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A review by allisonjpmiller
The Writer's Journey - 25th Anniversary Edition: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler
3.0
Too perfunctory in many respects, but clear and refreshingly direct in others. Vogler oversimplifies Campbell's observations re: patterns in myth, but if you're trying to diagnose story problems or figure out how to make a nebulous idea concrete, this book's breakdown of narrative structure in its broadest strokes is a reliable testing ground. (I had several lightbulb moments along the way and am fairly certain I'll end up cutting Act II of my WIP in half. Whew.) In this edition, Vogler does reiterate that the order and implementation of these common beats/stages from myth isn't sacred; smart writers subvert them all the time. But there's something to be said for making sure you understand them first, inside and out.
The second half of the book is an interesting grab-bag of essays. While I enjoyed some of Vogler's film analyses (Titanic, The Shape of Water), his obligatory Star Wars commentary was head-scratchingly trite—might as well not have included it. Using chakras as another metaphor for the hero's journey is cool shit, though. And the chapter on the wisdom of the body is a good reminder that stories are not primarily an intellectual affair.
The second half of the book is an interesting grab-bag of essays. While I enjoyed some of Vogler's film analyses (Titanic, The Shape of Water), his obligatory Star Wars commentary was head-scratchingly trite—might as well not have included it. Using chakras as another metaphor for the hero's journey is cool shit, though. And the chapter on the wisdom of the body is a good reminder that stories are not primarily an intellectual affair.