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Character and Structure: An Unholy Alliance
People want engaging stories, and that means fusing what appears to be polar opposites – logic and emotion – into a seamless whole. The good news is that it’s easier than you might think, and once you know how they work together you’ll know how to give people exactly what they want without compromising your story vision.
Character and Structure: An Unholy Alliance demonstrates how to combine story structure (the logical stuff) with your characters' needs and wants (the emotional stuff). It illuminates all the major structural elements using examples from successful books and movies, reducing the complex world of story development and engagement into easily understandable parts. In short, it helps you create stories people will love, share, and want to return to. It’s your easy-to-follow writing guide, and the book you're likely to return to over and over again when planning, writing, editing and troubleshooting stories.
For new and experienced authors alike, Character and Structure is the essential guide to developing the storytelling skills and techniques you need create stories people can't put down: gripping, well-structured and entertaining. Designed to help you understand your story from your audience's perspective, it gives you the tools to ensure they see it the way you want them to. It provides the framework for creating both clarity and emotional highs and lows, while allowing for almost infinite creativity. In short, Character and Structure helps you create stories your audience won't forget (for all the right reasons).
The chapters within use questions to draw out the details you need to create an engaging story, illustrating them with examples from a broad range of movies and books, many of which have massive followings. Some of the examples even appear to do everything against all conventional wisdom, but on closer inspection they apply the exact same story structure techniques almost all successful stories use, while still working hard to make their audience care about their characters and what happens to them.
By developing an understanding of how successful stories seamlessly interweave character within an audience's story expectations, you'll find well-tested and successful ways to engage your audience on an emotional level while giving yourself an advantage many writers aren't even aware of. With word of mouth being the single most important factor in the success of any story, you'll need people to love your story if you want to be successful. That means you can't afford to overlook your audience's expectations or the tools needed to ensure they become emotionally invested.
Utilising a wealth of established storytelling techniques which have been tried and tested over centuries, Character and Structure: An Unholy alliance presents them in engaging and clear terms designed for modern writers. It puts the most powerful storytelling tools at your fingertips while showing you how to use them, helping ensure your success. It's the single most valuable reference source you'll find for powerful storytelling, no matter your genre or present level of skill. You can't afford be without it.
Character and Structure: An Unholy Alliance demonstrates how to combine story structure (the logical stuff) with your characters' needs and wants (the emotional stuff). It illuminates all the major structural elements using examples from successful books and movies, reducing the complex world of story development and engagement into easily understandable parts. In short, it helps you create stories people will love, share, and want to return to. It’s your easy-to-follow writing guide, and the book you're likely to return to over and over again when planning, writing, editing and troubleshooting stories.
For new and experienced authors alike, Character and Structure is the essential guide to developing the storytelling skills and techniques you need create stories people can't put down: gripping, well-structured and entertaining. Designed to help you understand your story from your audience's perspective, it gives you the tools to ensure they see it the way you want them to. It provides the framework for creating both clarity and emotional highs and lows, while allowing for almost infinite creativity. In short, Character and Structure helps you create stories your audience won't forget (for all the right reasons).
The chapters within use questions to draw out the details you need to create an engaging story, illustrating them with examples from a broad range of movies and books, many of which have massive followings. Some of the examples even appear to do everything against all conventional wisdom, but on closer inspection they apply the exact same story structure techniques almost all successful stories use, while still working hard to make their audience care about their characters and what happens to them.
By developing an understanding of how successful stories seamlessly interweave character within an audience's story expectations, you'll find well-tested and successful ways to engage your audience on an emotional level while giving yourself an advantage many writers aren't even aware of. With word of mouth being the single most important factor in the success of any story, you'll need people to love your story if you want to be successful. That means you can't afford to overlook your audience's expectations or the tools needed to ensure they become emotionally invested.
Utilising a wealth of established storytelling techniques which have been tried and tested over centuries, Character and Structure: An Unholy alliance presents them in engaging and clear terms designed for modern writers. It puts the most powerful storytelling tools at your fingertips while showing you how to use them, helping ensure your success. It's the single most valuable reference source you'll find for powerful storytelling, no matter your genre or present level of skill. You can't afford be without it.
- GenresWriting
182 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 27, 2019
37 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Chris Andrews
20 books89 followersChris Andrews embarked on his writing career while under the blissful ignorance of youth, when he thought writing a successful book was as simple as reading one.
His first novel, Divine Prey, was accepted by an agent and publisher, but true to Murphy's Law the publisher folded and the agent left the business.
Chris has since learned a lot about self-publishing.
