Hello, I only know about Dramatica what I’ve read on the web. I do not have the software because my computer is an Ubuntu linux machine. So I’m stuck trying to use Dramatica by hand. I assume that is possible? Is there any part of the theory embedded in the software that isn’t publicly revealed?
My question at this point in understanding Dramatica is: How do the major plot turning points relate to each other? Turning points should be major changes. In one sense, I’m thinking of them as transformations of the throughlines. Are there particular types that tend to be more transformational than others? For example, the Types in the various quad positions are thematically parallel to the Types in the same position in the other Domains; seems like the lower left types in each domain are the transformational ones. Those are the Methodology types, right? Or am I confusing those with the Element level methodologies?
Should each turning point be all of the same parallel types or different? Here are examples:
- Inciting incident with a change in Purpose, first turning point with a change in Evaluation, next turning point with a change in Motivation, finally climax with a change in Methodology, all in the Overall Story throughline.
- Inciting incident with a methodology change in Overall Story; first turning point with a method change in Influence character story; second turning point with a method change in Relationship story; climax with a method change in Main Character story.
- Same as 2 but does not have to be a method change, as long as it is the same kind of change.
- Anything goes, with any type in any throughline.
To me 4 doesn’t seem rigorous enough and risks having an unbalanced story. 1 and 3 seems balanced but in practise perhaps it might not work as it seems to me the methodology types are the only really transformational ones. 2 is balanced but perhaps overly restrictive?