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Why Dramatica Is Different From Other Story Paradigms PART 5—May 25 , 2006 Plot. That’s the topic I want
to discuss in this chapter of my ongoing comparison between Dramatica
and other story paradigms.
Plot structure is the temporal backbone of a story. Stories need plot structure to hold them together. Story paradigms need plot structure to explain how to create plots for stories and how to recognize and fix plot problems. A simple plot structure supports a simple plot. A complex plot structure supports complex plots. An ideal plot structure supports both simple and complex plot structures. Comparing different plot structure paradigms is both easier and more difficult than I expected. There are a lot of similarities between the various plotting systems, as well as areas of difference. This article is not an exhaustive comparison. Instead, I’ve chosen to focus on the one area each story paradigm manages to integrate (one way or another)—Act Structure. Here’s my plan of attack:
A Word About Author and Audience Human minds are natural problem-solvers and pattern matchers. When something is missing, we natur lly fill in the bl nks (see what I mean?). We feel compelled to complete patterns when we notice they’re incomplete. If we cannot adequately fill in the missing pieces, we hide the incomplete pattern from our considerations. Literally, out of sight, out of mind. Hiding things from us blinds us to them. These blind spots, however, can show up in our work and create difficulties for us in our writing. That’s where external story paradigms can help our writing. They remind us of how stories work—how they are put together. Every writer wears several hats. Two important hats are that of author and audience. These are very different roles and every writer plays both of them over the development life of a story. The author is the story’s “creator.” He has god-like knowledge and power to shape the story. The audience is the story’s interpreter. It experiences the story as it is delivered, even though the story is colored by the audience’s biases and interpretive abilities. The tools, skills, and motivations of an author are different than those of an audience. As “god” in the story universe, an author creates and arranges the various story elements including characters, theme, genre, and plot. How the story is put together communicates the author’s intent. Rarely a passive receiver, the audience decodes the bits of story in an effort to uncover the author’s intent. The audience also searches for meaning in the patterns found in and created by the story. Sometimes a complete and sensible plot from the author’s perspective is incomplete and confusing from the audience’s perspective. When the audience finds holes in the story, it fills them from its own experience. When the holes are too big to fill or the story pieces don’t fit together, the bond between author and audience is broken. That’s when the writer, as author, needs help fixing the story problems. Which brings us to the tools themselves—the six plot paradigms under consideration. OVERVIEWThe plot paradigms explored in this article are Syd Field’s Paradigm, Robert McKee’s Central Plot and The Quest, John Truby’s Twenty-Two Building Blocks, Christopher Vogler’s Hero’s Journey, Michael Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure, and Dramatica’s Act Structure. I’d like to acknowledge that the plot paradigm examples I use here are simplifications of the originals. The illustrations I use are designed to emphasize the similarities, not the differences. I’ve chosen to give each paradigm the maximum comprehensiveness while remaining true to the creator’s intent and maintaining simplicity. I’m quite happy with the results and hope you like them too. After building illustrations for each of the plot paradigms I was surprised to see how structurally similar they are to each other. While each is unique, it is quite easy to make broad comparisons and point out Dramatica’s obvious differences. Most of the paradigms conform to the four-act structure— four more-or-less equal segments. Some systems define “acts” differently, but the pattern appears in most, even if the segments are subdivided or labeled differently (e.g. Act I; Act II-Part 1; Act II-Part 2; Act III). The exceptions to the four-act structure are McKee and Truby. McKee uses the more traditional three-act structure, while Truby a heavily modified three-act form. I discussed the concept of Dramatica’s four throughlines in Part 2 of this series. Looking at the various plot paradigms,3 it’s easy to see how most of the paradigms only explore two throughlines: an inner journey and an outer journey. I expected this. So, without further ado, let’s look at the plot paradigms. PLOT PARADIGM ILLUSTRATIONS Example 1: The Syd Field Paradigm.
Field’s Paradigm is a four-act structure masquerading as a three-act structure. It starts with a setup and inciting incident, has regular turning points in the plot called “plot points” and “pinches” in the middles, and ends with a climax and resolution. Though not apparent in the illustration, the Paradigm describes both the external journey involving the attempt to achieve the story goal and the internal journey of the Main Character. Example 2: Robert McKee’s Central Plot and The Quest McKee uses two different graphic examples to illustrate plot. The first is a simple linear timeline called the Central Plot.
McKee’s Central Plot is a modified three-act structure. It begins with an inciting incident, proceeds with progressive complications, and ends with a crisis, climax, and resolution. What is not shown is McKee’s system of using beats to build scenes, scenes to build sequences, and sequences to build acts. His third act is slightly shorter than the last act in the four-act structure examples. The McKee second act picks up the extra time and is slightly longer than the combined middle acts of a four-act structure. The second graphic McKee uses is called The Quest.
