Will the hero do the right thing, and will he do it in time?

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story, p125.

“Showing the hero’s motive to the audience doesn’t mean showing it to the hero. Often the hero is initially wrong about his true reason for going after the goal and does not discover his real motive until the end of the story, at the self-revelation.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story (p77)

“Good writers express their moral vision slowly and subtly, primarily through the story structure and the way the hero deals with a particular situation.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story p109

“Your moral vision is totally original to you and expressing it to an audience is one of the main purposes of telling the story.”

– John Truby Anatomy of Story (p108)

 

“Theme is the author’s view of how to act in the world. It is your moral vision.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story  (p108)

“A great story is not simply a sequence of events or surprises designed to entertain an audience. It is a sequence of actions, with moral implications and effects, designed to express a larger theme.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story p108

“Don’t think of the opponent as someone the hero hates. He may be, or he may not be. The opponent is simply the person on the other side. He can be a nicer person than the hero, more moral, or even the hero’s lover or friend.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story (p59)

“Remember the key difference: A psychological weakness or need affects just the hero. A moral weakness or need affects others.”

– John Truby, Anatomy of Story (p53)