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captainjaq's review against another edition
4.0
When you "spell" a word correctly, you are in effect casting a spell, charging these abstract, arbitrary symbols with meaning and power.
Christopher Vogler's book is, in effect, a "Hero's Journey" for dummies, with a screenwriting angle thrown in for good measure. He makes no bones about the fact he's basing his research on Joseph Campbell's work, with a touch of Jungian philosophy,, all set against a Hollywood background. This makes sense, though. As any good teacher, Vogler uses a more modern language (film) in order to teach a concept which is thousands of years old.
That all said, I really liked this book. I think it's got some great things to say about the craft, if not the art, of writing. At no point does Vogler ever suggest this is the only way to write something (in fact, he often goes awkwardly out of his way to insist the opposite). He is very clear about the ideas presented here as starting points, as grand sweeping gestures which fit, someplace, into almost all stories. And I think that's really the point. All he's doing is explaining a structure and archtypes, which are born out time after time in all of the examples he chooses (okay, he WAY over uses The Wizard of Oz but it does fit so neatly into pattern he can be forgiven).
The only place he really falters is when he tries too hard to make a metaphor make sense. Yes, there might be symbolism present, but it's not germane to the concept he's trying to get across and so, in my mind, diminishes the actual point. But honestly, that's just me quibbling. And while the book does focus on screenplays and filmic storytelling, the ideas are universal and can easily be translated to prose or any other kind of storytelling formats.
At the end of the writing day, having a structure is not a bad thing. It's a skeleton on which to hang your particular tale, something to give it some weight and some support. It's not going to force you into a cookie-cutter plot, with a guaranteed Hollywood ending. The story is still your own, it's just the journey we all share.
Christopher Vogler's book is, in effect, a "Hero's Journey" for dummies, with a screenwriting angle thrown in for good measure. He makes no bones about the fact he's basing his research on Joseph Campbell's work, with a touch of Jungian philosophy,, all set against a Hollywood background. This makes sense, though. As any good teacher, Vogler uses a more modern language (film) in order to teach a concept which is thousands of years old.
That all said, I really liked this book. I think it's got some great things to say about the craft, if not the art, of writing. At no point does Vogler ever suggest this is the only way to write something (in fact, he often goes awkwardly out of his way to insist the opposite). He is very clear about the ideas presented here as starting points, as grand sweeping gestures which fit, someplace, into almost all stories. And I think that's really the point. All he's doing is explaining a structure and archtypes, which are born out time after time in all of the examples he chooses (okay, he WAY over uses The Wizard of Oz but it does fit so neatly into pattern he can be forgiven).
The only place he really falters is when he tries too hard to make a metaphor make sense. Yes, there might be symbolism present, but it's not germane to the concept he's trying to get across and so, in my mind, diminishes the actual point. But honestly, that's just me quibbling. And while the book does focus on screenplays and filmic storytelling, the ideas are universal and can easily be translated to prose or any other kind of storytelling formats.
At the end of the writing day, having a structure is not a bad thing. It's a skeleton on which to hang your particular tale, something to give it some weight and some support. It's not going to force you into a cookie-cutter plot, with a guaranteed Hollywood ending. The story is still your own, it's just the journey we all share.
storycraft's review against another edition
5.0
I've read all but the epilogue - which end up being about 25% of the book (the epilogue is).
Got a lot out of this book. The style is conversational in the extreme, to the point of sometimes feeling disorganized. It's like being in class with an overly knowledgeable professor who's just as likely to tell you something life changing as to tell you where to buy good coffee. It kept me alert.
Vogler uses countless references to films, which was great. I love the idea that I get to now watch a bunch of old films (and new ones) and call it part of my storytelling education.
This book gives a very thorough overview of the Hero's journey as originally described by Joseph Campbell. Vogler describes how each step of the journey functions within a story; where it takes the characters as well as what it does to the audience. He also describes different character archetypes in good detail.
I'll keep and use this as a reference for a long time to come.
Got a lot out of this book. The style is conversational in the extreme, to the point of sometimes feeling disorganized. It's like being in class with an overly knowledgeable professor who's just as likely to tell you something life changing as to tell you where to buy good coffee. It kept me alert.
Vogler uses countless references to films, which was great. I love the idea that I get to now watch a bunch of old films (and new ones) and call it part of my storytelling education.
This book gives a very thorough overview of the Hero's journey as originally described by Joseph Campbell. Vogler describes how each step of the journey functions within a story; where it takes the characters as well as what it does to the audience. He also describes different character archetypes in good detail.
