Storyform Builder

The Storyform Builder is a high-level, manual tool designed to help you craft the perfect argument for your story based on your creative intent. It requires a deep understanding of the narrative concepts embedded in Subtxt, making it an advanced feature for those looking to elevate their storytelling craft. The builder is divided into multiple sections, each designed to guide you through the process of constructing a compelling, cohesive storyform.

Narrative Argument

At the top of the Storyform Builder, you'll find the Narrative Argument, which serves as a concise, one-sentence distillation of your storyform. This sentence encapsulates the Dynamics, Storypoints, and Storybeats into a focused statement: the argument you, as the author, are making with your story.

The Narrative Argument is composed of two parts:

1. Character - Reflecting the emotional and personal arc of the story.
2. Plot - Highlighting the external journey and key events.

You can adjust these elements using drop-down menus to select various storytelling illustrations, which seamlessly integrate with Subtxt’s approach: summarizing at the top while detailing components below. Once adjustments are made, clicking the up arrow prompts Subtxt to analyze your selections, craft a tailored Narrative Argument, and provide an in-depth explanation of its implications for your story.

If the argument resonates with your intent, scroll to the bottom and click "Build this Storyform" to initiate the process of constructing your story.

Building Storyforms

When building a storyform, Subtxt doesn't merely pull from a pre-made "look-up" table of narratives. While pre-built options might occasionally be available, the Subtxt Narrative Engine 2021 (c) supports over 32,000 unique storyforms. The process of building a new storyform typically takes 5–12 minutes, depending on its complexity.

If your requested storyform has already been built, Subtxt will use the existing version. Otherwise, it will create the storyform from scratch, and you’ll receive an email notification once it’s ready. Note that due to demand and the computational resources required, you can only build one storyform at a time.

Story Type and Genre Selection

Just below the Narrative Argument section, you'll encounter a question: "What kind of story do you want to write?" This section provides a selection box with a list of typical genres, such as Action/Adventure, Courtroom Drama, and more. While not exhaustive, these genres serve as a starting point, shaping the four throughlines and their sources of conflict. For example:

• Choosing Action/Adventure might emphasize physical challenges and external stakes.
• Opting for Courtroom Drama could prioritize intellectual debates and moral dilemmas.

Your selection will also adjust the Story Drivers (major plot points), which will be explored further down.

Narrative Personality and Pivotal Elements

Below the Narrative Argument box are two major sections:

1. Narrative Personality
   This section defines the overarching "personality" of your story by assigning the Four Throughlines (Objective Story, Main Character, Obstacle Character, Relationship Story) to four different Domains of Conflict:
   • Environmental Framing
   • Physical Processing
   • Cognitive Processing
   • Attitudinal Framing
   
   Using a drag-and-drop interface, you can rearrange the tiles representing these domains. Subtxt dynamically adjusts the other tiles to maintain thematic consistency. For example:
   • The Main Character (MC) and Obstacle Character (OC) Throughlines must be dynamically opposed, reflecting their "You and I are alike" relationship.
   • The Objective Story (OS) and Relationship Story (RS) Throughlines are similarly opposed.
   
   This creates eight possible combinations, each lending a unique "personality" to your story. For instance:
   • Default Setup: MC in Environmental Framing, OS in Physical Processing (common in Action/Adventure).
   • Alternate Setup: OS in Cognitive Processing (typical for Coming-of-Age stories).
2. Goal/Intention Box
   Located just below the tile interaction, this box reflects the Goal of your story, influenced by the Source of Conflict in the Objective Story. For example:
   • OS in Physical Processing offers goals like Understanding, Doing, Obtaining, and Learning.
   • OS in Cognitive Processing includes Conceptualizing, Being, Becoming, and Conceiving.
   
   Selecting a goal updates the tiles above and affects the available Pivotal Elements. By toggling the Narrative Family/Goal switch in the upper right, you can explore different goal families:
   • Profound
   • Capable
   • Aspirational
   • Contemplative
   
   These families naturally align with the selected goals and dictate the Pivotal Elements available for your story, ensuring thematic cohesion.

Pivotal Elements

The Pivotal Elements box allows you to define the core positions represented by the Main and Obstacle Characters, forming the foundation of their "You and I" argument. For instance:

• Selecting Faith for the MC automatically assigns Disbelief to the OC, illustrating their thematic opposition.

