The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller

by John Truby

The classic story terms suggest an even bigger obstacle to good technique: the very idea of what story is and how it works.

Three-act structure is a mechanical device superimposed on the story and has nothing to do with its internal logic—where the story should or should not go.

In this sense we storytellers are a lot like athletes. A great athlete makes everything look easy, as though his body just naturally moves that way. But in fact he has so mastered the techniques of his sport that his technique has simply disappeared from view, and the audience sees only beauty.

Good storytelling doesn’t just tell audiences what happened in a life. It gives them the experience of that life.

Withholding, or hiding, information is crucial to the storyteller’s make-believe. It forces the audience to figure out who the character is and what he is doing and so draws the audience into the story. When the audience no longer has to figure out the story, it ceases being an audience, and the story stops.

The dramatic code, embedded deep in the human psyche, is an artistic description of how a person can grow or evolve.

story tracks what a person wants, what he’ll do to get it, and what costs he’ll have to pay along the way.

A character pursuing a desire takes actions to get what he wants, and he learns new information about better ways to get it. Whenever he learns new information, he makes a decision and changes his course of action.

Any character who goes after a desire and is impeded is forced to struggle (otherwise the story is over). And that struggle makes him change. So the ultimate goal of the dramatic code, and of the storyteller, is to present a change in a character or to illustrate why that change did not occur.

The dramatic code expresses the idea that human beings can become a better version of themselves, psychologically and morally. And that’s why people love it.

KEY POINT: What you choose to write about is far more important than any decision you make about how to write it.

KEY POINT: Nine out of ten writers fail at the premise.

The first technique for finding the gold in an idea is time.

That means you have to remain flexible, open to all possibilities.

KEY POINT: Explore your options. The intent here is to brainstorm the many different paths the idea can take and then to choose the best one.

Stupid” ideas often lead to creative breakthroughs.

But as you master the key techniques of character, plot, theme, story world, symbol, and dialogue, you will be pleasantly surprised at how well you can dig out the difficulties in any idea.

KEY POINT: The designing principle is what organizes the story as a whole. It is the internal logic of the story, what makes the parts hang together organically so that the story becomes greater than the sum of its parts. It is what makes the story original.

Designing principle = story process + original execution

KEY POINT: Find the designing principle, and stick to it. Be diligent in discovering this principle, and never take your eye off it during the long writing process.

KEY POINT: Always tell a story about your best character.

To figure out the central conflict, ask yourself “Who fights whom over what?” and answer the question in one succinct line.

KEY POINT: If you are developing a premise with many main characters, each story line must have a single cause-and-effect path. And all the story lines should come

together to form a larger, all-encompassing spine.

KEY POINT: The basic action should be the one action best able to force the character to deal with his weaknesses and change.

KEY POINT: Write down a number of possible options for the hero’s weaknesses and change.

KEY POINT: To be a true choice, your hero must either select one of two positive outcomes or, on rare occasions, avoid one of two negative outcomes (as in Sophie’s Choice).

KEY POINT: Your hero should not be aware of his need at the beginning of the story.

KEY POINT: Give your hero a moral need as well as a psychological need.

KEY POINT: Keep the problem simple and specific.