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Sections in Lesson Ten |
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Sections in Lesson Ten |
Continuing with our brief exploration of all the features available through the Dramatica Desktop, in this lesson we'll take a look at Query System tool - a collection of different question paths to lead you to a fully developed story.
Play Video on the Query System Feature
As mentioned previously, there are many tools in Dramatica - all interconnected through the Story Engine. So why don't we just have one tool and stick to it? Quite simply, every writer has his or her own approach to developing a story. Since we can't provide a tool that would click with everyone's creative process, Dramatica offers a suite of features broad enough that most writers should find one that is quite compatible with their creative styles. One of the most popular tools is the Query System, and the reason is because the Query System is really a whole family of tools, each tailored to a different kind of writer.
The most basic division among writers is those who like to structure first and then write, and those who prefer to write first and then structure. The real difference is, do you like to have all your ducks in a row, or in a pond?
The Structural writer wants everything organized, laid out, and worked out, so when it comes time to write, he or she knows exactly what is going to happen next, how to foreshadow what is coming, and how to build to specific points in the story.
The Inspirational writer knows what subject matter he or she wishes to explore, but wants to find the story during the writing process itself. The joy of writing comes from the act of discovery, and from following the Muse wherever she may lead.
Accordingly, Dramatica provides question paths that focus solely on structure, or solely on storytelling. Obviously, both are needed, but using the tools of the Query System, you can approach them in either order.
The Four Stages of Communication
If we get a little more detailed about the creative process, we can identify four distinct stages of communication between author and reader or audience. They are Storyforming, Encoding, StoryWeaving, and Reception.
Storyforming is the process of creating your story's underlying dramatic structure, such as determining that your story's goal is about obtaining something. Storyforming doesn't say what you are obtaining, just that that "obtaining" describes the nature of the goal. This is quite different than a goal of becoming a different kind of person. So, choosing the generic (or undeveloped) nature of your goal is part of the process of Storyforming. When you have done this for all of the crucial story points that need to be in every complete structure, you have completed the Storyforming stage of communication.
Encoding turns a structure in the real people, places, and events that appear in your story. For example, if you goal is obtaining, encoding would determine if the characters were trying to obtain some stolen diamonds or a new formula for cold fusion. Makes a big difference in the subject matter, but has absolutely no effect on the underlying structure - it's obtaining either way.
Weaving determines how you are going to reveal your story to your reader or audience. Using our encoded goal of obtaining stolen diamonds, you might choose to have the chief of police gather all his men (including your protagonist) together and tell them, "The South African Diamond Exhibit was compromised last night. The thieves made off with forty stones worth seventy million dollars." Or, you might have the protagonist working at his desk. Behind him we see the silhouette of the mayor through the frosted glass in the chief's office in a heated discussion. The door opens, the mayor struts off, and the chief walks up to the protagonist carrying a newspaper. He holds it up, points to the headline that the diamonds have been stolen, throws it on the protagonists desk and storms back to his office wordlessly, slamming the door behind him. Either of these approaches gets the information across, but the feeling that each creates is quite different.
Reception takes the reader or audience into account. Stories are not a passive experience, but require the reader or audience to put in a lot of work, figuring out what author is saying, and then decoding it back to the underlying structure. Of course, this is done subconsciously, but the point is that unless you determine what the reader/audience knows and/or brings with it to the story, you might be weaving your story in a way that is un-involving, employing symbols that are not understood, or presenting an underlying structure that is of no interest to that particular group. "Know your audience," as they say.
As it happens, writers generally don't plow through these four stages in order. Rather, then bop around from one to another. An author might have an idea for a character's personality (which is encoding), then come up with a neat storytelling trick (weaving), then alter the evolving story with an eye toward audience expectations (reception), and then consider the true underlying nature of the Main Characters personal demon (storyforming).
Because inspiration is a serendipitous task master, it is important for any story development tool to provide the ability to slip easily from one stage of communication to any other. To that end, the Query System provides a number of different question paths, each focusing on a different aspect of story development.
Four Aspects of Story Structure
Just as there are four stages of communication, there are four aspects of story structure: Character, Plot, Theme, and Genre. Each of these aspects must be developed through all four stages of storyforming, encoding, weaving, and reception.
For example, if you are considering how the audience will react to a character, you are dealing with Character Reception. If you are working on how to reveal a twist in your plot, you are focusing on Plot Weaving.
Because audience reception is such a subjective element of story development, the Dramatica software does not provide assistance in this area (though the Dramatica theory has plenty to offer in this regard). Similarly, since Genre is far less structural than it is storytelling, the software does not provide tools for this realm either (though, again, the theory is rich with Genre development techniques.)
This leaves three stages of development - storyforming, encoding, and weaving - and three aspects of story structure - Character, Plot, and Theme. To assist in these broad areas, the Query System also includes a push-button display with nine options corresponding to the nine combinations of stages and aspects. By clicking on any button you can move quickly to a question path that will provide insight and guidance in that area.
Still and all, there are many other paths of development outside these basic nine that can be accessed by using the pull-down menu in the upper left of the Query System window. Each path can be followed completely from top to bottom, or you can jump into a path at any point and (like creativity itself) bounce around, skipping questions, answering them in any order, and even jump from path to path as your Muse leads you. Every question you answer fills in more detail in your story until all stages are richly embroidered in all aspects.
Copyright 2003 Melanie Anne Phillips
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