S2 E18 – Elements of a Christian Worldview: It All Comes Down to Morality

Some Christians are concerned about writing certain types of material.  For example, what if I'm writing sci fi or fantasy, and in my story world, there's a different mythology that seemingly contrasts to the truth of Christianity? This episode unpacks what to look for to make sure your story mythology doesn't undermine the key tenets of the Christian faith, especially in the area of morality. 

This is why understanding humanity and theology can help make you a better storyteller, because we're actually reflecting those sorts of true moral values in our stories. Every story ultimately teaches morality. That is how you are either reflecting or undermining a true Christian worldview. Are you saying that certain things are good, when in fact, they are bad?

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday, when we dive into Part 3: What does your Protagonist Need?

 NEED HELP? 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 THANKSto CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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S2 E17 – Elements of a Christian Worldview: Why Theology and Psychology Matter

In this episode, I argue that there are two things that we can do as writers to become better storytellers: Develop a greater understanding of human psychology, and become better theologians. 

Both of these categories inform us as to the truth about our human experience. We have to be honest about those things we know to be true simply by virtue of the fact that we are human beings, and then we have to write our scenes in a way that reflects that truth and makes the audience connect because they it.  But if you have good theology in addition to psychology, it helps you to reveal even deeper truths about the human experience.

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday, when we dive into Part 2 and explore what kinds of genres or story issues hinder our ability to tell the truth about the world as God made it.

 NEED HELP? 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 to CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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S2 E16 – Breaking Your Story in Five Easy Steps – Part 5 – How Does it End?

While you don't need to know all the details or plot points of your story, you do have to know something. Namely, you need to know who your character will be by the end of the story, or what kind of change he or she will undergo.

The Hero's Journey is built on the idea that the hero comes back from his journey changed. The "moral of the story" or the takeaway for the audience is wrapped up in the cathartic moment of the character - that key point in the story when they finally grow and change in some significant and permanent way. 

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday for our next episode.

 NEED HELP? 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 THANKSto CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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S2 E15 – Breaking your Story in Five Easy Steps – Part 4 – What's the Inciting Incident?

Many writers get confused about what the Inciting Incident is, and where it needs to happen in the story. Here's a definition that I've found helpful, along with a few key tips.

 The INCITING INCIDENT is something that happens that draws your character into the main conflict of the story and launches them on their journey. Some key things to keep in mind:

1. It's not the first event to occur in the story, which may just be setting up the larger conflict in the world. The Inciting Incident is whatever occurs that draws your main character in the conflict. (Ex. In the film Armageddon, there's a giant asteroid hurtling towards earth, but that is NOT the inciting incident. The inciting incident is when a Nasa guy approaches Bruce Willis's character to help save the world as a deep core driller).

2. There needs to already be something going on in the world at large BEFORE the inciting incident happens. Likewise, your main character needs to already be pursuing something PRIOR to this event. The inciting incident basically hijacks their prior goals and gives the main character a new mission.

3. The inciting incident is what gives your main character his want - what he needs to pursue for the rest of the story. Everything unfolds according to what your character must do to achieve his goal.

4. This means the inciting incident needs to be something significant or important enough to raise the stakes and sustain the action of the story. It should be so important that it causes the character to act in ways he would not otherwise choose to do - but the stakes are high enough to warrant taking radical action.

5. Finally, it needs to something that happens in the present tense. It can't have occurred in the past. Otherwise, it begs the question, why is the character taking action NOW. It needs to be justified.

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday for the conclusion of this 5-part series - How does your story end?

NEED HELP? 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 to CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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S2 E14 – Breaking your Story in Five Easy Steps – Part 3 – What does Your Protagonist Need?

It’s essential for you to understand the difference between your character’s want versus their need. It’s also essential for writers to understand how the two things are connected, so that together, they form the whole of the character’s journey – both the plot AND the emotional arc of the story. 

To that end, here are two definitions that I’ve found helpful in terms of keeping these ideas separate in my own mind, even as the intersect.

1.  The Want is an objective goal, outcome, or object being pursued relentlessly by the main character, which informs the basic plot of the story.
2. The Need is the psychological reason for or motivation behind the main character’s actions. 

WHY are they doing this? What do they think they’re going to get? What emotional benefit will they receive from winning, or what will be the emotional consequence if they lose? How will impact them emotionally? The need is subconscious in most cases. It’s what’s REALLY driving them forward, compelling them to do whatever it is they feel compelled to do. It’s the subconscious reasoning process behind their actions. What’s truly motivating the character?

