Question Regarding goal and consequence specific to my storyform

questions
#1

Hello, there

Please correct me if I’m wrong. I’ve been studying dramatica for only few months.
From what I understand a story goal is contingent on the consequence since they are in a dynamic relationship. I also understand that consequence can either be, incurred later due to outcome of failure, or, present throughout the story because of the initial driver. In either case, achieving story goal would negate the consequence.

For my specific storyform, I got a story goal of Conceiving and a consequence of Learning. I tried to encode some scenarios with them, but I quite couldn’t make my encoded elements contingent upon each other. I really don’t see how conceiving and learning relate to each other. Any input would be appreciated.

#2

Great question. I think it really depends on the specifics of your story. For example, maybe the story is about a bunch of young friends who all want to achieve success as artists (writing, painting, dance choreographer, etc. or some combination) but they all feel like fakes or have trouble coming up with ideas from the heart, and are searching for their muse, something to inspire them (Overall Story Concern of Conceiving). If they fail, they will need to give in and face the Consequence of Learning (Gathering Information) – having to study a more practical, boring profession like accounting, computer programming, whatever.

That example also works for the case where the Consequence is already present – maybe they are already studying computer science, in fact they met in their Programming 101 class which they find unbearably boring. If they fail to find the inspiration needed to succeed as artists, they’ll be stuck studying Computer Programming for 4 years.

Anyway, maybe you could share a few more details on your story so we can help more. Did you create the storyform from your story ideas, or did you start with a random storyform? How do you see the OS Concern of Conceiving working in your story?

EDIT: I forgot to say welcome to Discuss Dramatica!!

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#3

Thanks.
I tried to piece together 2 different tales that i envisioned. I’ll try to keep my story brief.

It all happened when a mysterious event happened and people form a misconception that a town inventor was responsible for this. (initial driver)

I wanted to write about a non-conformist, escapist MC who runs away from his house to pursue his dream.
MC throughline
DOMAIN: Universe
CONCERN: The Present
ISSUE: Attraction vs. Repulsion
PROBLEM: Nonacceptance
SOLUTION: Acceptance
FOCUS: Proaction
DIRECTION: Reaction

And I wanted him to run him into a maverick inventor (IC) that could make MC’s dream come true, but he is in a bad relationship with the locals because he scornfully dismisses the local’s accusation to be not scientifically possible.
IC througline
DOMAIN: Mind
CONCERN: The Conscious
ISSUE: Appraisal vs. Reappraisal
PROBLEM: Reaction
SOLUTION: Proaction
FOCUS: Certainty
DIRECTION: Potentiality

And as with relationship througline, IC and MC makes a deal with each other to solve each other’s problem by first figuring out what really happened.
RS throughline
DOMAIN: Physics
CONCERN: Learning
ISSUE: Prerequisites vs. Preconditions
PROBLEM: Nonacceptance
SOLUTION: Acceptance
FOCUS: Evaluation
DIRECTION: Reevaluation

The paranoid townspeople are so convinced of their own misconception that local authority revoke IC’s license to operate the machinery that MC needs.
OS thoroughline
DOMAIN: Psychology
CONCERN: Conceiving
ISSUE: Permission vs. Deficiency
PROBLEM: Nonacceptance
SOLUTION: Acceptance
FOCUS: Certainty
DIRECTION: Potentiality

So I guess dismantling people’s misconception would be the story goal. Yet I don’t know how the consequence of learning fits into all this.

Maybe I chose the wrong storyform?

#4

Based only on your description of your OS throughline (nice summary by the way), I would put OS as Fixed Attitude – being convinced of something (including a misconception) is a “stuck attitude” or a “made up mind”. Unless you are really focused on the paranoia of the townspeople as the source of conflict (this would be Psychology - a problematic way of thinking). But then I think you would have made your Goal be about resolving the paranoia itself in some way. (But give this some thought, it could be that your throughline Domains were right and you do want to tell a story about paranoia.)

I could also see IC as Psychology - being scornful, scornfully dismissing things as not scientific, etc. sounds to me like a problematic way of thinking. But again, I might not have the whole picture.

Also remember that each Domain, Concern, Issue, and Problem (and also Focus & Direction) are all sources of conflict. So for example if RS Throughline Domain is Physics with a Concern of Learning, it means not only that they are doing things and trying to study the event, but also that their activities and studying are major sources of conflict in the relationship. Higher level, not as precise as Problem, but still problematic.

Hope that helps.

#5

@Lorno, first of all, welcome to Discuss Dramatica!

Next, as someone who is a fan of the original Dramatica terminology, it’s a great JOY to see someone else using it, too!

I agree with @mlucas about Mind perhaps being a better fit for your OS throughline. It sounds like they’ve all got their minds made up, and need some sort of “shake up” to get them out of that rut.

Do you know your story’s Outcome and Judgment? I don’t mean what Dramatica might be telling you, but rather what you WANT your story’s Outcome/Judgment to be…

#6

Ah thank you. After hours of toiling away, I think I finally figured out my real storyform and made relationship story have more conflict by setting overall story to Mind. It makes so much more sense.
It turns out that I really wanted to tell a story of about a scientist who was ahead of his time (Problem of Proaction) for ordinary people to accept.(Overall story domain of Mind)
I decided to do Personal Triumph story, where a scientist loses his lab(consequence of present), but acquires a friendship.

#7

Sounds great! Keep us posted for sure.

One question, did you decide to make the scientist / inventor the MC? Your last sentence implies that the Personal Triumph is the scientist’s triumph. Or maybe you meant that it’s a triumph for the new friend he acquires (the MC)?