Chapter 16 Roles and Sequencing
THE BASIC TASK OF ANY storytelling engine is to figure out, after an Event takes place, what happens next; this task is referred to as sequencing. Common sense and dramatic logic restrict the number of appropriate reactions to an Event. After all, if Romeo discovers Juliet dead in the tomb, he shouldn’t have the option to play ping-pong; that’s just not dramatically appropriate. Indeed, for most Events, the range of dramatically reasonable options is quite narrow.
But why shouldn’t I be able to play ping-pong or do whatever I want during the course of the story? It’s my story, after all.
No, it isn’t; it’s our
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