70. The 8 Essential Ingredients that Every Great Story Must Have
07/01/21 • 28 min
THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE
EPISODE 70 – The Eight Essential Ingredients for Great Storytelling
Follow along with the cheat sheet below, or DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website www.thestorytellersmission.com.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION –
Episode 70 marks the final episode of Season One of this podcast. Thus, it feel apropos in this final episode to focus on the 8 primary ingredients or core essentials of great storytelling. In other words, what does a story have to have in order to be considered great?
1.) The story itself. The story must be good. It must be interesting and/or fresh enough to compel the audience to invest.
2.) The execution of that story. Is the story well-written? Does it use all of the tools of skill and language that we have at our disposal?
3.) The structure. Is it well-structured according to our intuition? Does it feel right?
4.) The characters. Does it have a compelling main character at the center, with compelling supporting characters? Does the audience find the main character sympathetic, likable or intriguing?
5.) The dialogue.Is it believable? Is it credible? Does it sound right for your story? Or is it totally unrealistic sounding?
6.) Visual Images. Is it visual? We need to learn to use visual images to add layers of meaning to the story.
7.) Setups and payoffs. A good dset up is barely noticcible, and a good pay off is intrinsically satisfying to the audience.
8.) The worldview. Everybody has one. And you need to make sure yours is both true and internally consistent
UP NEXT – The Storyteller’s Mission will be on Hiatus for the rest of the month of July 2021. New episodes will be released every thursday starting in August on the podcast app of your choice.
In lieu of the podcast, please do check out our offerings on the online platform. The Storyteller’s Mission online platform is your go-to place for help with all your writing needs. Sign up for one-on-one COACHING, get a SCRIPT CRITIQUE, or register for one of our ADVANCED CLASSES ON WRITING today!
TOPIC REQUESTS?
If you have a question or a specific writing related topic that you would like Zena to consider addressing in a future podcast, SEND AN EMAIL to [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you!
SPECIAL THANKS -The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe would like to thank composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music she graciously permits us to use in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to www.carlapatullo.com
TAGS: Writers, Novelists, Novels, Fiction, Screenwriters, Screenplays, Screenplay, Authors, Writing Classes, Writer tips, Writing, Story, Storytelling, Storytellers, How to Write a Novel, How to Write a Screenplay, Writer, Playwriting, Playwright, Zena Dell Lowe, Mission Ranch Films, The Storyteller’s Mission, The Storyteller’s Mission Podcast, Writing Advice, Become a better writer, Master the craft, create great characters, Christian Writers, Christian, Christian arti
THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE
EPISODE 70 – The Eight Essential Ingredients for Great Storytelling
Follow along with the cheat sheet below, or DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website www.thestorytellersmission.com.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION –
Episode 70 marks the final episode of Season One of this podcast. Thus, it feel apropos in this final episode to focus on the 8 primary ingredients or core essentials of great storytelling. In other words, what does a story have to have in order to be considered great?
1.) The story itself. The story must be good. It must be interesting and/or fresh enough to compel the audience to invest.
2.) The execution of that story. Is the story well-written? Does it use all of the tools of skill and language that we have at our disposal?
3.) The structure. Is it well-structured according to our intuition? Does it feel right?
4.) The characters. Does it have a compelling main character at the center, with compelling supporting characters? Does the audience find the main character sympathetic, likable or intriguing?
5.) The dialogue.Is it believable? Is it credible? Does it sound right for your story? Or is it totally unrealistic sounding?
6.) Visual Images. Is it visual? We need to learn to use visual images to add layers of meaning to the story.
7.) Setups and payoffs. A good dset up is barely noticcible, and a good pay off is intrinsically satisfying to the audience.
8.) The worldview. Everybody has one. And you need to make sure yours is both true and internally consistent
UP NEXT – The Storyteller’s Mission will be on Hiatus for the rest of the month of July 2021. New episodes will be released every thursday starting in August on the podcast app of your choice.
In lieu of the podcast, please do check out our offerings on the online platform. The Storyteller’s Mission online platform is your go-to place for help with all your writing needs. Sign up for one-on-one COACHING, get a SCRIPT CRITIQUE, or register for one of our ADVANCED CLASSES ON WRITING today!
TOPIC REQUESTS?
If you have a question or a specific writing related topic that you would like Zena to consider addressing in a future podcast, SEND AN EMAIL to [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you!
