The Two Main Forces that Move a Story: Desire and Conflict

In this tutorial, the The Muse Team emphasizes the importance of understanding the two main forces that move a story, namely Desire and Conflict.

Desire refers to what a character wants beyond what they have, while Conflict is the opposing force that prevents them from achieving their goal.

They explain that Desire and Conflict are crucial in engaging the audience and making a story memorable. Furthermore, growth and change are central to a great story, and it is through wanting something badly and overcoming conflicts that humans achieve growth.

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS LESSON

• Desire is a quality of a character that gives the story direction and sets it on a path.
  
  

• Conflict is what stands in the way of a character's Desire and engages the audience by creating questions and drawing them into the story.
  
  

• Desire and Conflict are the two most critical forces in storytelling, and they work together to create growth and change in the characters.
  
  

• The interplay of Desire and Conflict leads to a larger truth that is memorable to the audience.
  
  

• Becoming a master at uncovering Desire and Conflict and putting them together into remarkable stories is the key to becoming a great storyteller.

Click the downloads above to snag a transcript or mp3 of this tutorial.