How to Structure a Story, Simply.

We know that stories are how humans have sorted out the mysteries and complexities of life so that we have a clear way of moving forward.

An opportunity to point to something and form an answer for why things are the way they are.

If you’re a fan of cinema and storytelling you probably know that there are common patterns to how quality stories get told.

Joseph Campbell is probably the most influential author on the subject in the modern era, but you can look as far back as Homer or Moses and see that many of the greatest stories ever told have similarities that we can learn from.

Across all stories we see 5 core elements as a pattern. I took the liberty of making them all start with the letter C, just for fun.

• Change

• Choice

• Conflict

• Climax

• Clarity

Change is always coming.

We all know it. We all feel it. No matter what situation we have in life, there will be moments where we face a change that we didn’t expect. It could be a market shift (macro), it could be a cancer diagnosis (micro).

You have the choice of how you will react.

You have options, but which path will you take? Be careful, the choice you make may lead to your untimely demise or it might be the grand adventure of your life.

Conflict is what comes after the choice is made. When a line is drawn, or a decision is made, that’s when the chaos truly begins.

Climax is when we have our biggest test, our biggest battle and it’s the watershed moment that leads to a new reality.

Clarity represents that new reality. Hopefully one that the hero has now been made ready for.

So there it is, that’s my simple framework for mapping out a story. There are many others, but hopefully you find this useful!