Dramatica Software - Brainstorming (Part 1)

The Brainstorming area, available through the main Dramatica desktop, is designed to help spur your creativity and help you get over writer's block.

Currently, there are two features in Brainstorming: Spin The Model and the Character Generator. Spin The Model randomly chooses a structure for your story from the 32, 768 available in Dramatica. And the Charcter Generator automatically creates characters, including assigning names, genders and dramatic functions.

When you open the Brainstorming area for the first time, it defaults to the Spin The Model feature. Clicking on Character Generator will bring up those features instead.

We'll begin with Spin The Model. This feature is really easy to use. By simply scrolling down the window, you'll be able to see all of the story points in the currently chosen structure at one time. Initially, they all say "an unchosen item" because you haven't pushed the "Spin" button yet. Still it gives you an opportunity to see what a complete structure will look like and the story points it tracks.

When you push the Spin button, instantly Dramatica selects one of the structures from the 32,768 available. Now the display has changed. You will see that dramatic elements have been assigned to each of the story points.

Now it isn't expected that you'll want to use that specific structure unchanged for your own story. But, if you need some Brainstorming, you can use the artibrarily chosen structure as a jumping off point. You'll then be able to go elsewhere in Dramatica to "lock down" the story points you want to keep and then return to spin the model again to supply random dramatic elements to the other story points you weren't happy with.

Note that the elements chosen by Dramatica are not really completely random. Rather, Dramatica chooses only story points that fit with the choices you've locked down. Therefore, your structure in progress is always sound, consistent, and complete.

In one structure, for example, the goal might be "Learning" and the requirement necessary to achieve Learning might be "Understanding". The Main Character's personal problem might be "Certainty", meaning that fellow is so certain about everything that he gets himself into trouble.

Other story points chosen by Dramatica in that structure might include an Outcome of "Failure" and a Judgment of "Bad", meaning that this story would be a real downer - the characters don't achieve the goal and they feel miserable about it.

By locking down the story points that fit what you have in mind and spinning the model again, the Outome might still come up "Failure" but the Judgment might change to "Good" - meaning that although the characters don't achieve the goal, in they are still happy with the results of their quest.

Just keep locking or unlocking story points as you sculpt your story, using Spin The Model to randomly assign consistent dramatic elements to your unchosen story points. In the end, you'll have started with a structure that is in some ways what you had in mind and honed it down into exactly what you had in mind.