How to Write a Radio Serial Drama for Social Development- PDF

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48 Chapter Four: Blending Story and Message in the Drama Plot Topics in This Chapter ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ The ten aims of plot development Combining message and story in an Enter- Educate plot Creating original plots Steps in plot development Guidelines for plot development Ten Aims of Plot Development 1. Create an emotional experience. 2. Tell a people story. 3. Work within the culture. 4. Convey ideas rather than words. 5. Show rather than tell. 6. Use humor. 7. Motivate positive change. 8. Create trust. 9. Encourage advocacy. 10.Be original. The first seven aims come from “Strategies for Improving A Treatment" in Script Writing for High Impact Videos by John Morley, and they are useful for all drama writers. The final three are added for Enter-Educate writers. Ten Aims of Plot Development A successful Enter-Educate drama depends on a strong plot that fulfills the following ten aims: 1. Create an emotional experience. Emotional involvement in a drama allows listeners to live out their own hopes and fears vicariously. Most adults do not freely give vent to their emotions, but keep them bottled up inside. Characters in dramas can express strong emotions “on behalf of” audience members, who then experience an emotional release or catharsis. It is this emotional experience that makes drama so powerful. The added advantage of serial drama is that the characters in its multiple, ongoing plots can demonstrate realistic ways for listeners to achieve personal—not just vicarious—relief from their own problems. 2. Tell a people story. People are interested in other people. Dramatic details about the tragedies and triumphs in the lives of other people, who are just like themselves, will always attract listeners. It is people, not messages, who make drama. Serial dramas must focus on the characters who demonstrate the message as they go about their daily lives. In the episode of Life in Hopeful Village presented in Chapter 12 (page 170), for example, the audience pays attention to the serial's message on literacy, because they are gripped by the story of what happens to Littlejohn as a result of his inability to read and write. 3. Work within the culture. The drama should reflect the customs of the audience for which it is intended. In some cultures, for example, young
Chapter Four: Blending Story and Message in the Drama Plot 49 people customarily address their elders with terms of respect rather than their names; elsewhere, names are used. In some cultures, people always remove their shoes before entering a house or they offer tea to visitors. Other cultures emphasize praying before undertaking any new venture. Nearly all cultures have traditional holidays or days of celebration that are observed in special ways. Including colloquial expressions also enhances the drama's attraction for listeners. The writer should become aware of religious expressions, proverbs, fables and other colloquial expressions that are widely known and commonly used by the community. (Further information on the use of language is included in Chapter 7.) It is difficult to transplant a social development drama—in its original form—from one culture to another. Even in cultures that seem similar on the surface, there are subtle differences which must be acknowledged and reflected if a serial is to be effective as a model for behavioral change. Throughout a serial, the writer must acknowledge the local culture and make use of its habits and idiosyncrasies. It is here that the audience profile and the writer’s personal knowledge of the audience become so important. 4. Convey ideas rather than words. The reason for using drama rather than a lecture format is to get away from didactic words. Because it is the medium of the imagination, radio is an ideal instrument for conveying ideas—as long as the writer conveys these ideas through the lives and conversations of realistic characters, not through didactic speeches. 5. Show rather than tell. A major strength of the dramatic serial is its ability to demonstrate what life is like when new attitudes and practices are adopted. In learning situations, demonstration is always more effective than talk. The writer should create characters who can act as role models for listeners by demonstrating a growing understanding of the new ideas presented and by showing listeners how to adopt desired behaviors. One strong role model is worth a thousand words of instruction. 6. Use humor. Everybody enjoys a touch of humor in life. While a story need not be uproariously funny all or even part of the time, it helps to have occasional amusing scenes. Some writers find it useful to create a comic who has a great sense of humor or is frequently involved in funny situations. An important rule, however, is do not deliver a serious message through the words of a comic character. Since listeners are accustomed to laughing at comic characters, they are not likely to take the words of comics seriously when they deliver a valuable educational message. Humor differs markedly from culture to culture, so the writer must know and appreciate the types of situations and characters that the intended audience finds amusing. 7. Be positive. While a drama may include difficult, even nasty, characters who are opposed to new ways, the overall thrust of the story 4
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How To Write a Radio Serial Drama f
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Using This Book This book is a prac
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vi Contents Chapter Two 13 Writing
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Chapter Eleven Script Presentation
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Chapter Eleven: Script Presentation
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Glossary This list defines the word
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Index of Script Excerpts and Other
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