Dramatica Term

the process of communicating a story's dramatic structure through the developing and unfolding of symbols, events, and scenarios

We've all heard good jokes told poorly. We've all heard terrible jokes told well. When a good joke is told well, everything works together. When a bad joke is told poorly, nothing can save it. Part of what makes up a story is the underlying dramatic structure. Another part is the manner in which that structure is expressed. In a sense, Structure represents the Craft of writing, and Storytelling represents the Art. The structure itself is always invisible in the story, for it is the conceptual framework connecting all the dramatic potentials. What is visible is the embodiment of that structure in scenarios, events, and symbols, which collectively constitute the Storytelling. Storytelling, therefore, must do two jobs: entertain the audience through clever presentation and be focused enough to accurately convey the underlying structure.