Signposts Order for an Arabic story, without using the software

questions
#1

I’m building a TV series, and from the theories I’ve learned were dramatic but I couldn’t buy the Software, so I had to Assign all the point that i could manually, now in between my hands there is a Storyform for Pilot and Storyform for the Season as per Sir James Hull’s advice, and I could never imagine a Storyforms more From one Season - and if the story bears, I can’t - the Concern was able to withstand me and I tried to get it out as well as possible, but the problem faced me in arranging the Signposts and now my question is the following:

I faced a problem - which I can overlook - that I did not arrange the Signposts for each Storyform in the order of the Software, because I reached that information after I did the work, and I received a more important information, which is that the one who tells a story from a culture other than Western does not have to deal with the program but with the theory.

But the matter is, yes, I write a story with my own narration as an Arab, but I am influenced by Western narration and the Western language as by my culture narration. .

My question here is, does this arrangement harm the Argument that will occur in the story? Am I trying to force the form\order or something?

Of course, I will not finish rewriting the story at this point, but I am waiting for enough money so that I can consult a specialist in that theory and ask for his help, but for the time being, as you can see, I cannot buy the program itself :))

This is my story points and Thoroughness, if someone kindly look at it and give me an advice.
Note: The story it self is BIG, revisiting some old religious themes like God, Devil, Human, Mind, Soul, In a Dystopian city where tech. and modern science fall dead.

This link will guide you to pictures for the story points, Concern, and Throughlines.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pAaIgBhfjvSXvwO5E_GermK5NDho_CAI?usp=sharing
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(Season)

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Main Character

Act1 (signpost1 – Changing one’s nature)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Developing a plan)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Playing a role)

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Conceiving idea)

Overall Story

Act1 (signpost1 – Impulsive Responses)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Memories)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Inner most Desires)

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Contemplation)

Subjective Story

Act1 (signpost1 – The Present)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – The Past)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – How things are changing)

Act 4 (SignPost4 – The Future)

Impact Character

Act1 (signpost1 – Gathering information)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Understanding)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Obtaining)

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Doing)

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(Pilot)

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Main Character

Act1 (signpost1 – Playing a role)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Developing a plan)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Conceiving idea)

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Changing one’s nature)

Overall Story

Act1 (signpost1 – Memories)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Inner most Desires)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Contemplation )

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Impulsive Responses)

Subjective Story

Act1 (signpost1 – The Past)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – The Present)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – How things are changing)

Act 4 (SignPost4 – The Future)

Impact Character

Act1 (signpost1 – Gathering Information)

Act 2 (Signpost2 – Obtaining)

Act 3 (SignPost3 – Understanding)

Act 4 (SignPost4 - Doing)

#2

Pilot Dynamics

Resolve Change
Growth Stop
Approach Be-er
Problem- Solving Style Logical
Driver Action
Limit Optionlock
Outcome Success
Judgment Good

Season Dynamics
Resolve Change
Growth Stop
Approach Be-er
Problem- Solving Style Logical
Driver Action
Limit Optionlock

Outcome Failure

Judgment Good

Pilot and Season
Goal Memory
Consequence Past
Cost Understanding
Dividends Developing a Plan or Playing Role
Requirements Conscious
Perquisites Present
Preconditions Learning
Forewarning Conceiving an Idea

#3

Regardless of where you grew up on this planet, your concept of narrative lies somewhere between Male Mental Sex (linear) or Female Mental Sex (holistic). While there are preferences for one or the other amongst different cultures, the mechanism behind them is exactly the same.

We all have the same boot record in our minds. :blush:

If you can’t purchase the software or subscribe to Subtxt, just take the Storyform as presented, and use the order of Signposts to help guide your story.

The order ABSOLUTELY matters - order is meaning so veering off in different directions will ultimately cause problems in your storytelling.

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#4

First of all, thank you, Mr. James, and it is a great honor for me to have the conversation with you, and I thank you for your time in responding.

Let me try to be more brief than before.

1- I have read this from Mrs. Melanie Anne where she says: "But, if you have a story to tell that is running up against the software, ask yourself whether you are telling a story that is close enough to Western Cultural norms so that you should Alternate your story to match the storyform, or if you are telling a story so far from Western norms that perhaps you need to rely more on the theory than the software.

On this link: Dramatica's Plot Sequence Report (Deep Theory)

What is the meaning of this, because there seems to be something I don’t understand, based on your advice.

2- What do you mean by your words sir, "just take the Storyform as presented, and use the order of Signposts to help guide your story. Is it meant to take the same order as in the 4 throughlines table

3- Assuming I can do this with respect to the Seasonal Storyform, should the Pilot’s Storyform match the dramatica order as well, or can I use the order that suits my story?

4- One last question - I know that it needs a consultation, but managing money is really difficult for me now. If you allow your time to respond, I will be grateful - The question is:

If the Pilot Storyform is different from the Season’s Storyform, how can I combine the Signpost of both within the Pilot. Example:

Signpost (Pilot) - in any given Act - is Gathering Information, now there is Signpost1 (Season) Gathering information, it accommodates three Acts in the Pilot, so what should I do now to Apply both, and to take into account the clarification of both.

#5

The dramatica.com webpages has scores if not hundreds of audios and videos where writers and software users got together to discuss movies. There are also some general discussions of the dramatica theory as a writing tool led by experts and creator of the original theory and software. You could start with the movies you are most familiar with. About 1996 I took the husband with me to an in persons weekend workshop, and he had had no experience with writing much less the theory. He enjoyed the two days of lectures and theory breakdowns. He felt satisfied he had gotten an understanding of it by the end. The software used to come with many pages of worksheets with many blanks to fill in with pencil. I met someone at a workshop who used the theory but did not seem to care for computer use. Once, when I had some of my work analyzed by a dramatica expert, he found that I had had a complete storyform. Everything was just in different places than I assumed. He found that was a usual happening with writers he assisted. The brain worked with these concepts kind of automatically, was my take on it. The brain completed the story, and the creators of the dramatica theory figured out what the brain looked for. For sure, watching those videos would help a lot.

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#6

1: I’m pretty sure Melanie is talking about Female-Mental Sexed writers struggling with parts of Dramatica software like the idea of Story Drivers or a Story Goal. From the perspective of these minds, the idea of cause-and-effect “plot points” or problem-solving in service of a “goal” is foreign.

Subtxt helps with this unfamiliarity by dropping Drivers in Female-Mental Sex stories, and replacing the idea of a Story Goal with a Story Intention. There are more accommodations that you can read about here:

2: Dramatica lists hundreds of Storyforms that you can access without having to pay for the program. You can find a Storyform that matches the one for your particular story and then just use the order of Signposts in each to figure out what should happen in each Act.

3: You always want to follow the order presented in the Storyforms. There’s a reason why things unfold the way they do in a story, and its tied into what the narrative is trying to communicate to the Audience. That’s what a Storyform is.

4: For that, I have just the answer. These two articles should help out:

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#7

well, thank you so much for you valuable time.

#8

One point I thought of today, the theory is to get one writing the story with many possible complexities, yet some points get elaborated on … not all. If the story captures the audience and the writer has fun, that is the point. I have been listening to several series via books on tape, these past few years. One series the Falco mysteries seems to have a final book that leaves a point just hanging after many, many volumes of tight complexities. It was almost like perfection was not that important, just letting the audience shuffle around concepts. It kind of gave me permission to think it was ok that not every storyform detail was written in, exactly perfect.

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