Another Wonderful Book that All Improvisers Should Read...

phlounderphil · Post by **phlounderphil** » March 22nd, 2006, 9:05 am

I can't believe Kareem hasn't mentioned it yet, so I definitely got to give him credit for forcing me to read this book.

But every improviser who is interested in Longform Narrative should check out STORY by Robert McKee.

Yes, it's a screenwriting book. Yes, Robert McKee comes across as a little vainglorious and overzealous at times. Still, this book has some more than brilliant sections about a varying degree of topics that are all very important in telling the stories we attempt to tell. Character development, story arc, conflict, and especially a list of different story genres have all stood out to me as wonderful tools for use in improv.

I'm considering donating my copy of Story to the AIC library after I read it one more time and take notes (although it was Kareem's birthday present to me, I think the community would benefit from it as well!)

If anyone else has read this book, comment with your thoughts! Kareem?

kbadr · Post by **kbadr** » March 22nd, 2006, 9:23 am

I haven't finished reading it yet, though I want to dive back into it when I get some time. (I think I put it aside when I lost my handy little post-it tab/marker thingies that you can stick to pages. It's the kind of book you're going to want to bookmark and tab the hell out of)

The 1/3 or 1/2 I have read has been really good. I haven't applied any of it yet, but it's definitely one of those books that I'm going to want to go back and read periodically to allow finer/obscure details to sink in.

My initial motivation to read it was a recommendation from a friend of mine who is a novelist. The same friend also recommended Impro to me, not knowing I was an improviser. Story plus the the status chapter of Impro is how he outlines all of his chapters.

Story talks about a lot of the story elements that are key in single-narrative longforms: protagonists, conflict (within scenes, acts, the entire piece), characters being changed by events, the concept of seeking normalcy, etc.

So far, while reading it, I've had quite a number of "a ha!" moments. He states explicitly a lot of ideas and concepts that I think I knew on a subconscious level, but weren't able to pinpoint and focus on until I read his explaination or definition.

But yeah, I agree with Phil, it's a damn good resource.

smerlin · Post by **smerlin** » March 22nd, 2006, 10:39 am

That Story book is on my list.

I've been diggin on The Writer's Journey, Second Edition : Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler

It's for screenplay writing and specifically applied Joseph Campbell's Hero-centered mythic structure to screenplays. I find it very inspiring for longform improv. There's lots of scenes in there that you never see in improv and I'm always looking for that.

Wesley · Post by **Wesley** » March 22nd, 2006, 12:27 pm

That Story book is on my list.

Someone should do a NetFlix like thing for books.

Roy Janik · Post by **Roy Janik** » March 22nd, 2006, 12:35 pm

a Netflix for books has been thought of, but I think that basically you'd get killed on shipping. Plus wear and tear would be much more evident.

I think something a bit more decentralized like BookCrossing is the best you're going to do.

HerrHerr · Post by **HerrHerr** » March 22nd, 2006, 1:37 pm

I own Story if a reliable improviser wants to borrow it.