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Character Conflict Can Limit Your Characters by Melanie Anne
Phillips Many books on writing will tell you that a good story requires character conflict. In fact, this is far too limiting. Just as with real people, character can relate in ways other than by coming into conflict which are just as strong dramatically. Dramatica defines four different kinds of relationships, each of which can be positive or negative in nature: 1. Dynamic 2. Companion 3. Dependent 4. Associative 1. Dynamic relationships are conflictual. Positive Dynamic relationships are like the "loyal opposition" where two sides butt heads, but synthesize a better solution because of the conflict. Negative Dynamic relationships occur when two sides butt heads until each is beaten into the ground. 2. Companion relationships involve the indirect impact one character has on another. Positive Companion relationships occur when there is beneficial "fall-out" or "spill-over" between the two sides. For example, a father might work at a factory where he can bring home scrap balsa wood that his son uses for making models. Negative companion relationships involve negative spill-over such as a room-mate who snores. 3. Dependent relationships describe the joint impact of the two sides. For example, positive Dependent relationships might bring Brain and Braun together so that they are stronger than the sum of their parts. A negative Dependent relationship might have a character saying, "I'm nothing without my other half." 4. Associative deals with the relationship of the individual to the group. Rather than being consistently positive or negative, the two varieties of this kind of relationship may be either - but in any given relationship one variety will be positive and the other negative. The Component variety sees characters as individuals. The Collective variety sees them as a group. For example, two brothers might fight between themselves (Component), yet come to each others' aid when threatened by a bully because they now see themselves as family (Collective). If you limit yourself to exploring only the conflicting relationships, 3/4 of the ways in which people actually relate will not appear in your characters. What's worse, if you limit yourself to using only negative conflict, 7/8 of real relationships will be missing in your story. By exploring all four kinds of relationships in both positive and negative modes, your characters will interact in a full, rich, and realistic manner. Keep in mind: believable character are not only
built by developing each independently, but also by how they relate
one to another! Visit the Dramatica Theory Home Page  $179.95 $29.95 *Try either or both for 90 days. Not working for you? Return for a full refund of your purchase price! About Dramatica and StoryWeaver Hi, I'm Melanie Anne Phillips, creator of StoryWeaver, co-creator of Dramatica and owner of Storymind.com. If you have a moment, I'd like to tell you about these two story development tools - what each is designed to do, how each works alone on a different part of story development and how they can be used together to cover the entire process from concept to completion of your novel or screenplay. What They Do Dramatica is a tool to help you build a perfect story structure. StoryWeaver is a tool to help you build your story's world. Dramatica focuses on the underlying logic of your story, making sure there are no holes or inconsistencies. StoryWeaver focuses on the creative process, boosting your inspiration and guiding it to add depth, detail and passion to your story. How They Do It Dramatica has the world's only patented interactive Story Engine™ which cross-references your answers to questions about your dramatic intent, then finds any weaknesses in your structure and even suggests the best ways to strengthen them. StoryWeaver uses a revolutionary new creative format as you follow more than 200 Story Cards™ step by step through the story development process. You'll design the people who'll inhabit your story's world, what happens to them, and what it all means. How They Work Together By itself Dramatic appeals to structural writers who like to work out all the details of their stories logically before they write a word. By itself, StoryWeaver appeals to intuitive writers who like to follow their Muse and develop their stories as they go. But, the finished work of a structural writer can often lack passion, which is where StoryWeaver can help. And the finished work of an intuitive writer can often lack direction, which is where Dramatica can help. So, while each kind of writer will find one program or the other the most initially appealing, both kinds of writers can benefit from both programs. Try Both Programs Risk Free! We have a 90 Day Return Policy here at Storymind. Try either or both of these products and if you aren't completely satisfied we'll cheerfully refund your purchase price.
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