Story arc

The elements of story:

1. Situation
2. Conflict
3. Climax
4. Resolution

This is the traditional story arc, and it has many incarnations:

• [[Hero's journey]] — Joseph Campbell's Monomyth
• [[Once there was a]] — fairytale structure
• [[Three-act story structure]]
• [[Lost and found]]
• [[What is, what could be, call-to-action]]
• [[Platform, tilt, resolution]]

While the traditional story arc is powerful and reliable, other approaches are possible.

[[In medias res]]

Different story structures produce different results.

Kurt Vonnegut has fun with story shapes.

For more on technique, see [[storytelling]]. For visual storytelling, see [[panel-to-panel]] transitions.