Example 3: John Truby’s Twenty-Two Building Blocks
A combination of Joseph Campbell’s mythic structure and original work, Truby’s Twenty-Two Building Blocks plot structure loosely conforms to a three-act structure. Truby is a proponent of the idea that Plot is what Character does, and Character is defined by actions. As such, his plotline is a combination of a Hero’s actions motivated by his internal Need and an external Desire (goal). The actions of various Opponents and Allies counterpoint the Hero’s efforts. The plot has an inciting incident, ends with a new equilibrium, and has several revelations and reversals along the way. Example 4: Christopher Vogler’s Hero’s Journey
Christopher Vogler’s description of the Hero’s Journey plot is usually presented as a circle. I have taken the liberty of converting his timeline to a horizontal plot line—an alternate form he uses to describe the progression of the Character Arc (The Writer’s Journey, 2nd Edition, p 213). I’ve also combined his Hero’s Journey timeline with his Character Arc timeline to get the full effect of his plot paradigm. Like Syd Field’s Paradigm, Vogler’s Hero’s Journey is a four-act structure camouflaged as a three-act structure. That’s where the similarity ends. Based on Joseph Campbell’s work on mythic story structure, Vogler has relabeled the plot points to describe the external journey of the Hero, and the internal journey of the main character (The Character Arc). Vogler’s setup and inciting event take the form of Ordinary World and Call to Adventure. Like Field and other paradigms to come, major events function as turning points for the acts, such as Crossing the Threshold into the Special World, Ordeal, and The Road Back to the Ordinary World. Crisis and climax show up as Resurrection and Final Attempt. Return with the Elixir and Mastery approximate the story’s resolution. Example 5: Michael Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure
Despite its name, Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure has its roots in a four-act structure as you can tell by the illustration. It starts with a setup followed by an inciting incident called Turning Point #1: Opportunity. It has regular turning points in the plot to indicate act breaks (Turning Points #2, #3, & #4), and ends with a climax (Turning Point #5) and resolution (Aftermath). As shown, Hauge’s paradigm describes the Outer Journey as the attempt to achieve the story goal. The Inner Journey describes how the Hero (Main Character) goes from living fully within his Identity (a mask that hides his inner trauma and desires) to a life free of the Identity and fulfilling his Destiny. Example 6: Dramatica’s “Act Structure”
Dramatica clearly uses a four-act structure. It starts with a setup of plot points and story dynamics and an inciting incident. It has regular turning points in the plot to indicate act breaks driven by the Story Driver, and ends with a crisis, climax, and resolution of plot points and story dynamics. It also explores four throughlines; two more than the other story paradigms. The Overall Story throughline is the rough equivalent of the outer journey found in other paradigms. The Main Character throughline is the counterpart to the inner journey. Dramatica counterpoints the Main Character throughline with the Impact Character throughline. Exploring the relationship between the Main and Impact Characters is done in the MC/IC Relationship throughline. INITIAL OBSERVATIONSWow. My initial reaction after comparing these six plot paradigms was that Dramatica looked dry and complicated while the others seemed easier to digest. Vogler’s Hero’s Journey seems the “friendliest” and most approachable of the bunch. As you might imagine, this was a little off-putting for me. I am a co-creator of the Dramatica theory of story and I didn’t expect the comparisons to show such a stark difference between Dramatica and everything else. This got me thinking. Why do the other paradigms seem so much more “writable” than the Dramatica act structure? Why does Dramatica “feel” so different from the others? Is less plot structure better? I found some interesting answers to these questions. Why do other paradigms seem so much more “writable” than the Dramatica act structure? There are three obvious reasons why the other systems suggest easier writing approaches than Dramatica. The first is that they are much simpler and therefore easier to follow. Even McKee’s somewhat confusing illustration of The Quest (Story, p 197) seems less enigmatic than the Dramatica Act Structure illustration. The second reason other systems seem more “writable” is that the labels used to describe their various plot points are more story-like than Dramatica’s labels. Syd Field uses straightforward terms like setup, confrontation, and resolution. Hauge uses simple phrases like Change of Plans, Point of No Return, and Major Setback. Vogler’s Hero’s Journey speaks in mythic language using words such as ordeal, reward, and resurrection. By comparison, Dramatica’s Signposts, Journeys, and Story Driver sound less writer-friendly. The third reason Dramatica seems more difficult to write from is its complexity. Dramatica has four throughlines to worry about instead of one or two. It has sixteen Signposts—four for each throughline. The nature of each Signpost is determined by a “storyform.” Just knowing how Dramatica’s structure is put together is not enough. In fact, it’s unlikely a writer could create a story just by looking at Dramatica’s act structure as shown in the illustration. More information seems necessary even to begin writing. Why does Dramatica “feel” so different from the others paradigms? Dramatica’s plot structure feels like a bunch of puzzle pieces placed in a grid. It looks more like a timetable than a description of a story’s timeline. It seems purely functional. On the other hand, Vogler’s Hero’s Journey reads like a ready-made story outline and practically oozes Meaning: The Hero is in the Ordinary World and has Limited Awareness; There is a Call to Adventure which gives the Hero Increased Awareness; The Hero’s Refusal of the call comes from his Reluctance to Change; The Hero’s Meeting with the Mentor signals the Overcoming of his reluctance; and so on. The same can be said (to lesser degrees) of