Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
I want to begin pulling together some of the pieces of the narrative cartography process I’ve been exploring through this series of posts. This will be brief without the full explanations because I’m laying out the pieces that make up the process to see how they fit together.
Note: Although I am presenting it in a particular order here, please understand that it doesn’t have to be a linear process and that we can fill in what we know and come back to earlier sections as we go.
Story Idea to Premise
Story ideas emerge from the raw material of our lives. That includes everything we’ve experienced and observed and every story we’ve ever read, heard, or watched, as well as everything we have felt and thought about all of that. That means translating what is meaningful to us into a universal form that makes it meaningful to others while staying true to what’s most important to us. One step in that process is to boil the raw material down to a basic premise.
The basic premise is a high-level concept of our story that serves as a foundation: a person in a place with a problem.
Premise to Essence
With the premise in mind, we investigate to uncover what is most important to us by asking why at least five times. From the answers we consider key themes that arise so we get to the bottom of why the story is so important to us. We craft a concise statement (1-2 sentences) that captures the core of the story idea, including the main character, central conflict, and key themes.
Essence to Expanded Problem
We use the essence to test the elements of the problem. We start with basic questions: What is the problem from your premise that your protagonist faces? Why is this a problem for the protagonist? What is the external source(s) of their problem? How does the protagonist first become aware of this problem? Then we go deeper and consider how the elements of the story’s essence create tension or conflict within the problem.
From here, we can expand the place, person, and antagonist in the order that makes the most sense. We let each decision inform the ones that follow, and we double-check past decisions against what we discover as we move further. This back and forth helps to align all the parts so they will function together seamlessly.
Essence + Extended Problem to Story World
Through asking specific questions about the world, we come to understand the world better. We consider, for example, the foundation, physical laws, geography, and social structure. From all the details we choose five or more essential qualities. This will be the essence of the story world.
Essence + Extended Problem to Protagonist
We ask similar questions about the protagonist to get a clearer picture of who they are, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they operate. We consider, for example, their relationship to the story world, personal history, and physical attributes. From this work, we choose five or more essential qualities to serve as the essence of the character.
Essence + Extended Problem to Primary Force of Antagonism
We ask similar questions about the primary force of antagonist to zero in on who or what they are, their conflict with the protagonist, and how they give rise to the problem. If it’s a character, we can use questions similar to the protagonist questions. If it’s the environment (e.g., the Klondike in “To Build a Fire” by Jack London) or an aspect of nature (e.g., the asteroid in the 1998 film Armegeddon), we ask questions about its nature. From this work, we choose five or more essential qualities to serve as the essence of the force of antagonism.
Essence to Primary External Conflict and Shape of the Plot
The basic external conflict is between the protagonist and the (1) environment, (2) another individual or group, or (3) society or government.
Which basic plot will play out?
Is it a fight between two forces?
Is it about a deadline (time certain) or ticking clock (time is running out)?
Is it a chase? Is the protagonist chasing or being chased?
Is it a trap from which the protagonist must escape?
Is it a race to arrive somewhere or obtain something?
Note: I always add the story essence to remind us to consider it every time. It is our True North. If something doesn’t align with the essence, we keep working until we find what will fit.
Essence to Primary Internal Conflict
The basic internal conflict will be a plot of fortune, character, or thought in Norman Friedman’s framework depending on the internal change the protagonist experiences.
Essence to Aspects of Change in the story
The extent and quality of the change at the end of the story will depend on many factors related to the person, the place, and the problem that arises from the inciting incident. These questions help explore that change.
how willing the protagonist is to change as a result of the problem (who)
the type of problem and the human need(s) affected by the change (what)
where the problem arises and how the environment sets up both the problem and solution (where)
the time it takes the protagonist to process and solve the problem (when)
the scale of the problem and its solution (how)
I’ll continue to build out more of the process in future posts.
This post is part of a 75-day writing challenge and experiment. From September 9 through November 22, I'll be posting daily thoughts on writing, storytelling, and creativity based on recent readings or reflections. While my intention was to keep them very short—250 to 400 words—I've found that this range doesn't give me enough space to cover these topics adequately. I aim to keep them brief enough to be read quickly, but they will often be longer than 400 words.
At the end of the challenge, I will organize and revise the material with intention. For now, the object is to explore and share.