What Dramatica does and doesn't provide

writing
#1

Please correct me if I’m wrong, or forgive me if I am merely stating the obvious, but I’ve been spending a lot of time searching the Dramatica forums and blogs trying to find the answers to some of my own questions and kept seeing some common themes among many of the posts.

This is probably obvious to longtime dwellers in Dramatica, but it seems to me that the inequity behind the confusion and frustration which many new explorers of Dramatica experience is that they want Dramatica to provide them with a plot, (meaning in this context a list of events that occur in the story) while Dramatica actually provides them with the logic behind the plot. It is the author’s job to decide what the results of that logic lead to–given the context of their story. Dramatica will help make sure there aren’t any strange gaps in the story or odd character behavior due to missing logic. It also helps ensure there are no strange beats or inconsistent behavior due to conflicting logic.

All of which also goes to answer the other objection about constraining creativity. Since Dramatica only suggests what should be addressed. The author is not only free to write about anything that is logically consistent with the story, he is required to come up with those answers. In fact Dramatica can suggest areas which may have been overlooked, so instead of a constraint, it could be viewed as a source of inspiration.

I don’t know if this is explicitly stated anywhere (if it has been I haven’t seen it) but something like this should probably be offered to new users at the first sign of confusion.

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#2

I love this. I would just add that in addition to the “logic” of the plot it also helps describe the emotional logic behind the plot–in other words, the various stages of emotional growth the central characters must progress through.

Having immersed myself in all things Dramatica for 20 years I really appreciate these “newbie” postings. There is a lot I probably take for granted that I forget not understanding way back when.

Thanks!

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#3

Yes. I also think many newbies expect Dramatica to alleviate whatever pain writing is causing for them. Unfortunately, writing is hard. Knowing Dramatica makes your writing better, but it’s still hard.

To quote Greg LeMond (the cyclist): “It never gets easier, you just go faster.”

#4

Thank you. Your site, Narrative First, as been invaluable to my even getting a foothold in Dramatica theory. I’ve hesitated to say anything since I know I’m stepping into the middle of a multi-decade conversation and experience had shown me that doing such is a great way to embarrass yourself and display your ignorance.

I had some other thoughts as to why so many people feel Dramatica is better suited to analysing stories instead of planning them. It concerns process versus states and how it may be easier to identify the key elements in a story when you see the movement from one state to another (in a finished story) whereas many authors (like me) tend to think in terms of a series of loosely connected states (probably all the emphasis on plot points) and struggle to come up with which progression (among numerous possible elements) will get you from one state to the next…but those ideas aren’t fully formed and still involve a lot of tenuous assumptions.

Perhaps another time.

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#5

Well when you do, please add it here. Thanks!