The Heroic Journey
I was having dinner with friends last week, and the topic of books came up. We discussed The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, and one friend casually mentioned, “A classic heroic journey.” They all joined in the discussion, including how closely it followed this classic story structure, except for me. I remained silent because I had no idea what they were talking about.
My friends are not writers, yet they all know something fundamental about writing that I was completely unaware of. Late that evening, I looked up the topic and learned all about it.
In essence, the heroic journey is when the main character has personal growth, transformation, and adventure. Some movies with this structure include Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Lion King, The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, and The Wizard of Oz.
Note that this is not only an action story. A romance, spy novel, mystery, or documentary can follow this pattern. Other story types include rags to riches, quest, buddy comedy, mystery, superhero, three/five-act, cyclical, tragedy, voyage, rebirth, and forbidden love.
Why is it essential to have a story structure? Readers need distinct elements to maintain interest. A heroic journey is a timeless structure that begins with a solid foundation and grows into something bigger. Without structure, the story is not a story but events strung together.
How have I used the heroic journey? Well… Since I only learned about it last week, not much. Initially, my process was far from any structure because I never intended to write a book. Instead, I thought about stories to amuse myself. One fun day of unemployment inspired me to write up my thoughts.
Of course, this development method had significant issues, and I spent months self-editing, making beta reader changes, and working with three editors. The result was a more structured story that read far better than my first draft.
Since then, I have entirely embraced outlines as my story development tool. A big part of my process is to examine the transitions. I group the elements to form a clear beginning, middle, and end. Of the books I have written, two books partially followed the heroic journey structure.
My upcoming three books are in the outline stage, and for this article, I have reviewed the structure to see how the heroic journey structure might fit. I was surprised that one had several elements that indeed fit. So, I began tweaking the outline to shore up the transformation section. While the plot did not change, there was an improvement in this section that readers will appreciate. So, this casual dinner conversation led to a writing improvement. Nice.
So… Why should you care? I have learned to observe everything possible and apply what improves my life. What does not enhance, I discard. The heroic journey is a perfect example of a knowledge gem that will help my writing. Thus, if this knowledge helps you, wonderful. f not, I hope you found my chaotic discovery of this thousand-year-old literary technique amusing. Yet, I did find an unexpected benefit.
Now, I see the story structure when I watch a movie like The Matrix (for about the 20th time). Knowing this secret will make the film more enjoyable. I will watch it for the twenty-first time to confirm my suspicion.
https://www.storyboardthat.com/articl...
You’re the best -Bill
May 14, 2025
My friends are not writers, yet they all know something fundamental about writing that I was completely unaware of. Late that evening, I looked up the topic and learned all about it.
In essence, the heroic journey is when the main character has personal growth, transformation, and adventure. Some movies with this structure include Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Lion King, The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, and The Wizard of Oz.
Note that this is not only an action story. A romance, spy novel, mystery, or documentary can follow this pattern. Other story types include rags to riches, quest, buddy comedy, mystery, superhero, three/five-act, cyclical, tragedy, voyage, rebirth, and forbidden love.
Why is it essential to have a story structure? Readers need distinct elements to maintain interest. A heroic journey is a timeless structure that begins with a solid foundation and grows into something bigger. Without structure, the story is not a story but events strung together.
How have I used the heroic journey? Well… Since I only learned about it last week, not much. Initially, my process was far from any structure because I never intended to write a book. Instead, I thought about stories to amuse myself. One fun day of unemployment inspired me to write up my thoughts.
Of course, this development method had significant issues, and I spent months self-editing, making beta reader changes, and working with three editors. The result was a more structured story that read far better than my first draft.
Since then, I have entirely embraced outlines as my story development tool. A big part of my process is to examine the transitions. I group the elements to form a clear beginning, middle, and end. Of the books I have written, two books partially followed the heroic journey structure.
My upcoming three books are in the outline stage, and for this article, I have reviewed the structure to see how the heroic journey structure might fit. I was surprised that one had several elements that indeed fit. So, I began tweaking the outline to shore up the transformation section. While the plot did not change, there was an improvement in this section that readers will appreciate. So, this casual dinner conversation led to a writing improvement. Nice.
So… Why should you care? I have learned to observe everything possible and apply what improves my life. What does not enhance, I discard. The heroic journey is a perfect example of a knowledge gem that will help my writing. Thus, if this knowledge helps you, wonderful. f not, I hope you found my chaotic discovery of this thousand-year-old literary technique amusing. Yet, I did find an unexpected benefit.
Now, I see the story structure when I watch a movie like The Matrix (for about the 20th time). Knowing this secret will make the film more enjoyable. I will watch it for the twenty-first time to confirm my suspicion.
https://www.storyboardthat.com/articl...
You’re the best -Bill
May 14, 2025
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