I’m going through his 90 Day Novel course book and can’t say enough good about it. He teaches the “art” part of writing, then integrates technical structure with inspiration and emotion. He gets you to let the story materialize. by stream of consciousness writing prompts, asking questions and letting your imagination run free. It’s the best,
I read 90 Day Novel because of this channel, actually. I was so moved by hearing him speak a couple years back, and so inspired to write, that I sought his book out. Some of Alan's promos call him "The Writer Whisperer" and for me, it's very true. On days when I don't feel like writing, I got to 90 Day Novel, and I read until I inevitably want to write again. Probably my favorite writer you've interviewed, and that's saying something!!
I am currently in Alan's 90-day novel workshop where you go from idea to a first draft in 90 days. While it's only been a couple of weeks, it is a fantastic approach. That said, I've been thinking about story structure for awhile so part of the reason it resonates is that I've been wrestling to understand structure in a way that will work for my writing process. In terms of his three words, Desire - Surrender - Transformation, I would add one more (I am using a four act structure instead of a three act structure) and that is Desire - Entanglement - Surrender - Transformation. I think the addition of entanglement is important because you don't just jump from desire to surrender. It's the escalation and amplification of the conflict that forces the surrender to come, hence the word entanglement.
@@Joerideabike I like your clarification of amplifying and focusing the desire. The act is a convergence of events and experiences that progressively increases the pressure on the protagonist until they surrender. Whether you stage it in Act II or break it into an Act II and III is just a structure design choice. The fundamental staging is the same.
I'm pretty old, just getting started on a story I want to tell, with an opening scene in my mind, an allegory to be carried through the tale. Mr. Watt is giving me what I need to build on this allegory to a much larger story. I think. M
Thank you so much MrTimjohns! We appreciate you giving back and supporting this channel. Alan has his own way of teaching writing. Great to see it resonate with you. We've recently posted the full interview - th-cam.com/video/IhVXWGVNguQ/w-d-xo.html
One way to take Alan’s framework and say it in another way is to use what Craig Mazin says. “The purpose of a story is to take a character from ignorance of the truth of the theme to the embodiment of the theme through action.” The truth of the theme is “I don’t need to belong to someone or some group to give my life meaning.” My value as a person isn’t measured by the groups I belong to.
This man is awesome. I'm doing a one page Horror script project. Jimmy Franks hears is Doberman barking furious and his glass sliders downstairs smash in a milion pieces..
For the life of me I cannot come up with a story with meaning. It's always just set pieces, even using all these tools for structure and character. Love Alan though.
You can add meaning to a story by asking yourself, “How does this scenario impact my character?” For example, if you have a character who has gotten into a car accident, and needs to wear a cast for 6 months, that’s bad. BUT if you have a character who’s training to be an Olympic runner, get into that same accident on her way to a competition that could change her life. THATS more of a story. Of course, it would suck for anyone to wear a cast for 6 months, but in the second story, the specifics adds meaning. Hope this helps! ~✨
1) Positive Change Arcs: The character undergoes a positive transformation, evolving into a better version of themselves. 2) Negative Arcs: This arc portrays a character's decline or downfall. These arcs often feature in tragedies. 3) Flat Arcs: These arcs involve minimal character change. The emphasis rests on the character's impact on their surrounding world. See the writing teachings of K.M. Weiland for more details.
ACT ONE: DESIRE Protagonist / characters have to desire / want to do something that will be the engine driving the story, and undertones of deceit and lies are hinted at. ACT TWO: SURRENDER Surrender is the linchpin, where the story becomes most interesting, where the mystery or conflict is more understood, meaning the undertones of deceit and lies hinted at previously have been betrayed, ie. betraying a false belief about themselves and the world around them (the themes of the story), and where the protagonist / characters must surrender the meaning of their desire as a result of their beliefs being betrayed, which makes them switch the appearance of the situation (the lie) with the reality of the situation (the truth), leading to them… ACT THREE: TRANSFORMATION … transforming. They’ve accepted reality, now they reframe their relationship to their experiences / reframe their desire (desire never goes away, it just transforms), and since the mystery or conflict has been deciphered, the protagonist / characters are able to take actions, maybe easy but usually difficult (characters adjust plot, dramatize), to give themselves what they need rather than what they want or thought they wanted, and can finally step into their true power, where they have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Story builds in meaning as it progresses.
![Writing Your Story In 90 Days - Alan Watt [FULL INTERVIEW]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/IhVXWGVNguQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![Writing Your Story In 90 Days - Alan Watt [FULL INTERVIEW]](/img/tr.png)
![Why 99% Of Stories Are Meaningless - Alan Watt [Founder of L.A. Writers' Lab]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/v4wkx8LBH_s/mqdefault.jpg)
![The 90 Day Screenplay: From Concept To Polish - Alan Watt [FULL INTERVIEW]](/img/n.gif)
What do you think of this 3 word story structure?
Alan nailed every inner journey/ character arc that defines the theme in just three words. It's obvious that he's mastered the craft.
Thanks for adding this. There's a lot to unpack here. I've actually listened to this part 3 times already.
It seems too simplistic to me. I don't know of any surrender in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Wars: Episode IV, or Game of Death
I’m going through his 90 Day Novel course book and can’t say enough good about it. He teaches the “art” part of writing, then integrates technical structure with inspiration and emotion. He gets you to let the story materialize. by stream of consciousness writing prompts, asking questions and letting your imagination run free. It’s the best,
Thank you for sharing!
