Book Review: Anatomy of a Premise Line: How to Master Premise and Story Development for Writing Success by Jeff Lyons

The latest panacea for the creative world's writing woes may actually have a substantial impact on how we write.




Book: Anatomy of a Premise Line: How to Master Premise and Story Development for Writing Success
Author: Jeff Lyons
Publication Date: June 20, 2015
Rating: 4.5/5

I hate books about writing. I really, truly do. Chalk it up to teenaged rebellion or a writer's hubris: either way, I loathe being told how to do something, especially in such a long-winded, self-hoisting manner (that said, I adore Stephen King's On Writing, because he is so straightforward and personal about his craft). So when this particular book landed in my lap, I had to suppress the immediate urge to shelve it and dog myself to even crack it open. Once I managed to turn the first page, I found myself unable to put it down until I was finished. Perhaps I've just been reading the wrong books about writing or maybe I'm just exhausted of the same trite platitudes being reiterated and regurgitated, because I actually liked this book and put it down feeling I had actually learned something.

Lyons's book is divided into three parts and centered primarily around the concept of story: what it is, how it applies to a plot and characters, and how you can write it in an organic, intriguing manner. Though this book is skewed more towards screenwriters (there's a passage in part three that can be skipped if you aren't looking to pitch scripts anytime soon), every writer can gain at least some knowledge from Lyons's methods. He explains his concepts in deliberate, academic detail, citing numerous examples (most of which are from well-known feature films, an addition I found to be extremely helpful in the application of his theories) and breaking things down for the reader. Concepts such as the premise line, the visible/invisible structure, and the seven steps to develop a premise are expounded upon thoroughly and studied through different lenses in order to make application as easy as possible. There are no shortcuts here: Lyons forces the reader to own up to mistakes he or she might have made in their writing and utilize the tools he has presented to them.

Before I go on about the high points of this book, let us quickly evaluate its issues. Lyons occasionally comes off as pretentious, as if his methods are supreme and the only option for writers who hope to ever create something decent. While some pomp is necessary in order to sell the concepts one has developed, it is grating in large doses; thankfully, this bearing fizzles out after the introductory pages. Also, Lyons could have used another edit before sending the book out to the publishers. There are a couple misspellings and misplaced comas that could potentially throw the reader off and make one doubt Lyons's credibility. This is a writing book after all.

Errors aside, Lyons has created a system that is both hardy and flexible. It requires no down payments, no guarantees, no signatures: it is simply a self-motivated process to workshop one's writing and bring it to its full potential. Lyons explores some wonderful terms here, such as "high concept" and "passive character", and, rather than just berating the reader, explains how to break passive cycles and create believably-motivated characters. His passage on "story vs. situation" is worth buying the entire book, as it distinguishes two completely different concepts that are rarely, if ever, differentiated. The fact that he adds so many examples to aid the reader in their comprehension of some of his more intricate ideas makes the understanding process go much faster. An impressive amount of effort went into writing this book, which is doubly admirable considering it is, in fact, about writing.

So is this worth checking out? I'd say yes, especially if you're in the screenwriting industry (the third passage devotes a substantial amount of time to taglines, longlines, good synopsis writing, etc.) Even if you're an amateur writer though, I'd advise giving this book a read. No matter how many books you have published or how many films you have written, there is always more to learn about the craft. Just as a dancer goes to training to improve their form or an artist takes classes on new painting techniques, a writer must always be willing to learn and embrace new concepts. And that's exactly what this book enables you to do.