His novels have been shortlisted in both the QWC/Hachette and Varuna/HarperCollins Manuscript Development Programs.
His first novel, Divine Prey, was accepted by an agent and publisher, but true to Murphy's Law the publisher folded and the agent left the business.
Chris has since learned a lot about self-publishing.
His novels have been shortlisted in both the QWC/Hachette and Varuna/HarperCollins Manuscript Development Programs.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 27, 2020
Andrews settles the master/slave questions of character and structure. The content rivals a university text but makes the language accessible to every storyteller. A practical and engaging resource for fictioneers of all media.
November 22, 2019
A grand book among other books.
When I downloaded the book it was the unholy alliance that drug me in. It was the great advice and the funny stories that kept me there. This is not only practical advice for any aspiring writer I think it is advice you won’t be successful without. And if you think it’s just a boring old book about writing he has a few funny situations like when he went to the movies cause all he thought was vampires and thought it was getting a movie like the Kate Beckinsale movie and wind it up sitting through twilight with screaming teenagers. I kept laughing because I kept picturing him looking for other adults. I’m just weird that way though. This is a great book and if you’re an aspiring writer or a college student who needs to write essays for your professor I would recommend this book to you. Because if you can get a college professor a mostly involved in your story you’re on your way to having an advocate in the real world.
When I downloaded the book it was the unholy alliance that drug me in. It was the great advice and the funny stories that kept me there. This is not only practical advice for any aspiring writer I think it is advice you won’t be successful without. And if you think it’s just a boring old book about writing he has a few funny situations like when he went to the movies cause all he thought was vampires and thought it was getting a movie like the Kate Beckinsale movie and wind it up sitting through twilight with screaming teenagers. I kept laughing because I kept picturing him looking for other adults. I’m just weird that way though. This is a great book and if you’re an aspiring writer or a college student who needs to write essays for your professor I would recommend this book to you. Because if you can get a college professor a mostly involved in your story you’re on your way to having an advocate in the real world.
December 16, 2019
When you read a lot of creative writing advice, you quickly find that almost every book and blog on the topic gives much the same tips on much the same topics. Chris Andrews’s Character and Structure: An Unholy Alliance at first seems no great exception to this. That sounds like a criticism but, counterintuitively, it’s actually a good thing. Advice that flies in the face of conventional wisdom is usually bad advice, which this book absolutely is not. What sets this book apart from others is its presentation.
Where Andrews excels is in the examples he draws on. In much of my experience, typically when writers and critics bring up pop cultural examples to demonstrate a writing principle, they either choose some popular and are unrelentingly positive, or they choose something known for its problems and are unrelentingly negative, as if they’re afraid of contradicting the mainstream audience. It was a refreshing surprise to read this book and see acknowledgements of both the flaws and strengths of the popular stories it uses as examples.
If you’re near the beginning of learning the craft of creative writing, this book will make for a very helpful read. If you’ve already spent time learning the writing craft, much of this book may seem familiar, but the measured perspective it takes towards the topic will provide valuable insights.
Where Andrews excels is in the examples he draws on. In much of my experience, typically when writers and critics bring up pop cultural examples to demonstrate a writing principle, they either choose some popular and are unrelentingly positive, or they choose something known for its problems and are unrelentingly negative, as if they’re afraid of contradicting the mainstream audience. It was a refreshing surprise to read this book and see acknowledgements of both the flaws and strengths of the popular stories it uses as examples.
If you’re near the beginning of learning the craft of creative writing, this book will make for a very helpful read. If you’ve already spent time learning the writing craft, much of this book may seem familiar, but the measured perspective it takes towards the topic will provide valuable insights.
October 16, 2019
This is an excellent resource for the beginning and intermediate writer. It cuts through the clutter and tells you what audiences want and how to hit the beats, rather than writing something and hoping it becomes a hit.
It also emphasises the long term view of writing, where you will make mistakes but how to learn from them. There are no magic pills present in the book, and there are simple tasks presented to ensure that writing is not an arduous activity and you can learn from it.
It also emphasises the long term view of writing, where you will make mistakes but how to learn from them. There are no magic pills present in the book, and there are simple tasks presented to ensure that writing is not an arduous activity and you can learn from it.
Read
December 15, 2019This book is very helpful for amateur writers like myself. I love how Chirs uses examples of the audience with his daughter. It makes me appreciate what a great story is about connection. It means you don't have to be a great writer first. A great story will find its way to the right readers.
January 26, 2025
Same only different, and that’s a good thing
I’ve read more writing craft books than I care to admit—sometimes I’m afraid I like reading about writing more than I enjoy actually writing. I’ve found that few texts on the craft put forth an idea or technique that is really new or novel. In this respect I would say this book is no different. However, what this book did and did very well was offer a different perspective on those things other books have covered previously.
