Story grid scene types full#

The protagonist goes through a series of actions to restore balance to the world after the inciting incident. In response, the protagonist forms a goal, which they begin to pursue. Every inciting incident is either causal (the result of an active choice by an AVATAR) or coincidental (something unexpected or random or accidental). The inciting incident destabilizes the protagonist by upsetting the balance of their life for good or for ill. The Five Commandments of Storytelling are: 1.

Story grid scene types full#

In the Story Grid Universe, we understand that Story structure is about embedding GENRE-specific VALUE SHIFTS within every UNIT OF STORY - from the line-by-line BEATS to TROPES to SCENES to SEQUENCES to QUADRANTS to the full STORY - to communicate the ARTIST’s CONTROLLING IDEA. In the same way, two wings, two jet engines, and a fuselage don’t make a functioning airplane. When most writers and editors talk about Story structure, they rely on a grab bag of different approaches that capture part of but not the whole of Story’s fundamental structure. These components are the Five Commandments of Storytelling.

What are the Five Commandments of Storytelling?Įvery effective story has five structural components that work together to communicate a CONTROLLING IDEA in a way that bypasses readers’ critical minds to touch their hearts and change their worldviews.