In this video series I cover story structure and plot. I recommend the following books.
Here is the play list for all 12 parts http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=92B3E146AB7D132F
Between the Lines
The Anatomy of Story
Write Great Fiction: Character, Emotion, Point of View.
Screenplay by Syd Field
Here is the link to the story structure image used in the video.
http://neil.net78.net/storystructure.jpg
Here is the link to the first draft of my novel Bending Nature.
http://www.webook.com/project/Vampire-Romance-A-new-kind-of-vampire-TEEN
Duration : 0:9:58
[youtube wfCAr8EywBY]
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
as i was writing my …
as i was writing my ending a few minutes ago i thought of some things i can use in the preceding parts to add a lot more meaning to the ending
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
I think the main …
I think the main theme of Dumb and Dumber is summed up in the last line. “someday we’ll get our big break too, we’ve just got to keep our eyes open.”
Throughout the movie people missread signals, even the bad guys.
Of course there is also the shallow theme that kidnapping will not make you richer.
Another is that just because a lady wants you doesn’t mean she does. But that is part of the big theme.
Things aren’t always what they seem. Look hard enough and you can find your way.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
The main theme in …
The main theme in the Big Lebowski is every generation has its F-ups and generations abuse the ones before them. thats the way the whole durned human comedy keeps perpetuatin itself down through the generations, westward the wagons, across the sands a time.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Thankyou very much …
Thankyou very much for your reply! I feel I have unknowingly performed alot of the steps you have mentioned including having a theme. Though with alot of comedies I am struggling to see the “theme”. Could you be kind enough to tell me what the themes are to the big lebowski & also dumb & dumber. That would be much appreciated. Sometimes I feel like I’m searching for answers to questions i’m not even sure of but the more information I gather the more clarity I feel i gain…
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Any great story …
Any great story will have a theme. Look at some of the great comedies by Woody Allen, or those films Jim Carrey. Yes Man. Bruce Almighty.
Other films like Tootsie. Meet the Fockers. Pretty much anything with Adam Sandler, but ones that stick out are: Funny People, Bedtime Stories, Click, 50 first dates, Anger Management.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
It’s gives me great …
It’s gives me great clarity to get an insight from somone who knows what their talking about. I’m trying to write a comedy screen play. I’ve now heard alot about “theme” & I was wondering how do the rules to making a comedy differ if at all? Do comedies also have a theme??
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
wow – I just did so …
wow – I just did so much just by part 2 – would you give me so advice as to how to cultivate a work ethic/ discipline – I just finished a cool mind map so far – TY!
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
BTW, I have a …
BTW, I have a better video series of story structure and plotting. I will be posting it soon. Perhaps in a week. The first 6 parts teaches everything you need to know. The last six parts shows how I use the techniques. I develop my fantasy story in the last six parts, similar to how I devloped this sci-fi story.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
if it serves a …
if it serves a purpose. A good example is the novel, The Godfather.
A good reason to start a novel with a minor character is to build sympathy for a character that might otherwise be unlikeable. So you can use this trick to transfer the reader’s sympathies to a less likeable MC.
There could be other reasons to do this as well.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
It’s incredible! …
It’s incredible! It’s like the world of literature is a vast universe and your amazing technique just made it a lot more easier to explore! Thankyou so much! Oh and like roxasroks i’d like to know if it is reasonable to start a story with someone who is not the main character. :]
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Architectus777, …
Architectus777, this is good material. It is really helping me organize my thoughts into a process. I have tidbits of notes and emotional impressions of what I want to convey in my short short, but no real direction. This is providing me with benchmarks, thanks for posting and keep it up. Of course in short shorts, I need to get to the point very quickly, let’s say 1,000 words……pretty tough.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
If you have a good …
If you have a good reason to. Perhaps like in Jaws, you want to show the danger to build tension, so you start with a character that dies right away, but the MC should be involed somehow.
in the Godfather, Puzo has a good reason to start with someone who is not the MC.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Is it reasonable to …
Is it reasonable to start a story with someone who is not the main character?
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
You can have …
You can have several theme, but usually there is one main theme.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Can you have more …
Can you have more than one theme?
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Without a theme, …
Without a theme, you would basically have a beach read. Although it’s hard to write a story without a theme. There will most likely be a message no matter what. I don’t believe Stephenie Meyer had a theme in mind when she wrote Twilight, but there is one there.
However if you know what your theme is, you can strengthen it throughout the novel, leaving the reader with a stronger more thought out message. The key is not to preach but to give the message almost hypnotically.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
I think I see, so …
I think I see, so the theme is an underlying message that accompanies the story. With out a theme your story might just be a pointless string of events (perhaps interesting events,) and reader wouldn’t feel like they themselves have accomplished anything along with the character (the reader did not learn anything). They would just feel like they sat down and viewed a segment of somebody’s life.
Yeah, I think I see it now.
I still may be wrong, though…
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
That would be cool. …
That would be cool. Syd Field is good, but John Truby’s Anatomy of Story makes his advice seem like an outline.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
1. Revenge will not …
1. Revenge will not bring you peace.
2. We are conditioned to believe what we believe, and only when we realize this can we choose to move forward. Then we can use logic, experience, and evidence to find out own way.
3. Compassion is great. We should show it even to our enemies.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
All of that wraps …
All of that wraps around the theme. The theme is the message behind the story, hidden in the subtext, if you will. It is main point you wish people to ponder. It is the message you want to tell the world.
In my novel Agija of Agukas, which is the novel that sprung from doing these videos, there are a few main themes.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Sorry, I’m having …
Sorry, I’m having difficulty understanding what you mean by theme. What does a theme do if it is completely separate from the main part of the story? All of your conflict, your character development, your action sequences, your shocking twists, your antagonist’s motivation to harm the protagonist, all of that happens in the main part of the story.
So what does a theme do if it’s independent of all that?
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
crackhead bad
crackhead bad
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Hey good stuff, …
Hey good stuff, maybe I should respond with my own video on what I know that you maybe dont, some things I have learned are from Robert McKee and Syd Field and alot from my college course, so maybe we can share ideas. I feel you dont like Robert McKee LOL you mention a funny reference once in one of these videos that seem to point towards him.
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
This is very …
This is very helpful as I try to become a good writer. Maybe one day I will.
I am working through this series.
Thanks.
Paul
January 24th, 2010 at 2:37 am
5++++++
5++++++