I could use some help with my story

writing
#1

I want to write a novel about a guy who invents an alternative monetary system that limits excessive wealth and poverty. It competes and wins from the current fiat money, so it becomes the dominant (and later the only) payment system. But as it turns out, one of the people close to him (the antagonist/IC) finds a loophole and is able to have an unlimited amount of money, despite the system’s limitations. To stop this man, my MC needs to shut down the entire monetary system he invented. The world is left without payment method. Then he discovers that the true value is not in some coins with numbers on it, but in products and services.

So how do I get started with this concept using Dramatica? What is the problem all characters share? That the economy is not and never will be reliable. The lie my MC believes is that he can fix it, but he can’t. That makes my MC domain Activity and the IC domain is Manipulation. Sounds about right.

But how should I go from there? Confidence and Trust are very important in my story. But where should I put them? I could argue that the current economy is not trustworthy and that the response is that they test the new monetary system. I could also argue that they trusted the new coin and it didn’t work out. So where does ‘trust’ go? Is it the OS symptom? Or the response, the problem or the solution?

What do you think?

#2

What is the inequity? What is he fighting for? And why?

#3

I think you need to do a lot more brainstorming before worrying about Dramatica. You need to have more characters in mind before you can tell what everyone is dealing with in the OS.

What you are asking is a bit like asking, “What is the problem with the economy?”

It could be that there is inequity – rich and poor (situation).
It could be that everyone believes hard work will produce wealth (fixed mindset).
It could be that people listen to politicians and businessmen who say they are going to put things right (manipulation).
It could be that nobody knows how to translate their day to day life into understanding the world (Activity).

Brainstorm!
If you want to brainstorm with Dramatica at your side – putting in choices and seeing what it recommends and then brainstorming with that new piece of information – do that. (In other words, put in “trust” as the OS problem, and see what that tells you about the IC.)

You have so many paths open to you that you just have to pick one and go. The story will come.

#4

If you have the Dramatica software (at least the Mac OS version, don’t know about the Windows version) there are the Instant Dramatica and the Dramatica-in-30-seconds features of the StoryGuide that is typically utilized to test out your story to see how it works out.

There’s also Narrative First’s Playground Series which is in the same vein.

#5

A year ago I used the 30-day trial version of Dramatica Story Expert. It took me more than half of those 30 days to wrap my head around the theory behind Dramatica. So I didn’t have much time left to try a story form. I tried the StoryGuide but I was not sure about the story form that remained. I want to make better use of the software, so I recently bought it. It is still not very easy to me, to be fair. But I think it can become more helpful to me once I get the hang of it.

I came up with this story idea several years ago and I did a lot of thinking about it. If the above synopsis seems a bit vague, it is probably because I was trying to be brief. The story in my head is pretty clear. I just have a hard time applying Dramatica to it.

The wealth inequity is much more extreme than most people want it to be. In this video Michael from Vsauce explains how much of our money system is based upon trust. From 12:44 on, he talks about the Tinkerbell effect and how our belief that our money is worth something, makes it worth something. And whether or not people have the right to live is mainly based upon this belief.

The novel I try to write plays with this idea. My protagonist falls in love with a dirt poor African woman. She dies. He wants to fix this system by creating a more dependable, more justifiable monetary system (MC Approach: Do-er). Of course he fails (Outcome: Failure); his approach is not better — just a different set of rules.

So like I wrote, confidence and trust are very important. I just don’t know where to put them. In my story, the people go from trusting the current broken system, to testing an alternative system, to realizing that it is all a matter of trust. I am ‘confident’ that the OS Issue is Confidence (sorry for the bad pun). So that leaves me with 2 possible story forms: either the OS Symptom or the OS Response needs to be Trust.

What do you think?

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#6

You say that the MC is a do-er but I think you are actually referring to the Protagonist here, and that might change your storyform.

What is the MC’s personal problem? Is it a broken heart? Is it being the son of an industrialist? Is it a strong belief in the equity of all people?

#7

When does she die in the story?

#8

Thank you both for your responses.

She dies very early on in the story. It is the inciting incident. He wants to fix the world because of it.