Just purchased 🙏🏼
I read 90 Day Novel because of this channel, actually.
I was so moved by hearing him speak a couple years back, and so inspired to write, that I sought his book out. Some of Alan's promos call him "The Writer Whisperer" and for me, it's very true. On days when I don't feel like writing, I got to 90 Day Novel, and I read until I inevitably want to write again.
Probably my favorite writer you've interviewed, and that's saying something!!
This tutorial must be kept on repeat.
Great to see you finding high value here!
I am currently in Alan's 90-day novel workshop where you go from idea to a first draft in 90 days. While it's only been a couple of weeks, it is a fantastic approach. That said, I've been thinking about story structure for awhile so part of the reason it resonates is that I've been wrestling to understand structure in a way that will work for my writing process.
In terms of his three words, Desire - Surrender - Transformation, I would add one more (I am using a four act structure instead of a three act structure) and that is Desire - Entanglement - Surrender - Transformation. I think the addition of entanglement is important because you don't just jump from desire to surrender. It's the escalation and amplification of the conflict that forces the surrender to come, hence the word entanglement.
Very true
@@Joerideabike I like your clarification of amplifying and focusing the desire. The act is a convergence of events and experiences that progressively increases the pressure on the protagonist until they surrender. Whether you stage it in Act II or break it into an Act II and III is just a structure design choice. The fundamental staging is the same.
Alan's the man!
This is one of those "lifetime of knowledge in 14 minutes" kind of videos
I make a tattoo of this youtube url
This was awesome! Thank you.
This was terrific. Thank you so much.
Al is great!
I'm pretty old, just getting started on a story I want to tell, with an opening scene in my mind, an allegory to be carried through the tale.
Mr. Watt is giving me what I need to build on this allegory to a much larger story. I think.
M
Thanks!
Thank you so much MrTimjohns! We appreciate you giving back and supporting this channel. Alan has his own way of teaching writing. Great to see it resonate with you. We've recently posted the full interview - th-cam.com/video/IhVXWGVNguQ/w-d-xo.html
Alan Watt! Beautiful, man.
One way to take Alan’s framework and say it in another way is to use what Craig Mazin says. “The purpose of a story is to take a character from ignorance of the truth of the theme to the embodiment of the theme through action.” The truth of the theme is “I don’t need to belong to someone or some group to give my life meaning.” My value as a person isn’t measured by the groups I belong to.
Beautiful 🌞👍 thank you
thank you
This seems like great life advice…not just story structure advice. 🙂
5:05
All that happens in Ladybird? The director did an amazing job... of disguising that there was a plot.
The more I write the better I understand
This man is awesome. I'm doing a one page Horror script project. Jimmy Franks hears is Doberman barking furious and his glass sliders downstairs smash in a milion pieces..
For the life of me I cannot come up with a story with meaning. It's always just set pieces, even using all these tools for structure and character. Love Alan though.
I'm the exact opposite. I suck at writing scenes 😅
You can add meaning to a story by asking yourself, “How does this scenario impact my character?”
For example, if you have a character who has gotten into a car accident, and needs to wear a cast for 6 months, that’s bad.
BUT if you have a character who’s training to be an Olympic runner, get into that same accident on her way to a competition that could change her life. THATS more of a story.
Of course, it would suck for anyone to wear a cast for 6 months, but in the second story, the specifics adds meaning.
Hope this helps! ~✨
Do these ideas work for Dirty Harry or the Gunfighter With No Name? He doesn't seem to change much, and those are great stories.
1) Positive Change Arcs: The character undergoes a positive transformation, evolving into a better version of themselves. 2) Negative Arcs: This arc portrays a character's decline or downfall. These arcs often feature in tragedies. 3) Flat Arcs: These arcs involve minimal character change. The emphasis rests on the character's impact on their surrounding world. See the writing teachings of K.M. Weiland for more details.
Just driving to fit in is a cheap attempt at belonging.
What if everything your hero lost was working perfectly and _now_ has nothing? What happens next? I think _I_ know...
Shursee???😂😂😂 Sur shuh is how she pronounces it!
ACT ONE: DESIRE
Protagonist / characters have to desire / want to do something that will be the engine driving the story, and undertones of deceit and lies are hinted at.
ACT TWO: SURRENDER
Surrender is the linchpin, where the story becomes most interesting, where the mystery or conflict is more understood, meaning the undertones of deceit and lies hinted at previously have been betrayed, ie. betraying a false belief about themselves and the world around them (the themes of the story), and where the protagonist / characters must surrender the meaning of their desire as a result of their beliefs being betrayed, which makes them switch the appearance of the situation (the lie) with the reality of the situation (the truth), leading to them…
ACT THREE: TRANSFORMATION
… transforming. They’ve accepted reality, now they reframe their relationship to their experiences / reframe their desire (desire never goes away, it just transforms), and since the mystery or conflict has been deciphered, the protagonist / characters are able to take actions, maybe easy but usually difficult (characters adjust plot, dramatize), to give themselves what they need rather than what they want or thought they wanted, and can finally step into their true power, where they have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Story builds in meaning as it progresses.