Into the Woods

by Yorke, John

• ISBN13: 9781468310948
• ISBN10: 1468310941
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781468309584
• Additional ISBN(s): 9781468308099
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2015-10-20
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• More Book Details

Summary

In the exciting and wholly original Into the Woods: A Five-Act Journey Into Story, John Yorke not only shows that there is truly a unifying shape to narrative—one that echoes the great fairytale journey into the woods, and one, like any great art, that comes from deep within—he explains why, too.

“A marvelous analysis of screenwriting and, with any luck, should help a great many people achieve their dreams.” —Julian Fellowes, creator of Downton Abbey

With examples ranging from The Godfather to True Detective, Mad Men to Macbeth, and fairy tales to Forbrydelsen (The Killing), John Yorke utilizes Shakespearean five-act structure as a key to analyzing all storytelling in all narrative forms, from film and television to theatre and novel-writing—a big step from the usual three-act approach.

Chapters include:

• Three-Act Structure
• Five-Act Structure
• The Importance of Change
• How We Tell Stories
• The Inciting Incident
• Putting It All Together
• Character and Characterization
• Exposition
• Subtext
• And much more!

The idea of Into the Woods is not to supplant works by Aristotle, Lajos Egri, Robert McKee, David Mamet, or any other writers of guides for screenwriters and playwrights, but to pick up on their cues and take the reader on a historical, philosophical, scientific, and psychological journey to the heart of all storytelling.

Into the Woods is destined to sit alongside David Mamet’s Three Uses of the Knife, Robert McKee’s Story, Syd Field’s Screenplay, and Lajos Egri’s The Art of Dramatic Writing as one of the most original, useful, and inspiring books ever on dramatic writing.

“Brilliant on story structure.” —Ken Follett, New York Times bestselling author

Author Biography

John Yorke is one of the world's leading experts in narrative and a highly acclaimed drama producer, author, consultant, and lecturer on all forms of storytelling.

He is the author of the international bestseller Into the Woods: How Stories Work and Why We Tell Them, which has sold over 250,000 copies globally and is considered the foremost UK text on story structure. Yorke's premise is that a universal, five-act structure underpins all successful stories—a structure that is an intrinsic expression of the human mind. His work draws on a vast array of examples, from ancient myths and fairy tales to Shakespeare, classic literature, and modern television.

With a career spanning over three decades in British television, John Yorke has shaped some of the UK's most beloved and critically acclaimed dramas. In 2005, he founded the BBC Writers Academy, a year-long training scheme that has produced a generation of successful screenwriters whose work has gone on to win and be nominated for BAFTA, RTS, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Oscar Awards (including writers on shows like Killing Eve).

He is a former Visiting Professor of English Language and Literature at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and continues to lecture and consult on narrative for a variety of creative and business organizations globally.