story-grid-export

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story-grid-export

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Lemon Studios Story Editor uses this for structural diagnosis of scripts and IP under development. Use when checking genre obligations, Five Commandments, or Beginning Hook/Middle Build/Ending Payoff structure for content targeting Latin American streamers. Triggers on: Story Grid analysis, genre convention check, obligatory scene diagnosis, value progression mapping, structural diagnosis of why a story is not working, or Foolscap outline creation during a development pass.

Story Grid Expert for Film & Television

This skill implements Shawn Coyne's Story Grid methodology, adapted for screenwriting. The Story Grid is an analytical tool that reveals whether a story "works" by examining its structural components, genre requirements, and value progressions.

Core Philosophy

A story either works or doesn't work. The Story Grid provides objective criteria to diagnose why.

Stories work when they:

• Hook the audience with a compelling Inciting Incident
• Build progressive complications that escalate to the limits of human experience
• Pay off their genre's conventions and obligatory scenes
• Deliver surprising yet inevitable climaxes
• Transform characters irrevocably

The Six Core Questions

Before analyzing or developing any screenplay, answer these questions:

1. What's the Genre? (External and Internal Content Genres)
2. What are the conventions and obligatory scenes?
3. What's the Point of View?
4. What are the objects of desire? (Conscious/External and Subconscious/Internal)
5. What's the controlling idea/theme?
6. What is the Beginning Hook, Middle Build, and Ending Payoff?

The Five Commandments of Storytelling

Every unit of story (beat, scene, sequence, act, global story) MUST contain all five elements. See references/five_commandments.md for detailed guidance.

1. Inciting Incident - Causal or Coincidental event that upsets balance
2. Progressive Complications - Escalating difficulties with Active or Revelatory turning points
3. Crisis - Best Bad Choice or Irreconcilable Goods question
4. Climax - The active choice/decision
5. Resolution - The new equilibrium

Genre Framework: The Five-Leaf Clover

Every story makes choices from five genre categories. See references/genre_guide.md for conventions and obligatory scenes.

1. TIME GENRE (Runtime)

• Short Form: Short films, webisodes (under 40 min)
• Medium Form: TV episodes, limited series (40-60 min)
• Long Form: Feature films (90-180 min)

2. REALITY GENRE

• Factualism: Based on true events
• Realism: Could happen in real life
• Fantasy: Requires suspension of disbelief (Human, Magical, Science Fiction)
• Absurdism: Deliberately unrealistic

3. STYLE GENRE

• Drama, Comedy, Horror, Thriller, Documentary, Musical, etc.

4. STRUCTURE GENRE

• Arch-Plot: Single active protagonist, external conflict, closed ending, linear time
• Mini-Plot: Multiple/passive protagonists, internal conflict, open ending
• Anti-Plot: Breaks all rules, no causality required

5. CONTENT GENRES

External Content Genres (Conscious Object of Desire):

• Action (Life/Death)
• Horror (Life/Damnation)
• Crime (Justice/Injustice)
• Thriller (Life/Damnation + Justice)
• Western (Individual/Society)
• War (Victory/Defeat)
• Society (varies by subgenre)
• Love (Love/Hate)
• Performance (Respect/Shame)

Internal Content Genres (Subconscious Object of Desire):

• Worldview: Education, Maturation, Revelation, Disillusionment
• Morality: Punitive, Redemption, Testing
• Status: Pathetic, Sentimental, Tragic, Admiration

Screenplay Structure: The 25/50/25 Rule

For features:

• Beginning Hook (Act 1): ~25% of runtime (~25-30 pages)
• Middle Build (Act 2): ~50% of runtime (~50-60 pages)
• Ending Payoff (Act 3): ~25% of runtime (~25-30 pages)

For TV pilots, adjust based on act breaks. See references/tv_structure.md.

Value Progressions

Every scene must turn—shift from positive to negative or vice versa on the story's core value spectrum:

POSITIVE (+) → CONTRARY (+/-) → NEGATIVE (-) → NEGATION OF NEGATION (--)

Example for Thriller:

Life → Unconsciousness → Death → Damnation (Fate Worse than Death)

Example for Love:

Love → Indifference → Hate → Self-Hatred (Hate masquerading as Love)

Scene Analysis Protocol

For each scene, identify:

1. Story Event: What happens?
2. Value Charge: Starting value → Ending value
3. Turning Point: Action or Revelation?
4. Polarity Shift: + to - or - to +?
5. Five Commandments: Present in scene?

The Foolscap Method

One-page outline for global story. See references/foolscap_template.md for the template.

A Story vs B Story

• A Story (External): The visible quest for the conscious object of desire (plot)
• B Story (Internal): The hidden quest for the subconscious object of desire (theme)

The interplay between these creates meaning. For deep storytelling, the protagonist may achieve one but fail the other (irony).

When to Consult Reference Files

• For genre-specific conventions and obligatory scenes: references/genre_guide.md
• For detailed Five Commandments guidance: references/five_commandments.md
• For Foolscap template and examples: references/foolscap_template.md
• For TV-specific structure: references/tv_structure.md
• For diagnostic troubleshooting: references/story_diagnosis.md