They say that you can’t write a formula for a great film. That said, I say you can still write a great blueprint, and here’s why:
A great novel, a great film–they’re different from traditional art in the sense that a painting or sculpture doesn’t need to make sense. Artworks such as these can be abstract and can make sense even without structure.
Writing a novel or film doesn’t have this luxury, though you gotta admit, it’d be nice! Every story, even in the most unique of situations, must be just that–a story. Throughout the years, writers and producers have experimented, toyed, and found ways to break the rules of writing. Sometimes it works and can create a masterpiece, but more often than not stories have the following characteristics: a beginning, middle, and end; plot; characters; motives; conflict; etc.
There’s a dozen other characteristics I could add to this list, but for the sake of argument, you get the general gist: most stories have common story elements and even more importantly, most stories have structure.
There is no cheat sheet to creating the perfect structure, but just as you would add flour, sugar, and eggs to a cookie recipe, you may find that adding common story elements to your own plots make for a basic recipe for a well-written film or novel.
How do you make your work stand out though? How do you make it your own? Through personalization, of course! Just as other ingredients (such as chocolate chips or peanut butter) may be added to personalize your basic cookie recipe, you may do the same with your story by throwing in your own special elements of fiction. Just as a kitchen is the place to explore for a cook, your work, to you, is your very own playhouse to experiment in! Go ahead, explore and create your own masterpieces.
Think you can’t? Want to be super different? While creativity is encouraged, the acknowledgement that a lot of stories are really the same story retold is also important. Can’t wrap your mind around the idea that many stories are the same? I couldn’t either, but consider the photo below.
Star Wars and Harry Potter… Two very different stories, but are they? To accuse J.K. Rowling of ripping off George Lucas and stealing his ideas would be ludicrous. To accuse her of using a similar story? Well, that’s right on point, but most writers do.
For example, take the video below. Created by Vadzim Khudabets, a movie trailer producer, Eterna is a six-minute trailer/compilation of ninety-nine action movie previews (displayed below).
Described as “one epic trailer”, the Eterna trailer reveals how similar action movies are, not because they are copying one another, but rather because they use the same motives and archetypes that have survived over the course of storytelling as long as it has been around.
Moving forward, keep these structures and–more importantly–cliches in mind. Knowing cliches and being able to recognize them will help you to follow normal, time-tested structure within the genre you wish you pursue without falling into habits that will make your work appear unoriginal or stale.
As always, happy writing!
-The Plot Girl
The Plot Girl 