December 2017
Man vs. Nature, Man, and Self
Every story is about conflict and that conflict comes from a villain. It’s easy to see that the villain might be a person such as the evil villain in every James Bond movie. However, villains come in three varieties: Man vs. man Man vs. nature Man vs. self Man vs. man is the simplest conflict […]
Turn the Hero Into the Villain
Once you know who your hero is, you automatically know who your villain is. That’s because your villain is the anti-hero but stronger and more powerful. In “Rocky,” the hero is boxer but the villain is the heavyweight champion of the world. In “Avatar,” the hero is a Marine but the villain is the Marine […]
The Four Parts to Changing the Hero
Take a 120-minute movie and divide it into four equal 30-minute parts. Then each part tells the story about the hero as the hero gradually changes from a dead-end life in the beginning to a changed person in the end. In most movies with happy endings, the hero starts out downbeat in the beginning (“Rocky”) […]
The Goal to the Goal
In every story, a hero wants something. That’s the hero’s dream and that’s the initial goal the hero has at the beginning. However, there’s always a second goal that will help the hero achieve the initial dream. That means every story really has a goal that the hero must achieve to get to the initial […]
Software Won’t Make a Difference
There are plenty of fine screenwriting word processors on the market such as Final Draft and Fade In Professional. While these programs can make the process of writing a screenplay easier, you still have to know how to use them properly. Look at any construction site and you’ll see a variety of different tools. If […]
Kill the Villain
If you want to write a mediocre movie, let the villain live. Even worse, let the hero go through the bulk of your story without encountering obstacles from the villain. That’s a true recipe for failure and that’s a simple way to avoid writing a dead-end screenplay. Consider the difference between “Star Wars” and “The […]
The Setting is a Villain
When most people think about plotting a story, they usually think of how a villain can keep throwing obstacles in the hero’s path. Since the villain can’t physically block the hero, the villain often has henchmen who do the villain’s bidding. A simple example of this occurs in James Bond movies where the villain sends […]
Forcing the Hero to Change Through Setting
Once you know how your hero changes from a dead end life in the beginning to a better life (and a better person) in the end, the main goal is to create problems. Problems can be anything, but random problems simply distract from the story. The real purpose of obstacles in a plot is to […]
The Emotional Structure of Stories (Part II)
The simple formula to create an emotionally charged story is this: Start with a flawed hero in the beginning End with the hero overcoming his or her flaw to become a better person in the end Surprisingly, you can find plenty of mediocre movies that forget this and simply pile on the action and special […]