This week, we’re wrapping up our April focus on different approaches to story structure. Today we’re focusing on two approaches that are a little more complex that the ones I’ve brought up already. This is only a brief overview, so if they intrigue you at all I encourage you to go to the websites, or get the books, and see if you find the approach useful.

This week we’re going to take a look at two other methods of dealing with plot and structure, courtesy of Lisa Cron and Jennie Nash. Both of these focus on developing a cause-and-effect trajectory that meshes the character arc with the action plot, so the character growth and transformation happen as a result of what happens in the story. They differ in the way they structure their story “blueprints” but I know writers who swear by each (and I use them as well).

The Hero’s Journey has been popularized for years now, with many books and writers using it as a framework for creating and analyzing stories. The Heroine’s Journey is less well known, but offers an important alternative to the aggressive, individualistic stories that populate the hero’s universe. Understanding both can give your story deeper resonance and connect with our primal human storytelling instincts, drawing readers in despite themselves.

Ever since Aristotle came up with his three-act structure, writers have been trying to refine it to suit their stories. This month, we’re going to take a deep dive into plot and structure, and look at several popular ways writers have expanded on the topic of “how to structure your story.”