The Importance of Storytelling: Transforming Topics into Events

Sometimes, you feel incredibly passionate about a particular topic. Take rainforests, for instance. You see them getting destroyed and know that while they cover a small part of the Earth, half of the planet’s creatures live there. You witness threats like deforestation and believe that preservation is crucial to combating climate change and the impending doom of our planet.

The stakes are high! This has to make a great movie, right? Everyone will get on board to save the rainforests!

Well, that depends entirely on how you tell the story.

The "Topic" Trap

You could create a film where a character explains all the issues surrounding the rainforest. However, what you are doing is simply talking about a topic. It may be fascinating to you and could even make a great TED Talk, but in a story, it can get boring—fast.

Why is that? Because a topic is static. It’s a collection of facts and ideas that you are presenting to an audience. They become passive listeners. To create a story, you need to stop talking and make something happen.

The Power of an "Event"

Imagine this: you're in your everyday world, discussing your favorite topic, the rainforest. Suddenly, a huge tractor crashes through the trees, nearly killing you as you flee for your life.

Now, we have an event. This is your story's inciting incident—a moment that shatters the ordinary world and launches your character into action.

An event is a live drama your character (and your audience) experiences in real-time. It has a clear beginning, middle, and end. The tractor appears, it demolishes the trees, and you are left behind, bewildered.

From Global Threat to Personal Danger

Now, perhaps that tractor is there illegally. You decide to confront it. You are now a motivated character on a quest. You wave it down and get into a fight with the driver. He knows he’s caught, so he pulls out a gun. You run for your life.

Do you see what happened? The stakes have transformed. The story is no longer about an abstract, global threat (climate change). It's now about a personal, immediate threat: a man with a gun is trying to kill you.

This illustrates the classic writing advice: Show, Don't Tell. Don't just tell us deforestation is dangerous; show us a character running from a gun. Your audience is no longer passively listening to a topic; they are experiencing the drama right alongside your main character.

A Special Note on "Big Ideas"

This doesn't mean your story can’t impart information about your topic. It absolutely can, but it must be an organic part of the story, revealed as characters gain information while trying to achieve their goals.

I purposely used an environmental issue to illustrate this because these topics are tricky. The real-life drama can take thousands of years to manifest. In situations like this, you must connect the big idea to an immediate, human-scale event. Find the human-scale drama within the large-scale topic.

Crafting Your Narrative

When writing your story, keep in mind the importance of character motivation. Characters should have clear goals and desires that drive the narrative forward. This is what makes them relatable and engaging to the audience.

Building Tension

Tension is crucial in storytelling. It keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. You can build tension by introducing obstacles that your characters must overcome. This could be anything from natural disasters to personal conflicts. The more challenging the obstacles, the more invested the audience will become in the outcome.

Creating Relatable Characters

Your characters should resonate with the audience. They should have flaws, strengths, and relatable experiences. This connection will make the audience care about what happens to them.

The Role of Dialogue

Dialogue is a powerful tool in storytelling. It reveals character traits and motivations. It can also advance the plot. Make sure your dialogue feels natural and true to the characters. Avoid using it as an exposition dump. Instead, let it flow organically within the context of the story.

Your Turn to Write

Keep the difference between "topics" and "events" clear in your mind. Remember that a succession of character-motivated dramatic events creates a story.

Give it a try. In the comments, pick a topic you're passionate about. Then, invent a single, dramatic event that could launch a story and make that topic personal.

Happy Writing!

For more tips and useful information, check out the blog posts or for personal assistance with your latest project, reach Susanna at scriptsbysusanna@gmail.com.