Structure · Understanding story
I have an idea for a story. Where do I start with Dramatica?
The short answer
Start with something you already know: a difficult choice, a source of conflict, or an ending. You can discover the story’s argument as you go.
A topic like loyalty can support many different stories. What matters is what your story says about loyalty. Use what you know as an entry point, then test what the connected Storypoints suggest. You do not need a perfectly worded premise before you begin.
An imagined example
An idea becomes a question
You know your story is about loyalty. One version follows a medic whose loyalty to a corrupt leader endangers her patients; another follows a medic whose loyalty keeps an abandoned clinic open. The topic is the same. The conflict and the meaning are different.
Try it in your story
What do you already know about your ending, and what might it say about the way the conflict is handled?
Where this answer comes from
An editorial synthesis of these discussions. The example above was written for this answer.
- Starting a storyform before answering 12 essential questions
September 2018.
- How to make a story form around “People need X” conflict?
Jim Hull, January 17, 2020, post 17.
- Building Storyforms: a complete walkthrough
Jim Hull, September 18, 2026.
A note on older terminology
Older discussions may say Overall Story for Objective Story, Obstacle or Impact Character for Influence Character, and Subjective Story for Relationship Story. Source titles retain their original wording. Historical software instructions describe the tools of their time.