In each of these stories the characters run out of options. Dramatica refers to this concept of story structure as the Story Limit. Dysfunctional stories run on and on with no end in sight. Functional stories present a scope -- or framework -- that the characters work within.
Is your story limited by Options or by Time?
in Articles on July 15, 2023
in Storyform on March 25, 2023
in Storyform on February 14, 2023
in Audio on January 5, 2023
in Audio on November 8, 2022
in Writers Group on January 7, 2025
in Writers Group on January 21, 2025
in Writers Group on February 4, 2025
Posted on December 30, 2013
Posted on December 4, 2013
Posted on August 31, 2013
Posted on August 27, 2013
Posted on August 13, 2013
Dramatica is the only writer's tool that can tell you things about your story you didn't tell it. You provide the idea—maybe a character sketch or two, perhaps even a hint of theme—and Dramatica helps you pull it all together into one cohesive powerful work. By offering you suggestions that mesh thematically with what you already have, Dramatica helps plug plot holes, solidifies character interactions and helps complete your story in such a way that it will resonate with your audience long after they've left the theater or long after they've put your book down.
(P.S.—We know Shakespeare didn't use Dramatica, but it sure seems like he did!)
Dramatica Pro for Windows not pictured.
Identify conflict & make every character interaction count
Access Dramatica's powerful Story Engine to determine your own unique story
Use Dramatica's Theme Browser to discover what it is you want to say
Make Dramatica's terminology more conversational, more your own
Generate insightful documents to help get you writing
Brainstorm a new direction while still keeping the bits you love
Dramatica moves beyond three-dimensional characters, offering you an opportunity to develop your characters in four dimensions. In addition to figuring out why they do the things they do (Motivation), you'll get a chance to identify how they go about doing things (Methodology), how they evaluate how things are going (Evaluation), and to what ends they hope to aspire (Purpose).
By looking at characters this way you can easily identify the greatest source of conflict among them (Hint: they're the ones diagonally across from each other).
Think there are only a few basic plots? Dramatica sees well over 30,000 unique and individual forms of story structure! With the new Master Story Engine, storytellers can quickly pinpoint those areas most important to them.
In order to craft an effective thematic argument, storytellers need to address all sides of an issue. One can't argue the benefits of doing what is best for the whole world without first also addressing the plusses of doing what is best for one's self. Leave out one side of the argument and the story has a very identifiable "hole".
Dramatica sees story in a completely new light. In order to account for this new level of accuracy, terms and concepts foreign to many a storyteller (Induction, Prerequisities and the Preconscious to name a few) find their way into the structure of a story.
With Story Expert's new "Gists" feature, storytellers can easily replace Dramatica's vocabulary with their own.
While Dramatica can help you better understand story, it can't actually write the story for you! After you've determined your story's structure, export one of several key reports and open up your favorite writing app.
The rest is up to you...
Writer's block got you down? Lock the parts of the story you like and then spin Dramatica's unique model of story. In seconds you'll have a potentially new and exciting path for your characters to take.
Still not happy? Spin it again! There's no end to the thousands upon thousands of stories just waiting to be told.
Tracy Hickman, Writer
DragonLance (series), Rose of the Prophet (series), Deathgate Cycle (series)
Erik Bork, Multiple Emmy and Golden Globe-winning screenwriter
HBO's Band of Brothers and From the Earth to the Moon
Michael Backes, Apple Master Cofounder
American Film Institute/Apple Computer Center
Shayne A. Wilson, Associate Producer
Dead Like Me
Dramatica won't write your story for you. It isn't a story-by-numbers approach and it isn't collection of common beats found in Hollywood blockbusters. You don't plug in your character's name, hit Send and wait for a TPS report full of Inciting Incidents and Progressive Complications.
What you do get from Dramatica, however, is a very powerful and insightful way to think about story. You still have to do the work of writing. You still have to go back and forth over drafts and constantly tweak your work to be the very best it can be. But with Dramatica by your side, you'll find the journey challenging, educational and often enlightening.
There really is nothing else like it.
© Copyright 1994-2024 Write Brothers, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Based on theories and materials developed by Melanie Anne Phillips and Chris Huntley.
Dramatica is a registered trademark of Screenplay Systems Incorporated. Patent #5,734,916; #6,105,046