I always envisioned my MC to be the protagonist. And his personal problem is a strong belief in the equity of all people. Or at least he wants them to have an equal chance. The hourly wages should not be 300 times as much as someone who is born elsewhere.

I of course tried to make Inequity the MC Problem. But when I choose that, I cannot choose Confidence or Trust anywhere.

#9

This is why I asked the question. Your character appears to have a fixed mindset, which means that he cannot be a do-er.

Making the MC the Protagonist does not mean that the MC is absorbed into the OS throughline. They will have one set of issues as the Protagonist, and a separate set as the MC.

#10

[quote=“MWollaeger, post:9, topic:547”]This is why I asked the question. Your character appears to have a fixed mindset, which means that he cannot be a do-er.

Making the MC the Protagonist does not mean that the MC is absorbed into the OS throughline. They will have one set of issues as the Protagonist, and a separate set as the MC.[/quote]
I have to admit that this is hard for me to understand. I appreciate that you think along with me though. But I am confused. Each time I think I understand Dramatica, only to find out I don’t.

I can see that a strong belief is a fixed mindset. But that choice comes with a lot of consequences.

I also understand that the MC does not have to be the Protagonist. But having 2 sets of issues for the same person? How? And why?

I thought that the OS throughline is what the characters have in common. So how can the MC not be absorbed into the OS throughline?

This is so hard! I think I need to read the theory book again.

#11

It is hard! And, yes, your choices are going to come with a lot of consequences. But that’s sort of the point of Dramatica.

I’m not saying that the MC should not be the Protagonist. I’m saying that making them the same person does not mean they only have one set of problems.

Is the MC in the OS? Physically, yes. The actor is going to be in both. In a book, the character with the same name is going to be in both.

Now, imagine that I am a very nervous thief. I have two sets of problems if I want to break into a house. One – as protagonist – I have to worry about the alarm on the house, the dogs, where to sell the jewels after I get them. Two – as Main Character – I worry about failing because I am too nervous. I panic and forget things, so I go to a therapist all the time.

Do these overlap? Sure – what if I’m trying to break into the house and I forget the alarm code? What if I get so sweaty that I start leaving hand-prints everywhere?

But dealing with the act of breaking into the house is different from trying to deal with being nervous. If I decided to not break into the house, I would still be a very nervous person. If I took medicine for my nerves, I would still have to break into the house (in order to pay my bills). The two sets of problems can be separated entirely.

For your story, your Protagonist is trying to fix the economy – he is trying to change the outside world. But your Main Character is dealing with grief – he is trying to accept his loss. Notice what he is not doing: he is not trying to accept that the economy is always going to be unfair. His mindset is grief – it has nothing to do with the economy.

Does that help?

#12

It sure helps. Dramatica gradually becomes clearer. The distinction between MC and protagonist is clear now.

I gave it some thought. Does it make sense if Equity is not the MC Solution, but the MC Response? In other words, my MC thinks Inequity is the problem, but it is actually the symptom of the real problem, which is Order. At the end, he learns to ‘let go’ and he gives (MC Solution = ) Chaos a chance.

I tried giving Fixed to my MC, but nothing else made any sense from then on. I still don’t have a story form that seems to fit like a glove.

But maybe there are parallels with the story of me, trying to use Dramatica to write a novel. I have a fixed mindset that I should find a story form I can be happy with. But maybe I think this is the solution, while in reality I have to learn to ‘let go’ and use Dramatica to help me fix my story instead of the other way around :smile:

#13

I did something like 27 storyforms for my first story and then wrote it and realized I still hadn’t gotten the storyform right. If you sweat it too much, you’ll never write the story. Dramatica, for a while at least, has to be learned in parallel with writing. You have to do both.

When you ask if the MC Response is “Equity” – are you talking about how he thinks about the economy?

#14

Thanks for sharing this. I love Dramatica every day there is something new I can learn. Does it mean if the Protagonist and MC is the same person his/her problems are played-out in different domains.

As example …

Pursuing the goal and getting what he WANTs (fix economy) makes him the protagonist and is played-out in the OS domain. Getting “unexpectedly” what he NEEDs (accepting the loss) by pursuing what he wants is played-out in the MC domain.

