[Writing-Publishing] The South Park Story Circle
The combination of two proven approaches to plotting gives a novel approach to outlining in fiction, non-fiction, and copywriting...
I’ve missed getting this data into this site for use as a post. Sorry.
Here’s the South Park plotting methods laid out in one longish reference:
How South Park Creators Plot Better Scripts
The writing duo of Matt Stone and Trey Parker explained that their South Park writers room has a dry-erase board as a wall, separated into three sections — Act I, Act II, and Act III. And within those sections, they write out various ideas for scenes.
Every scene must count. And each individual scene must be a contained story within those confines. Yes, they have to relate to what came before and what will come after, but they have to have worth as individual scenes as well.
With comedy, those scenes have to play out like a single sketch.
“We can take these beats — which are basically the beats of your outline — and if the words ‘and then…’ belong between those beats, you’re f***ed… you’ve got something pretty boring.”
“And then…” denotes that the scenes aren’t linked by conflict, shifting circumstances, or cause and effect. They’re just random scenes put together that have no real connection to what has come before and what will come after.
“Therefore…” or “But…”
“What should happen between every beat that you’ve written down is either the word ‘Therefore…’ or ‘But…’
Those two words are what give you the causation between each beat. “And then…” is just linking beats that have no other connection.
This happens…
And therefore this happens…
But, this happens…
Therefore this happens…
The cause and effect of scenes are what make a story — not just a list of scenes happening in order.
I Was So Surprised - My Newsletter Uses South Park Plot Elements.
Since I just finished pointing out the bad habits of untrained writers, I then had the odd reveal of dissecting my own newsletter. It showed up in my in-box because I send a copy to myself for just this reason.
Here's the review:
1. A gripping sub-head (all bold) with emotive language ("...sordid mess of revising a dozen old books, published long ago...")
2. Sets the scene: "I could say that Twitter made me do it - or LinkedIn."
3. So: I described the action I took.
4. And then: more explanation, using "buckets" and "barrels" to describe editing - colorful imagery.
5. But then: my word processor got overloaded.
6. So: I had to back up and revise the book in sections.
7. Meanwhile: time went on, into the next day...
8. Thus: I was worn out and hit the sack instead of writing this newsletter.
Look over that above, and you'll see plot twists. You can get involved in the struggle to get a book revised (which isn't usually very entertaining.)
Then - a new subhead. I start talking about the new book's possible title, the fact I have no cover or blurb, and an offer for the reader to get a preview copy.
Exciting stuff, overall.
Nothing you'd really learn on social media if that's all the writer training you ever had.
South Park + Story Circles
Robyn Patterson (at RobynPatterson.com - ) simplified Dan Harmon’s Story Circle into an even more workable basis. Taking each of the eight quarters:
“So basically in simplest form it looks like this:
1 – You (a character is in a zone of comfort)
2 – Need (but they want something)
3 – Go (they enter an unfamiliar situation)
4 – Search (adapt to it)
5 – Find (find what they wanted)
6 – Take (pay its price)
7 – Return (and go back to where they started)
8 – Change (now capable of change)
“Which is pretty good, and covers a lot of ground. But, as I was trying it out with different stories, I realized something- it actually resembles another story plotting approach utilized by Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame. Now theirs is a lot simpler, as it’s basically just about turning story outlines into series of cause and effect relationships using words like BUT, AND SO/THEREFORE, and MEANWHILE. But, I noticed that if we combine it with Harmon’s Circle, we end up with...
“1 – OPEN ON You (a character is in a zone of comfort)
2 – BUT Need (but they want something)
3 – AND SO Go (they enter an unfamiliar situation)
4 – BUT Search (adapt to it)
5 – AND SO Find (find what they wanted)
6 – BUT Take (pay its price)
7 – AND SO Return (and go back to where they started)
8 – THUS Change (now capable of change)
“And what do you know? It works! We have a story structure of cause and effect relationships that build up into a heroic journey.”
Try this in your own plotting.
And may your darlings die gloriously!