I'll keep and use this as a reference for a long time to come.
aliarabzadeh's review against another edition
4.0
چیزی که هنگام خواندن این کتاب برایم جالب بود لذت کشف چیزهایی بود که تا آن لحظه جلوی چشمم بود ولی من به وجودشان یا دستکم به اینکه «اینطور» هستند متوجه نبودم. مثل وقتی که کسی به صفتی یا خصیصهای در شما اشاره میکند و شما در عین تصدیق به وجود آن صفت، جا میخورد که چطور تا به امروز خودم به همچنین چیزی توجه نکرده بودم.
erinbrenner's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great book for anyone wanting to understand how to use Campbell's Hero's Journey in their writing, be it fiction or nonfiction--including content marketing. Vogler is a movie-script writer and he focuses on popular movies as his examples, making it easier to familiarize yourself with the example if you haven't seen it.
I read this book after it was recommended in a webinar that reviewed the basic structure of the Hero's Journey for use in content marketing, and I was able to immediately put it to use. Learning and inspiration can come from anywhere!
I read this book after it was recommended in a webinar that reviewed the basic structure of the Hero's Journey for use in content marketing, and I was able to immediately put it to use. Learning and inspiration can come from anywhere!
thekarpuk's review against another edition
2.0
The most effective movie moment on writing I've ever seen came in "Wonder Boys" when Rip Torn very dramatically intones, "I...am... A WRITER!" It's said without any trace of irony. This is a common feature in writers both amateur and professional. No empathy, no sense of irony.
If you've seen a lecture about story structure, you've probably been listening to someone regurgitate this same set of values.
It's doubly funny because from what I can tell, Vogler essentially rewrote Joseph Campbell while dumbing it down for writers.
You learn about a set of archetypes, then a series of steps that Campbell suggests are Jungian archetypes that crop up everywhere.
I find this whole monomyth concept thoroughly overstated. Many of these points are so vague as to be meaningless, while others can be simplified or even removed. Books like "Save the Cat" suggest that a writer must follow all of them. Vogler at least has the decency to suggest that these are merely guides, not rules.
I don't think Joseph Campbell did the work he did because he wanted to create easy lesson for hacky screenwriters (for some reason all these books seemed geared towards movies). He seemed to just find the reoccuring events of fiction fascinating.
The thing is, these archetypes only really seem good for creating a boy's first adventure. Many mature story diverge so greatly from the formula that it's more of an act of creativity to make them fit.
When I was at the GDC this year, I listened to a two hour lecture by a member of the Pixar writing staff. Here's their story structure:
Exposition
Inciting Incident
Progressive Complications
Climax
Resolution
Funny how the formula used by one of the most successful studios is roughly the same structure explained to me in grade school.
Though there were a few interesting points in this fairly thick book, I feel like these guides succeed and keep getting written for all the wrong reasons.
Wannabe writers want a shortcut. They want a blue print to art, a way to bypass understanding things like human empathy, harnessing irony, or the need to practice. They don't want to put in the 10,000 hours of work for mastery suggested by the book Outliers. Writing was a wild hair urge summoned up in college, and they want results right-the-hell now!
A lot of the things you need to know about writing can be gleaned from a careful examination of what makes you care about the works you love. Ira Glass once stated that people get into writing because they have good taste, and want to add to the amazing conversation of ideas that their taste has created.
To me the best advice on the matter is, "You should write more. You should read more." And pay attention while you do both.
If you've seen a lecture about story structure, you've probably been listening to someone regurgitate this same set of values.
It's doubly funny because from what I can tell, Vogler essentially rewrote Joseph Campbell while dumbing it down for writers.
You learn about a set of archetypes, then a series of steps that Campbell suggests are Jungian archetypes that crop up everywhere.
I find this whole monomyth concept thoroughly overstated. Many of these points are so vague as to be meaningless, while others can be simplified or even removed. Books like "Save the Cat" suggest that a writer must follow all of them. Vogler at least has the decency to suggest that these are merely guides, not rules.
I don't think Joseph Campbell did the work he did because he wanted to create easy lesson for hacky screenwriters (for some reason all these books seemed geared towards movies). He seemed to just find the reoccuring events of fiction fascinating.
The thing is, these archetypes only really seem good for creating a boy's first adventure. Many mature story diverge so greatly from the formula that it's more of an act of creativity to make them fit.
When I was at the GDC this year, I listened to a two hour lecture by a member of the Pixar writing staff. Here's their story structure:
Exposition
Inciting Incident
Progressive Complications
Climax
Resolution
Funny how the formula used by one of the most successful studios is roughly the same structure explained to me in grade school.
Though there were a few interesting points in this fairly thick book, I feel like these guides succeed and keep getting written for all the wrong reasons.
Wannabe writers want a shortcut. They want a blue print to art, a way to bypass understanding things like human empathy, harnessing irony, or the need to practice. They don't want to put in the 10,000 hours of work for mastery suggested by the book Outliers. Writing was a wild hair urge summoned up in college, and they want results right-the-hell now!
A lot of the things you need to know about writing can be gleaned from a careful examination of what makes you care about the works you love. Ira Glass once stated that people get into writing because they have good taste, and want to add to the amazing conversation of ideas that their taste has created.
To me the best advice on the matter is, "You should write more. You should read more." And pay attention while you do both.