#15

There is no need for him to get his second thing “unexpectedly” although that is okay, too.

“Unexpected” : In The Terminator it is hard to see that both the MC and the IC have their own problems. But she is someone who is pushed around and eventually learns to become a fighter. He (Reese, not the Terminator) is in a Situation – stuck in a different time. [He says at one point, “Can we stop him? With these weapons?” and that’s about as much as we get, but there is a scene in the script where he wanders around a park and marvels at the freedom of being able to have a picnic, play in the sand, etc.] Anyway, she doesn’t directly address her personal problem, but at the end becomes the strong woman Reese knows she can be.

“Directly Addressed” : In The Bourne Identity Jason Bourne takes specific steps to figure out who he is. He follows the chip in his back to the bank, analyzes what he finds, tries to determine why he knows how to fight… etc.

#16

As I’m writing, I start to realize that the story I have in mind might need 2 story forms: 1 for the first half and 1 for the second half. How should I deal with this? Am I writing a series or does my storymind have a multiple personality disorder?

Also, my MC is a steadfast be-er in the first part and he becomes a do-er who changes in the second part. Is this too big of a personality change to convince my audience he is still the same person?

#17

I would really consider whether or not you need two storyforms for your story. Just 1 story form requires a lot of content to explore fully. But say for instance your story is somewhat like Jerry Maguire or Finding Nemo in its structure, than I suppose your on the right track.

I wonder if you’re not mistaking the need for two storyforms in the place of a story where the movie actually feels like two distinct acts. In the latter case, the signposts for the OS or maybe even all of the throughlines would like have whats called a “Hairpin” shape (if you aren’t familiar with that terminology let me know).

As for Be-er into Do-er, this is a natural progression for Change Main Characters, although i don’t believe it is required to flip like that, it just seems to be what happens naturally. It’s purpose is only to describe the type of approach the MC prefers but he’s not beholden to it. It is possible to make the transition feel natural, I wouldn’t worry about it being too jarring but that’s entirely up to you in the story illustrating part of the process.

I feel as though as long as the motivation for making this change is clear and stays true to the character you should be fine.

#18

Thank you, Dan310, for answering. I would absolutely prefer 1 story form; not 2. But I can’t seem to find one that makes sense. Either MC & IC are just perfect and OS & RS are garbage, or vice versa. Or none of them are right.

The reason I brought it up was because the first part is about making the alternative coin a success, while the second part is about stopping it. Just like Dr. Frankenstein, my MC tries to bring an invention to life, and then tries to kill it. A story about starting and another one about stopping. There my confusion comes in; which of the parts should dictate the settings for Dramatica? The former or the latter?

Your suggestions are worth looking into further, so I will do that.

#19

It sounds like you have 2 storyforms. The first one is a Steadfast Be-er, second is Changed Do-er. More likely than not you’re seeing the Changed story as the _fore_story and the Steadfast Be-er story as _back_story.

I didn’t check back with the thread, but if this is a novel, or an epic series then I would search out the two storyforms that work best for you. If instead I misread the whole thing and you want this to be its own self-contained narrative then you will have to make some choices that will limit out what you want to do.

#20

Something that I do if I really struggle with one or two throughlines in a storyform is create at least four different storyforms – each one with the OS in a different domain. It forces me to consider the same story with different perspectives (which works with Dramatica, since any story can be told in any throughline). I had a very loose concept about the breakdown of a national holiday, for example. The overall story was about that, but I wasn’t sure how exactly. So I had four different concepts (I actually had more, but this was the general idea):

SITUATION: Being Stuck with Outdated Traditions [The Past]
ACTIVITY: Fighting against the Holiday [Doing]
MANIPULATION: Evolving Attitudes toward the Holiday [Changing One’s Nature]
FIXED ATTITUDES: Bias for/against the Holiday [Contemplation]

It’s a good exercise, and it makes you really think about what your story is about. I was convinced my story was in Situation, but it actually worked much better in Manipulation with an Issue of ‘Rationalization’. The storyform started singing after a while, and the MC/IC throughlines fit right into place. I’ve done this for a couple other projects I’ve been working on, and it always puts me back on the right track after a little while.

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