Pixar Storytelling Tip #10

Welcome to my series on Pixar’s now-famous 22 Rules of Storytelling. I don’t religiously follow all of these like they’re story commandments, but I do happen to agree with many of them. I thought it might be fun to examine why and explain what each means to me. You can start at the beginning here.

This is part of advice you always hear: if you want to be a writer, then read. But story-craft goes further than just books. Television, movies, comics- use everything you have in your toolbox.

Simply being familiar with the vagaries of pop culture isn’t enough. When something really resonates with you, when you enjoy the type of story that you want to tell, make sure to deconstruct it. Did you enjoy the action more because of the character development? Was the ending satisfying because it was laid out early on?

Make sure you are aware of what you like about stories. Self-awareness and intentionality are the author’s best friends.

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