Answers to your Pixar writing questions

WRITING TRIVIA QUESTION

Stephen King is a fast writer. What is the shortest time he has ever taken to write a book?

Check your answer at the bottom.

Two weeks ago, I showed you Pixar’s Storytelling Rules. In that email, I asked you to tell me the rules you’re most curious/confused about. Here are the three most requested rules:

• Rule 2: You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be very different.

• Rule 4: Once upon a time there was ___. Every day, ___. One day ___. Because of that, ___. Because of that, ___. Until finally ___.

• Rule 14: Why must you tell THIS story? What’s the belief burning within you that your story feeds off of? That’s the heart of it.

These rules are better stated as:

• Rule 2: Be interesting.

• Rule 4: Tell a complete story.

• Rule 14: Tell the story only you can tell.

Rule 2: Be Interesting.

The cardinal sin of storytelling is being boring. Pixar knows this. That’s why this rule is at the top of the list of rules.

However, Rule 2 has another layer to it. The key is “keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience”. Pixar is telling us to not be self-indulgent. We each have our favorite scenes to write. For me it’s travel through grand expanses of nature. For you it might be inner monologues. For someone else it might be fight scenes. But these are not necessarily the scenes the story requires.

The point is: always keep the audience in mind. Yes, you should have fun while writing, but ultimately it’s not about you. It’s about the audience. So your story must always be interesting to the audience.

Rule 4: Tell a complete story.

In the 1940s, writer and researcher Joseph Campbell described a universal pattern of storytelling. He called it “The Hero’s Journey”.

The Hero’s Journey has three main parts:

1. The departure, where the hero leaves their normal life.

2. The initiation, where they face challenges and learn and transform.

3. The return, where they bring newfound wisdom back home.

Do you see how this rule conforms to The Hero’s Journey? Once upon a time there was a person. Every day he lived a normal life. One day he is given a challenge he can’t overcome. Because of that, he is forced to learn and transform himself. Because of that, he confronts the challenge. Until finally, he wins and returns home as a hero.

In other words: Tell a complete story. A story isn’t very satisfying if the hero dies facing the challenge, or if he decides to run away instead.

Rule 14: Tell the story only you can tell.

Rule 14 is my favorite rule of the list.

All art is self expression. All art is therapy. Writing is no different. We write because we have things to say, emotions to express, feeling-tones to convey — and writing is the only way we know how.

This rule cautions you against following market and culture trends. It cautions you against following the dictates of other people (reviewers, critics, bosses). To create a truly great story, you must tap into the burning desire inside of yourself. There is no other source of greatness.

“There is only one way and that is your way. There is only one salvation and that is your salvation... What is to come will be created in you and from you. Hence look into yourself. Do not compare. Do not measure. No other way is like yours... You must fulfill the way that is in you.” — Carl Jung

There is one more…

Rule 18 was also brought up: "You have to know yourself: the difference between being yourself and fussing. Story is testing, not refining."

To be honest, I have no idea what this rule means. I looked for an explanation on the internet, but nobody seems to know. Anyone have a clue? Let me know!

TRIVIA ANSWER

King wrote his novel The Running Man—published under the name Richard Bachman—in just 72 hours. The novel is over 100,000 words long.