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday, when we dive into Part 4: What's the Inciting Incident?

 NEED HELP? 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 to CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

S2 E13 – Why is Gratitude so Important? Finding Peace in the Midst of Your Pain

Since it's Thanksgiving, we're taking a break from the current series in order to contemplate the concept of gratitude, which is one of the qualities we lose when we embrace a cynical moral worldview. In place of gratitude, we feel resentment, bitterness, and entitlement, which then leads to selfish behavior that causes harm to self and others. This is the trajectory. Once we adopt a cynical moral worldview, resentment, bitterness, and entitlement are inevitable. They are the logical fruit of a hopeless worldview.

Conversely, gratitude has the power to relieve of us from the bondage of these types of unhealthy emotions, not because we ignore our pain, but because we've learned to look for little acts of kindness that have been given to us even as we suffer. Practicing gratitude is not about Positive thinking, nor is it about ignoring the pain of our present day circumstances. In this podcast, Zena Dell Lowe outlines some key things that gratitude is NOT, and then shows how life changing it can be to practice gratitude in the right way at the right time with the right focus.

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday, when resume our series on How to Break Your Story in Five Easy Steps -  Part 3: What does your Protagonist Need?

 NEED HELP? 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 THANKSto CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

S2 E12 – Breaking your Story in Five Easy Steps – Part 2 – What does Your Protagonist Want?

When it comes to staying on track with a story, there is nothing more important than giving your main character a clear, actionable goal to pursue. To that end, you need to know what your character wants – what is he or she after – and then make sure that he or she pursues that want relentlessly for the rest of the story.

Some hints and principles:

1.     Your Main Character should already be pursuing something at the beginning of the story, even before the inciting incident occurs. Then, something happens, which either coincides with or radically alters want they want.

2.     Whatever they want, whatever their goal, it must be actionable, concrete, something tangible. Avoid nebulous or vague wants, or those stated in terms of “feelings.” You want something that elicits logical and practical steps that the main character can take to achieve his or her goal. 

3.     If the want is stated in terms of feelings (i.e., She wants to feel safe vs. She wants to find a safe place), it becomes problematic and can lead to a passive character. Any time you articulate that your character’s want is to feel something or learn something, you’re in danger of having a nebulous or abstract want.

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

WHAT'S NEXT? Join us next Thursday, when we dive into Part 3: What does your Protagonist Need?

 NEED HELP? 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 to CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

S2 E11 – How to Break Your Story in Five Easy Steps (Part 1: Find Your Main Character) 

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

 
EPISODE DESCRIPTION – 

In this episode, Zena launches into a new series to help writers identify the five main steps that will help them to break down their stories and not get stuck. Step One: Identify the main character. 

1. This person should drive the main action of the story
2. This person should change the most over the course of the story
3. All other scenes in the story should ultimately play into this character's arc

WHAT'S NEXT? Next week, we'll look at step two: Figure out what your main character wants

NEED HELP? 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  to composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

S2 E10–Seven Things that are NOT Heroic (but are often Characterized as being so)

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

 
EPISODE DESCRIPTION – In this episode, Zena lists 7 things that are often lauded as being heroic in stories, but are not actually heroic. These include:

1. To have an illness; to be a victim; to have a bad hand dealt to you.
2. To survive your own iniquity.
3. To have a great talent or skill.
4. To risk it all for a selfish or stupid thing.
5. To fight using disproportionate means.
6. To do an evil to achieve a good.
7. To win by accident.

WHAT'S NEXT? Next week, TBD. Feel free to email us for suggested topics.

NEED HELP? 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  to composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

S2 E9 – Why the Success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Gives Me Hope

DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website at www.thestorytellersmission.com. 

EPISODE DESCRIPTION – 

In this episode, Zena reviews 3 practical things that writers must do to uphold a biblical moral worldview even if they have an anti-hero at the center of their story.

1. Justify why the character is selfish in a way that allows the audience to still like them.
2. Show that their selfishness is not actually who they really are
3. Give them a significant crucible that justifies their change

Zena looks at two characters to show this evolution - Marvin Udall from As Good as it Gets and Tony Stark from Iron Man. From there, she goes on to show how the Marvel Cinematic Universe actually reinforces a view of the world that believes in heroes and the possibility of one man's actions making a difference. To that end, the success of these films gives us hope that the battle for culture has not been last to cynicism.

 WHAT'S NEXT? Next week, we'll look at some final practical tips as to what you can and can't do to create legitimate heroic characters

NEED HELP? 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  to composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music used in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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