This interplay highlights the duality in your story and supports the broader argument you’re crafting. Adjusting these elements dynamically affects other storyform components, reinforcing the integrated nature of Subtxt’s narrative design.

Story Drivers

Finally, you can choose the driving force of your story: Action or Decision. The default selection aligns with conventional expectations for your chosen genre:

• Courtroom Dramas typically prioritize Decisions as drivers.
• Action/Adventure stories often emphasize Actions.

While these conventions serve as helpful guidelines, you are free to deviate based on your storytelling intent.

Storyform Settings

The Storyform Settings section is the final place where you have direct control over your story’s narrative structure. The options you choose here are pivotal, as they define the purpose, orientation, and outcome of your story’s argument. These choices ripple throughout the storyform, influencing character arcs, thematic consistency, and narrative development.

Purpose of the Argument

This setting allows you to define the overarching purpose of your story’s argument. The choice reflects whether your story is Dopamine-aligned or Serotonin-aligned:

• Achieving a Goal (Dopamine-aligned): Focuses on external outcomes and tangible results.
• Setting an Intention (Serotonin-aligned): Centers on internal balance and personal growth.

Orientation of the Argument

Here, you determine how your story’s argument approaches conflict, whether by letting go of an old way or maintaining a current approach:

• Dopamine Stories:
  • Abandon (Relinquished): Letting go of old approaches to pursue a new way.
  • Maintain (Steadfast): Holding firm to a current path despite challenges.
• Serotonin Stories:
  • Balance (Released): Resolving internal or external tension to find harmony.
  • Grow (Steadfast): Continuing forward with resilience and growth.

Ending that Proves the Argument

Your choice of ending solidifies the argument and determines the emotional resolution of your story:

• Dopamine Stories:
  • Triumph: Success in achieving the goal.
  • Virtuous: Failure that highlights perseverance.
  • Bleak: Success, but at a moral or ethical cost.
  • Tragedy: Failure that solidifies the futility of the pursuit.
• Serotonin Stories:
  • Composure: Internal resolution despite external challenges.
  • Present: A peaceful coexistence with the current state.
  • Stagnant: Moving forward, yet feeling stuck.
  • Disconnect: A poignant separation from intention or meaning.

Character Arcs

Directly tied to your Storyform Settings, the Character Arcs section visually presents the evolution of your Main Character (MC) and Obstacle Character (OC). These arcs dynamically adjust based on your choices for:

• Pivotal Elements: The MC and OC’s thematic oppositions.
• Orientation of the Argument: How they engage with or resist change.
• Ending: The resolution of their respective arcs.

For instance:

• A Relinquished Dopamine story with a Triumph ending will show an MC arc centered on letting go of personal doubt to achieve external success, while the OC will reflect the thematic counterpoint.
• A Released Serotonin story with a Composure ending will feature arcs focused on balancing internal conflict and achieving personal harmony.

Balancing all these elements ensures a cohesive narrative structure, but it also highlights the immense complexity of storyforms, with over 32,000 possible variations!

Additional Features

Plot Map Toggle

On the Purpose of the Argument selection box, there’s a Map Toggle feature that provides a quick visual representation of your story’s plot.

• Dopamine Stories: The map showcases how the plot unfolds from Consequence to Goal, emphasizing external stakes and progress.
• Serotonin Stories: The map highlights how Overwhelm balances out with Intention, focusing on internal resolution and balance.

This feature gives you a bird’s-eye view of how your narrative will progress, allowing you to refine your settings with greater confidence.

Narrative Field

Hidden within this section is the Narrative Field setting, typically defaulted to Spacetime (the most common setup, used in over 87% of narratives). However, if you wish to experiment with holding time as an objective reality—such as for stories emphasizing deadlines or durations—you can switch to Timespace.

• To adjust this setting:
  • Use the Cmd+E shortcut to bring up the field selector.
  • Or explicitly set it in your account’s Preference Settings.

The Narrative Field influences how time and space are treated within your story’s framework, adding another layer of depth to your narrative design.

Once you’ve finalized your settings and reviewed the Character Arcs, simply enter a title for your storyform and click "Build this Storyform". Subtxt will handle the rest, constructing your story based on your carefully chosen parameters and delivering a complete, integrated narrative design.

The Storyform Builder offers a seamless, interactive way to explore and refine every aspect of your narrative. By maintaining thematic integrity across all elements, it ensures that your story resonates on every level—delivering a cohesive, compelling argument.