatively resolving the “need.”
In the end, the character has gone on a transformative…
JOURNEY - Emotional change that occurs in the character over the course of the story. An invested audience will experience this change with the character which is why storytelling is so emotionally effective.
Common journey types include:
“Gaining Confidence:” THE PRINCESS DIARIES, KUNG FU PANDA.
“Learning to Care:” IRON MAN, MISTBORN.
Sometimes the character will return as a mentor for their first act world, like Hiccup in HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON.
For many blockbuster examples, consider reading SAVE THE CAT (and its sequels) by Blake Snyder or SCREENPLAY by Syd Field.
Not all journeys succeed. And not all succeed or fail fully. Tragedies like OEDIPUS REX and MACBETH are classic examples of characters failing journeys because they could not resolve their inner conflicts.
Charles learns to care Although he projects compassion, his motivation is selfish. When Erik abandons him, he realizes that his ambition to exploit others’ powers for fame has hurt his friends, so he opens his school upon a principle of mutant anonymity.
Erik gains confidence. With Charles’s help, Erik harnesses his abilities using positive memories of his mother. However, he cannot forgive humanity and takes this new-found confidence down a darker path at the cost of Charles’s ability to walk..
While it is possible to write a story with one character, most Western ones have two whose conflicting relationship drive plot forward.
The PROTAGONIST is the driving force behind the story and often the character we follow in the narrative.
The ANTAGONIST has motivation that directly opposes the hero and should receive the same in-depth creation treatment as the hero.
Memorable dynamics often draw “two sides of the same coin” similarities and differences between the characters. For example, Valjean and Javert from LES MISERABLES by Victor Hugo or Batman and the Joker from DC Comics.
PRO-TIP: “Every villain is the hero in their own story.”
—– —– | LAYER THREE: Metaphor | —– —–
This the final and hardest layer to construct. It’s also likely the least important when selling a book, but most important to make it memorable. You are more likely to remember a meal when you associate feelings with it. It’s why people are freakishly specific about wedding cakes.
METAPHOR uses emotional, visual, and lexical themes to reinforce a particular message or emotion in the reader.
ALLEGORY is an extension of metaphor, turning it into a direct comparison to real life.
Honestly, it’s kind of like branding - we subconsciously understand that Katniss’s mockingjay pin (and her dress, and her song, and her everything…) means “fire and revolution” in the context of THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins. The same way we know Mickey Mouse’s outline means wholesome family entertainment from Disney. There’s no hard and fast theory behind metaphor - after all, you make it up as the writer. But here are more examples to help:
THE GREAT GATSBY by F. Scott Fitzgerald is rife with visual metaphor like the green light across the lake, Daisy’s voice sounding like money, and the glasses billboard like God watching over everyone.
THE CRUCIBLE by Arthur Miller uses the Salem witch trials as a direct allegory to the then-present McCarthy hunt for communists.
THIS SAVAGE SONG by @veschwab is my favorite contemporary example, using music and monsters to visualize violent crime and its emotional repercussions. The most resonant sci-fi and fantasy create magic/tech systems directly allegorical to reality (which is why it’s such. a. great. genre!).
Also, a very specific shout-out to @crashwong who inspired this post and writes amazing, metaphor-laden short stories, which you can read here.
”SCARECROW” visualizes guilt through bird body horror.
“YOU’LL SURELY DROWN HERE IF YOU STAY” personifies the protagonists’s relationship to the desert by making it his parents.
Nebula-award winning “HUNGRY DAUGHTERS OF STARVING MOTHERS” turns dark thoughts into forbidden food that fuels the shadow in its protagonist.
Honestly, your high school English class is rife with metaphor/allegory books because it helps us understand the time period it was written in. More examples:
1984 and ANIMAL FARM by George Orwell. BRAVE NEW WORLD by Aldous Huxley. Dystopia and Cold War, anyone?
THE SCARLET LETTER by Nathaniel Hawthorne and THE HANDMAID’S TALE by Margaret Atwood still relate to modern feminism.
BELOVED by Toni Morrison still applies to
CHRONICLES OF NARNIA by C. S. Lewis are Christian allegory. Aslan is basically God.
They also say the LORD OF THE RINGS is an allegory for World War II, but Tolkien denies it.
—– —– | ICING: Additional Tips | —– —–
Here are some additional tips on how to better execute your writing and dress up the structure cake I’ve described above.
“Show, don’t tell.“ Humans are capable of empathy even with fiction, so don’t always have to explicitly state how a character feels. Show what they are doing or how they are reacting.
“Think of the little things.” - Character can be implied with clothing, movement. What you choose to notice on the page implies what that character would notice or consider important. These things help turn archetypal characters into unique individuals.
“Dialog should advance a characters’ wants.” Few real people explicitly state their goals in conversation Often they will say things around what they actually desire. Avoid cheap gimmicks like writing out accents. Instead, consider level of vocabulary and choice of words based on the characters’ motivation and history.
“Trim fat scenes.” Be frugal with your writing. Every depicted scene should advance emotional or physical plot. Even if a story is Eastern and meant to convey space over action, avoid introducing passages that defer from your overall message.
Anyhow, that’s my four-layered, storytelling cake! Go out and cook up some good stories! (@nilaffle is painfully aware that I love food metaphors).
This is probably the longest text post I’ve every written, but if you’d like to see more posts like this, don’t be afraid to DM me a topic or support my shop (again, I like to eat!). <3
