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    Story Grid 101
    Story Grid 101
    Story Grid 101
    Ebook48 pages38 minutes

    Story Grid 101

    By Shawn Coyne

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    About this ebook

    What are the first principles in writing a story that works?


    At Story Grid, it's easy to get distracted by the tools, spreadsheets, commandments, macro lense, micro lense, and on and on. However, all of this eventually comes back to five first principles.


    In Story Grid 101

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherStory Grid Publishing LLC
    Release dateJul 23, 2020
    ISBN9781645010241
    Story Grid 101
    Author

    Shawn Coyne

    SHAWN COYNE created, developed, and expanded the story analysis and problem- solving methodology The Story Grid throughout his quarter-century-plus book publishing career. A seasoned story editor, book publisher and ghostwriter, Coyne has also co-authored The Ones Who Hit the Hardest: The Steelers, The Cowboys, the '70s and the Fight For America's Soul with Chad Millman and Cognitive Dominance: A Brain Surgeon's Quest to Out-Think Fear with Mark McLaughlin, M.D. With his friend and editorial client Steven Pressfield, Coyne runs Black Irish Entertainment LLC, publisher of the cult classic book The War of Art. With his friend and editorial client Tim Grahl, Coyne oversees the Story Grid Universe, LLC, which includes Story Grid University and Story Grid Publishing.

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    • 5/5
      Excellent book.. Clear and concise. Not verbose. I love the hot links inside that lead to other rabbit holes one can choose to go down, or save for later.

    Book preview

    Story Grid 101 - Shawn Coyne

    STORY GRID 101

    THE TRUTH IS

    1. Leveling up your craft to write a story that lives long after you’ve left the planet is what some might call a ridiculous goal.

    2. You know that you will not tell that story after reading just one how-to-write book.

    3. You know that you will not tell that story as the result of taking one seminar.

    4. You know that creating a timeless work of art will require the dedication of a world-class athlete. You will be training your mind with as much ferocity and single-minded purpose as an Olympic gold medal hopeful. That kind of cognitive regimen excites you, but you just haven't found a convincing storytelling dojo to do that work.

    5. The path to leveling up your creative craft is a dark and treacherous course. You've been at it a long time, and it often feels like you're wearing three-dimensional horse blinders. More times than you'd wish to admit, you're not sure if you are moving north or south or east or west. And the worst part? You can't see anyone else, anywhere going through what you're going through. You're all alone.

    WELCOME TO THE STORY GRID UNIVERSE

    HERE'S HOW WE CONTEND WITH THOSE TRUTHS

    1. We believe we find meaning in the pursuit of creations that last longer than we do. This is not ridiculous. Seizing opportunities and overcoming obstacles as we stretch ourselves to reach for seemingly unreachable creations is transformational. We believe this pursuit is the most valuable and honorable way to spend our time here. Even if—especially if—we never reach our lofty creative goals.

    2. Writing just one story isn’t going to take us to the top. We’re moving from point A to Point A ⁵⁰⁰⁰. We’ve got lots of mountains to climb, lots of rivers and oceans to cross, and many deep dark forests to traverse along the way. We need topographic guides, and if they’re not available, we’ll have to figure out how to write them ourselves.

    3. We’re drawn to seminars to consume the imparted wisdom of an icon in the arena, but we leave with something far more valuable than the curriculum. We get to meet the universe’s other pilgrims and compare notes on the terrain.

    4. The Story Grid Universe has a virtual dojo, a university in which to work out and get

    stronger—a place to stumble, correct mistakes, and stumble again, until the moves become automatic and mesmerizing to outside observers.

    5. The Story Grid Universe has a performance space, a publishing house dedicated to leveling up the craft with clear boundaries

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