Even the Dead Poets Society had rules — here are mine
Three great books about storytelling and a call to recommend your own
When I’m not watching movies and writing about them (which, admittedly, isn’t as often as I’d like), I’m writing things I hope one day other people will write about. These two sides of my writing life aren’t unrelated. In fact, part of the appeal of the “That’s not a movie blog!” project was to make myself think a little more deeply about the stories I’m consuming. Good writers don’t just write and all that.
I first saw Dead Poets Society in 45-minute bursts over a week’s worth of English classes. I don’t know what my teacher was thinking. She was no Robin Williams. Mr Keating was like us — somebody who loved stories for reasons no more complicated than we were human. My teacher was more like Mr. J. Evans Pritchard — a problem solver certain that understanding poetry is essential to enjoy it.
It took me one failed English class and a good few years before I realised which teacher I really needed — or, if I was lucky enough to have both, in which order I’d prefer them.
All this to say I think it’s important to know the rules of storytelling before breaking them. Watch Dead Poets Society and you’ll see that even those anarchic cave meetings had a format. So, let’s exchange rulebooks…
The Anatomy of Story by John Truby
This is the book I most often refer back to when I’m writing. Packed with techniques and contemporary examples, each chapter also ends with a creative exercise to help apply the lessons to your own story.
Dialogue by Robert McKee
Maybe you’ve already got McKee’s Story on your bookshelf. The lessons in Dialogue give those insights a whole new perspective — and show how important tone of voice and verbal action can be.
Into the Woods by John Yorke
Less a guide, more a tribute to great stories and why we tell them. This book won’t hold you to account the way others might — but it’ll make you love stories enough that nothing will hold you back.
Those are my recommendations. But like the boys of Welton Academy standing on top of their desks, I’m eager to see the world of storytelling in a new way. What would you recommend?