Field’s Paradigm, McKee’s Central Plot, Truby’s Twenty-Two Building Blocks, and Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure. Is less plot structure better? Not when you’re trying to solve plot problems. Sure, it may be easier to use less elements of plot structure than more. It might take less time to determine if a story meets ten criteria versus twenty-five or one hundred. Easier, however, is not necessarily better. Plot structure problems generally come in two areas: the plot pieces don’t fit together properly or there are plot “holes”—pieces missing from the plot. When it comes to identifying and fixing plot problems, “less” usually is not better. In fact, persistent plot problems are often more closely tied to plot elements an author has NOT considered than plot elements the author has reworked. Having more tools with which to evaluate and construct a story is more valuable in those instances. In this regard, each plot paradigm has varying degrees of depth and breadth, but Dramatica surpasses them all. DRAMATICA’S COMPARATIVE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES From the comparisons so far, Dramatica’s plot paradigm seems to have the following weaknesses:
“Guilty” on all three counts. HOWEVER, those are mere misdemeanors and easily overshadowed by Dramatica’s real benefits. Dramatica’s approach to story is from the author’s perspective (as discussed in Article #1 of this series). That means it looks at plot in terms of how the story is really put together, not how it seems to be as seen from the audience perspective. The other paradigms developers analyzed existing stories and found common plot patterns. With Dramatica we discovered a pattern maker. That’s why it is so complex. Dramatica is flexible enough to create most any story pattern there is. It’s “dry and functional” because that’s what plot looks like from a “god’s eye” point of view. It uses non-intuitive terminology, partly because Melanie and I weren’t more creative in our labeling but more so because we went for accuracy over accessibility. The Dramatica act structure’s single greatest strength is its comprehensiveness. It covers everything necessary to make your plot work well. It has over one hundred unique story points (not including recurring plot points or character interactions) with at least forty-four specifically plot-related. Dramatica’s plot explores four separate but interconnected throughlines (as discussed in Article #2) instead of the one or two described in the other story paradigms. Just as important, Dramatica ties each plot point to the storyform. Storyforms describe the story’s underlying structure and dynamics and the interconnections between Character, Theme, Genre, and Plot—in essence, the author’s intent. The storyform serves to keep the plot coherent with everything else in the story. It also indicates the general nature of each plot point. This is a tremendous advantage because it gives an author an idea of how to explore his subject matter as it progresses act to act. The non-Dramatica plot paradigms evaluated in this article only explore one or two of the four throughlines necessary for a complete act structure. Writers recognize the patterns found in those plot structures and use them. Unfortunately, they also sense the “missing pieces.” Hours of writer’s block may be associated with writers struggling to figure out the structural gaps left by the other plot paradigms. Dramatica’s unique author’s perspective on story gives it another advantage over the other plot paradigms. Dramatica makes a distinction between Plot, the order in which events happen, and Storyweaving, the order plot events are presented to an audience. (This partially explains the table-like format of the Dramatica Act Structure illustration.) Storyweaving often masks problems in the plot. Separating plot from Storyweaving lets an author know what is really happening in the story as well as what seems to be happening. The other paradigms don’t make this distinction and suffer for it. In The Hero’s Journey, for example, Vogler says the plot structure should not be followed too precisely. “The order of the stages given here is only one of many possible variations. The stages can be deleted, added to, and drastically shuffled without losing any of their power” (The Hero’s Journey, 2nd Edition, p 26). With that much latitude how can a writer possibly determine what should or should not be in the plot? A writer pretty much has to figure that out on his own if he wishes to stray from the paths specified by a particular plot paradigm. On the other hand, Dramatica shows the writer how everything fits together and lets the writer determine how he wants to assemble the plot timeline. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS The six plot paradigms have varying degrees of complexity. Some seem simple and straightforward whereas Dramatica is the most complex of the bunch. Some are more readily understandable than others. Dramatica’s terminology is less descriptive than others (and has a whole lot more of it too!). Most of the plot paradigm illustrations look like story timelines. Dramatica’s plot structure looks like a complicated timeline with four different throughlines going on at the same time. If ease of understanding and learning were the criteria for determining which plot paradigm is the best, then Syd Field would be the big winner and Dramatica the big loser. However, I think it best if these paradigms are evaluated based on their capabilities to help writers build strong plot structures and fix plot problems. The qualities that make non-Dramatica plot paradigms simple to understand make them difficult to use for writing. Dramatica is more comprehensive than the other paradigms. It is better suited to building stronger plots since it approaches story from the author’s perspective. By separating plot and Storyweaving, Dramatica makes identifying plot problems easier. The Dramatica storyform connects the plot to character, theme, and genre better than any other system. Plus, the storyform indicates the nature of plot events without limiting subject matter. For these reasons I think Dramatica’s Act Structure plot paradigm is the most capable system examined. |
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