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Lisa Wagner's avatar

Well, as I'm trying to finish my book about our first two years in Quebec, I'm mainly concerned about getting it done, not worrying about a narrative arc, that's for sure. It might be useful, but I'm just interested in getting my story out there in a form that I can see. And maybe that I can share with others.

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Larry Hogue's avatar

I’ve been wanting to read Meander, Spiral, Explode. Don’t get me started on the beat sheets some writers go by. I think that comes from the movies.

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Deb Bowen's avatar

Bless you for this post! Do you remember when I took your course a while back, and was such a rebel about that arc structure? What initially came from my rebellion was a poem, which was published in Salvation South. Now, other works are in progress that may or may not follow this school of thought....

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Jenny Wright's avatar

I like how you describe the arc of a story as a wavy line, rather than linear. If we imagine a pathway we are following/exploring, the way forward is engaging when it curves and disappears, before reappearing as we walk it, over and over, than a way that is dead straight and predictable.

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Ray Zimmerman's avatar

Epiphany - I learned the five-part structure of stories somewhere along the way, but had forgotten it. I later encountered the three-part structure and I believe the rising and falling action is implicit in that structure rather than absent. Two different ways of saying the same thing. For some reason, I never learned that narrative arc was a name for this structure and the words always puzzled me. I have heard of other structures such as "Save the Cat" and "The Hero's Journey," but paid little attention since I always believed they applied to fiction and I was writing nonfiction. Learning that they apply to nonfiction is a revelation.

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Mark Ray's avatar

I totally agree. Thanks for the two references too.

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Jane Pike's avatar

As someone not formally trained, and who flies (writes?!) by the seat of their pants, I find all of this so interesting. I know when you shared with us the Kittredge essay format, I can see how the structure has use, even in the instances where it becomes superfluous as the writing itself evolves.

Within the context of my own work (which involves a lot of nature contemplating!) the idea of a climax is more like "Hark! The butterfly landed on my arm" rather than "They eventually found Martin's killer and the scene wasn't pretty" 😆 (which is where my mind takes me when I think of narrative climax, complete with dramatic music.)

I'm going to think of this in relationship to tension- the building of and the dissipation of- and see how I can play with it. Thank you as always Janisse! xx

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