Hero's Journey: A Review

["Jungle Book" source]

I've been blogging about how to write in a more literary fashion.  As I did my recent review a couple of weeks ago, I realized it's been years since I talked about the importance of the hero's journey in writing.  Early Disney movie makers had never heard of the hero's journey, so their stories tended to meander a bit, sing a bunch of songs, throw in some humor, and hope for the best. For the most part, people still loved their movies.  However, to the modern mind, they seem to be lacking.  A lot of people remember "Jungle Book" and "Aristocats" and the like fondly, but if you watch, say, the modern live action "Jungle Book," you'll see a striking difference.  That difference between a meandering narrative without clear purpose or plot and a tightly-written story people look at as brilliant and meaningful is often the hero's journey.  

["Star Wars" source]

Many decades ago, Joseph Campbell studied classic tales and songs of heroism like Greek myths, fairy tales, sagas, and found the commonality he laid out as the hero's journey.  It's hard to find any writer, especially writer of adventure stories whether on movies or in books, who has not studied the hero's journey since it has become such a staple in Disney/Pixar movies and elsewhere in Hollywood.  Lucas even had Campbell on the set of Star Wars: New Hope to make sure he got the format right.  

[Harry Potter source]

The hero's journey starts in the character's normal world.  Think Luke Skywalker, Jane Eyre, Harry Potter with their respective oppressive aunts and uncles.  They're at home, and things are as they have always been.  He/she receives a call to adventure like Harry's or Jane's call to go school or Luke's invitation to train with Obi Wan, which they often refuse.  They often some kind of supernatural aid such as Obi Wan or the Hogswarts professors.  They, then, accept the call and step past the threshold into the underworld and go into school/training/whatever.  Their mentors/trainers (the Obi Wans/Ms. Temples/Professor Dumbledores of their respective worlds) help them through challenges and temptations in the underworld until they reach a place of abyss/death/rebirth and revelation (think Harry Potter's death/train station scene, though it takes several forms).  He/she is transformed, undergoes some kind of atonement, and becomes the master of both worlds.  He then returns home with a "gift of the goddess," a gift he/she gained from the supernatural.  This is the basic hero's journey, though this same journey takes countless forms.  

[source]

There's also a variant specifically for heroines, called the heroine's journey.  It essentially follows many of the same pathways but involves a separation from the masculine, a journey that involves sorting out the feminine identity from masculine expectations and roles, reconnecting with the feminine, and then the reintegration back into the masculine world having undergone a healing transformation into one's true self.  Here is a discussion in some depth on the subject and its importance.  

This is just a quick thumbnail sketch of what the hero's journey involves.  If you haven't made a study of it and its beats, I highly recommend all writers do so.  Readers (at least subconsciously) walk into an adventure story expecting it.  If you'd like to know more, The Story Grid is a great place to start.  I highly recommend studying up and learning what the hero's/heroine's journey can do for your stories.

Poetic Word Choice

[source]

I've been blogging about how to write in a more literary fashion.  The difference between a good piece of writing  and a truly polished piece of writing is careful attention to the individual words.  This is not something to worry about the first draft or even the second.  This is what you worry about when you're on your final or almost final draft, when you've done everything else you can think to do.  Consider each word, each connotation, the rhythm and rhyme of each poem and polish it some more. 

  [source]    

One thing to consider is sounds.  Consider whether assonance (similar vowel sounds often at the beginning of a word) or alliteration (same thing but with consonants) can help.  In other words, are there places where the same consonant or vowel slipped into multiple places in a sentence helps its unity of sound?  Take note of the alliteration in the last sentence.  A lot of poets use this technique, especially with children's poetry.  Children often like rhythm and rhyme in their stories, and similar sounds like this are a sort of rhyme.  I'd caution that too much of this can make a line seem cheesy, especially in adult pieces.  But a little can create unity and poetic beauty without the overuse of obvious rhyme, adverbs, or adjectives. 

[source]

Another thing to consider is poetic use of imagery.  Prose will often speak in a straightforward fashion, sometimes using adverbs or adjectives.  To turn the language into something more poetic is to use metaphors, similes, and word plays.  We can say, "She went into the room," and it gets the job done.  We can even say, "She swept into the large chamber," and we get a better visual with a stronger verb and an occasional adjective (as long as we don't get overly purple or ornate to the point that no action happens).  But if "She twirled like a dancer in her first ballet into her new bedchamber," the simile achieves several things at once, including showing insights into her character, giving the reader a powerful visual, and setting the stage just a little better.  If your first draft looks like the first example, your second looks like the second example, and your third looks like the third example, you're moving in the right direction. If possible, consider using rhythm, emphasizing certain syllables as in a song or Shakespeare. 

[source]

Another thing to consider is tight language.  Every word should have power and do several things at once when possible.  Every verb should be potent, the adverbs minimal, and the adjectives creative and fresh.  Beware of overwriting such as "She rode her old horse into the middle part of the central region of her favorite town in the world and searched the surrounding roads for the man she was targeting."  This is bland and wordy.  You can say the very same thing with "She clopped Rosie, her second-hand nag, through her favorite town to Main to hunt her target."  Seek and destroy words that aren't necessary and search for more powerful/descriptive versions of what remains. Any repetition that remains should be intentional language play that adds to the meaning rather than increasing verbal clutter. 

There is much more to poetry.  Turning prose more poetic can enhance the beauty of your writing and make it more literary in so many meaningful ways.