Check out the latest blog posts:
- Hero’s Journey: Recap and links to all stages
Hero’s Journey is not about rules. It’s about principles. Principles that can be extremely useful to writers of any genre and any style. Check out my posts about each stage of the Hero’s Journey (with some tips for that stage): Intro Stage I: The Ordinary World Stage II: The Call to Adventure Stage III: Refusal of the Call Stage IV: Meeting with the Mentor Stage V: Crossing the First Threshold Stage VI: Tests, Allies, Enemies… - Stage XII: Return with the Elixir
Finally, the hero’s journey is coming to an end. Whether they choose to stay in the Special world or return to the Ordinary world, they (and their life) will never be the same. This last stage of the story, also known as a denouement, is called Return with the Elixir because it’s important that the hero brings something (a literal or figurative elixir) from their journey – this can be a physical object or just… - Stage XI: The Resurrection
Now the hero faces the final meeting with death – it is time for the story’s climax. The stakes are higher than ever before. It is time for the hero to show if they have truly learned their lesson (from the Ordeal) or not. What are the main differences between the Ordeal and the Resurrection? Usually, the Ordeal is all about the hero and their transformation, they (or someone close to them) are the one… - Stage X: The Road Back
While the previous stage of the Hero’s Journey (Reward) gave us a bit of relief from all the tense emotions that had been building up, now it is time to remember the journey is not over yet. It may seem like the hero has learned their lesson but they will have to prove that (but wait, not yet, that comes at the next stage). First, the hero (and the audience) need to remember what the… - Stage IX: The Reward
After the Ordeal, the hero (and the audience) deserve a little breather. Relief from that emotional hardship the Ordeal has put us all through. This is also a time to celebrate the hero’s survival (in the event of their survival, of course). The Reward is the stage when the hero reaps their (you guessed it) reward for having gone through the Ordeal. This can be quite literal – an object that the hero was after… - Stage VIII: The Ordeal
Many writers struggle with Act 2 – mostly because the biggest trap of it is to make it just a series of equally important ups and downs. Just the Approach and no other structure. But the Approach leads to something and no, this is not yet the story’s climax. Why? Because the Hero has not yet learned The Lesson (you know, the main one). They may have gained a few new skills but they are…