Dear Bryce #001
Welcome to Dear Bryce! This is the Nine Muses advice column where I (Bryce Dallas Howard) humbly respond to your questions about navigating the entertainment industry and beyond. If you’re wondering how to balance life and work, seeking answers about the storytelling and filmmaking process, or just want to know more about a favorite past or upcoming project, stay tuned for more of Dear Bryce!
This week, a reader asks…
I have an idea for a story but am stuck – I have three story/ character directions and cannot make the decision. Do you have any suggestions for how to pick the best direction?
Ah, the gift of abundance! If you’re stuck at a crossroad story-wise, I recommend these exercises for clarity of direction:
Write the entire story as a children’s picture book. When torn between several directions, it can be helpful to lay out the story in its simplest terms. This exercise in particular does just that and will give you a beat by beat outline of your story (and potentially hone the imagery and tone that you’re excited to convey). Once you have the children’s picture book version, ask: which of the initial directions aligns the most with this?
Outline the story as a video game. If you’re needing to decide between different character arcs, this is definitely a useful activity as it gets you to consider the levels, battles, and challenges for the central character in a very literal way. Which character do you think players would want to be the most? (It’s a good chance that this is your POV character). Which adventure has the most significant challenges and greatest reward?
Ask yourself these questions: (1) Which story is the juiciest for you to write? (2) Which direction is the most possible in terms of logistics and makes you confident in terms of execution? (3) Which direction makes the biggest impact? For the final question, I encourage you to think about what is impactful for the audience, not just you as the creator. As writers, we often assume that our experience is the same for the audience, but what would it be to really put the impact on the audience at the center of the process?
Once you’ve gone through these exercises, if there are two ideas that still you cannot decide between, guess what that means? Either one is okay! If there were a clear winner, your brain/ body/ spirit would have already led you in that direction.
Happy Writing!
xo
bdh
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