SPECIAL THANKS -The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe would like to thank composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music she graciously permits us to use in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to www.carlapatullo.com
TAGS: Writers, Novelists, Novels, Fiction, Screenwriters, Screenplays, Screenplay, Authors, Writing Classes, Writer tips, Writing, Story, Storytelling, Storytellers, How to Write a Novel, How to Write a Screenplay, Writer, Playwriting, Playwright, Zena Dell Lowe, Mission Ranch Films, The Storyteller’s Mission, The Storyteller’s Mission Podcast, Writing Advice, Become a better writer, Master the craft, create great characters, Christian Writers, Christian, Christian arti
Previous Episode
69. How to Get the Story Out of the Character's Head and onto the Page
THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE
EPISODE 69 – How to Get the Story out of the Character's Head and onto the Page
Follow along with the cheat sheet below, or DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website www.thestorytellersmission.com.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION –
I was recently invited to be a guest during a Pep Talk session for Susan May Warren's Novel Academy, where we talked about how everything that happens in a novel comes to the reader by way of the main character's head. Everything gets filtered through the character's observations before they make their way to the audience. But in screenplays, you can never tell me what a character is thinking or feeling. You can only show me what they are thinking or feeling by way of using visual images.
In this episode, I break down HOW to create some of these visuals in lieu of describing such things through the words of observation. I talk about how we need to get the story out of the character's head and get it onto the page by creating visual images and making your character take action so that you can truly show me, and not just tell me, what's happening to your character on an internal, emotional level.
The art of showing and not telling is one of the most important skills writers will learn. In this episode, we spend a bit of time practicing that most excellent skill.
UP NEXT – TBD
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Next week's podcast will mark episode 70 of this show. It will also mark the end of Season one. I will be taking a 4 week break to focus on the online classes and Season 2 of the podcast. This would be a great time for you to share any requests, thoughts or suggestions for content. If you have a subject you'd like me to address, send me an email to [email protected], and I will do my best to incorporate it.
The Storyteller’s Mission online platform is your go-to place for help on your writing projects. Sign up for one-on-one COACHING, get a SCRIPT CRITIQUE, or register for one of our ADVANCED CLASSES ON WRITING today!
TOPIC REQUESTS?
If you have a question or a specific writing related topic that you would like Zena to consider addressing in a future podcast, SEND AN EMAIL to [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you!
SPECIAL THANKS -The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe would like to thank composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music she graciously permits us to use in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to www.carlapatullo.com
Next Episode
What the World Needs Now are Heroes
THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE
Season 2, Episode 1
What the World Needs Now are Heroes
DOWNLOAD THE FULL TRANSCRIPT OF THIS EPISODE FOR FREE on The Storyteller's Mission Website. www.thestorytellersmission.com.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION –
In the first episode of season two of this podcast, Zena reviews reasons why stories matter, and what kinds of stories present a special opportunity for storytellers today, arguing that the world needs stories about everyday heroes to remind us what's possible in humanity, and to inspire us to transcend the boundaries of our own human limitations.
Some of the core ideas presented in this episode include:
1. Why your story matters in spite of (or perhaps because of) all of the terrible things happening around the world.
2. How storytellers have a duty to elevate society and restore its dignity or raise its moral consciousness by telling stories about heroes.
3. The term hero, as define by the Greeks, originally referred to men or women who who had accomplished something extraordinary, surpassing the normal limits of humanity.
4. Even those who had committed unthinkable crimes were lauded as heroic. They did not have to be morally good.
5. Today we associate moral fortitude with true heroism for good reason -- to live up to one's highest ideals in a world such as ours is an extraordinary feat in itself.
6. The world is becoming increasingly cynical, and most young people day seem to feel they have no one to look up to or emulate. This lack of "heroes" in our society is alarming at best since it ultimately determines our behavior.
7. We have the opportunity and the privilege to show the world what heroism looks like, and to make the world believe that it's possible even for them to live up to these high moral standards.
UP NEXT – We will continue to unpack the issue of why society needs heroes. We'll also differentiate between different kinds of heroes and explain why some types have caused more confusion and cynicism.
The Storyteller’s Mission online platform is here to help you with all your writing needs. Sign up for one-on-one COACHING, get a SCRIPT CRITIQUE, or register for one of our ADVANCED CLASSES ON WRITING.
TOPIC REQUESTS?
If you have a question or a specific writing related topic that you would like Zena to consider addressing in a future podcast, SEND AN EMAIL to [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you!
SPECIAL THANKS -The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe would like to thank composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music she graciously permits us to use in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to www.carlapatullo.com
TAGS: Writers, Novelists, Novels, Fiction, Screenwriters, Screenplays, Screenplay, Authors, Writing Classes, Writer tips, Writing, Story, Storytelling, Storytellers, How to Write a Novel, How to Write a Screenplay, Writer, Playwriting, Playwright, Zena Dell Lowe, Mission Ranch Films, The Storyteller’s Mission, The Storyteller’s Mission Podcast, Writing Advice, Become a better writer, Master the craft
The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe - 70. The 8 Essential Ingredients that Every Great Story Must Have
Transcript
THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE
EP. 70: The 8 Essential Ingredients that Every Great Story Must Have
PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
Published July 1, 2021
00:00
INTRO: Hello, and welcome to The Storyteller's Mission with Zena Dell Lowe, a podcast for artists and storytellers about changing the world for the better through story.
00:12
PRESENTATION: Today
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