For Story

Structure

 


Home Mail: customer-service@storymind.com

For Story

Development



Write Your Novel or Screenplay Step By Step

Try it Risk-Free for 90 Days


Contact Us - About Us - Lowest Price Guarantee - Shipping - Return Policy


Copyright Melanie Anne Phillips - Owner, Storymind.com, Creator Storyweaver, Co-creator Dramatica



$29.95

StoryWeaver

$99.95


Dramatica Articles on Writing Free Online Writing Classes in Streaming Video

Follow Us

Follow Us at Storymind.com Interactive Story Engine

Novel Writing Software

Write Your Novel or Screenplay Step by Step

Thousands of writers use StoryWeaver to build their story’s world, characters, plot, theme,
and genre.

Try it Risk-Free!
Click for Details

Try it Risk-Free!
Click for Details

Thousands of writers use Dramatica to find and refine their story’s structure and to find and fix holes and missteps.

Key Features Key Features



Free Bonus Package The Writer's Survival Kit Bonus Package

Try it Risk-Free for 90 Days!

Click for Details

Free Bonus PackageThe Writer's Survival Kit Bonus Package

Try it Risk-Free for 90 Days!

Click for Details

By Melanie Anne Phillips

creator StoryWeaver, co-creator Dramatica

Novice Writers
Intermediate Writers
Advanced Writers
Basic Story Structure

Characters    
Plot
Theme
Genre

Creative Writing
Story Development
Story Structure
Narrative Science    

Story Development
Story Structure

Dramatica Software 
Dramatica Theory

Articles on Writing

Story structure is built on fours, not on twos.  Though it may seem like conflict is created between two opposing forces, there are two other forces at play as well.


Consider a dramatic circuit consisting of four elements: Potential, Resistance, Current, and Power - just like an electrical circuit.


Every scene has all four elements and if one is missing, the circuit is incomplete and the story won't flow.


But there's more to it than that.  These four elements have a relationship that we see in many areas of life.


Here are some other sets of four that create the same kind of internal mechanism:



As you can see, each group of four has a very similar feel.  And the last item in each set seems a little out of place compared to the other three.


There's an important psychological reason for that, but it would require going way too deep for this post.  For now, just know that stories reflect how we think, and we think in four dimensions because we perceive four dimensions.  So, it is no surprise that story structure is also based on fours, because that is the way we fully explore a topic in fiction or in life.

Story Structure is Based On Fours, Not Twos