Lesson 3 - Packing for the Journey

When you understand how a story is told, you will flourish in any chosen form of expression. Some of us write, others speak, sing, create art, or perform physical acts to communicate. 

No matter how you express yourself, you are telling a story. Let’s learn more about how a story is structured.

Setup

Every story starts with an introduction to your main character(s). Invite your audience into the story immediately.

In this project, the first activations introduced you and set up your calling to share the Word. 

Inciting Incident

The main theme of the story is an event. Something happens to the main character that sets events into motion.

Activation 2 in this project described your inciting incident-coming to DTS.

Now you will experience rising action as you meet mentors, peers, strengthen your relationship with Jesus, and venture into missions. 

Climax

When the main character confronts the obstacle, the story reaches a turning point. The climax occurs in all types of stories including overcoming monsters, achieving a quest, death, rebirth, and many more. All audiences for millenia respond to a clear rise in action and definitive climax.

Resolution

 Falling action follows the climax. This often includes returning home and tying up loose ends for the characters. 

Resolutions can be very challenging to create. Even bestselling authors, filmmakers, and artists are criticized for poor resolutions. The most effective way to ensure a strong resolution is to be clear and concise:

• Summarize the inciting incident
• Explain the lesson learned by the character
• Restate the main theme through the new perspective of the character

How Story Structure Can Help You Express Yourself

Following each step in the story arc, you will write faster, smarter, and stronger stories. And your audience will understand even complex ideas. Creating a plan for long-term storytelling helps achieve your storytelling goals. 

You are living your story!

Both as a writer and a real person, you will face obstacles, distractions, and even frustrations along the way. Each lesson adds new tools to grow as a storyteller and understand your life path.

• Plan realistic goals - Even the best storytellers need encouragement. Setting goals helps you stay motivated. Every step on the story arc is an achievement. Instead of focusing on the long-term challenge, reward yourself with each activation you complete. 
• Expect obstacles - Surprises occur but planning helps you get back on track. Stay grounded in the task at hand.
• Stay organized - When you have lots of different things happening, a plan can help you stay in control. Scheduling time for smaller goals like blog and journal writing, ensures the long-term storytelling project is completed.
• Stay motivated - If something feels too big, then you can lose focus. A plan helps you stay motivated. Pack the tools in this guide to inspire motivation. You can also share smaller blogs with your friends and mentors to feel encouragement.   

Activation 3

Writing organizes your thoughts and makes every other form of expression stronger. So if you normally express yourself through videos, photos, playing music, dancing, creating art, or talking, learning how to write your story is important. In fact in later lessons, we explore how to take your written words and share them through other media. 

The key is to let your authentic self shine through each activation.  

The first two activations considered the setup and inciting incident of coming to DTS. Now you will add rising action through a third blog. This is also known as tension. 

The theme of this activation is encouragement and mentors. Early in your DTS journey, mentors help us learn and grow. You may consider peers, family members, ministers, and anyone else who provided wisdom and inspiration. 

Remember to read through the entire activation before writing any responses. While the first two activations looked back in time, this blog should be about your present. This means you should use the Sensory Exercise to bring the story to life.