Chris Andrews walks you through story structure, the steps of the heroes journey, and building your story bible all with an eye firmly on the audience. It may be your story to tell, but success in the marketplace comes from understanding your audience’s needs and desires and meeting them. Andrews poses questions every step of the way asking why you are doing something, and what’s in it for your audience. Sometimes the questions are difficult and even uncomfortable, but working through them will help you produce books your audience will love and ask for more.
I think this book is very helpful for a newer writer and am using it as my guide for my current project.
I received a copy of this book from StoryOrigin and am leaving my honest review.
I’ve read more writing craft books than I care to admit—sometimes I’m afraid I like reading about writing more than I enjoy actually writing. I’ve found that few texts on the craft put forth an idea or technique that is really new or novel. In this respect I would say this book is no different. However, what this book did and did very well was offer a different perspective on those things other books have covered previously.
Chris Andrews walks you through story structure, the steps of the heroes journey, and building your story bible all with an eye firmly on the audience. It may be your story to tell, but success in the marketplace comes from understanding your audience’s needs and desires and meeting them. Andrews poses questions every step of the way asking why you are doing something, and what’s in it for your audience. Sometimes the questions are difficult and even uncomfortable, but working through them will help you produce books your audience will love and ask for more.
I think this book is very helpful for a newer writer and am using it as my guide for my current project.
I received a copy of this book from StoryOrigin and am leaving my honest review.
June 25, 2023
This is a clear, direct, useful guide to outlining and revision (depending on what stage you’re inclined to pick up this book at!) with a focus on the character’s inner journey as being inextricably entwined with the structure. I appreciated the direct, personable tone—it clearly organises and communicates tried-and-true writing advice and uses popular texts as examples. Great reference book.
I received a free copy of this book, but this did not affect my review
I received a free copy of this book, but this did not affect my review
June 9, 2022
This is more of a tutorial book with plenty of examples. The writing is clear and easy to follow. It is for new or amateur fiction writers. For others it is an interesting description of what authors should consider when writing a story.
I received an advance copy from story origin and leave this review voluntarily.
I received an advance copy from story origin and leave this review voluntarily.
June 28, 2021
Clear & concise
This is an all in one book about formulating a story. The author provides several examples and questions to keep the writer on track. Well done!
This is an all in one book about formulating a story. The author provides several examples and questions to keep the writer on track. Well done!
November 21, 2023
A great introduction to story structure and character creation with practical explanations and examples for authors to make their fiction really work.
August 28, 2024
It was wonderful!
September 28, 2019
One Way to Approach The Hero’s Journey in Fiction
The book rather pompously states in the very front that it is not a writing book but rather a masterclass in “combining character with structure to create emotional impact.” Let me be clear; it is a fiction writing book. In the early part, it feels like the author is having a hard time coming to a point, or at least distilling his ideas. When he moves from the theory to more practical matters, that's when the book gets interesting. The book looks at what the author calls the “unholy alliance” of story and structure, story being about what happens to your characters and structure being how that unfolds—all with the end goal of creating better emotional engagement for the reader with the characters in the story. The author draws heavily from the hero's journey and also seems to take some Concepts from the Story Grid. Each of the practical chapters ends with application questions that you can ask about your own story to see how you are doing about the particular topic just addressed. The practical chapters are also filled with examples from popular movies, some of which are based on books. If you are a fiction writer, you might find this book as a way to engage with the hero's journey—and ultimately as a way to creating better structure and emotional resonance.
I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.
Read my other reviews at https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com
The book rather pompously states in the very front that it is not a writing book but rather a masterclass in “combining character with structure to create emotional impact.” Let me be clear; it is a fiction writing book. In the early part, it feels like the author is having a hard time coming to a point, or at least distilling his ideas. When he moves from the theory to more practical matters, that's when the book gets interesting. The book looks at what the author calls the “unholy alliance” of story and structure, story being about what happens to your characters and structure being how that unfolds—all with the end goal of creating better emotional engagement for the reader with the characters in the story. The author draws heavily from the hero's journey and also seems to take some Concepts from the Story Grid. Each of the practical chapters ends with application questions that you can ask about your own story to see how you are doing about the particular topic just addressed. The practical chapters are also filled with examples from popular movies, some of which are based on books. If you are a fiction writer, you might find this book as a way to engage with the hero's journey—and ultimately as a way to creating better structure and emotional resonance.
I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.
Read my other reviews at https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews