A writing coaching student uses the hero's journey to edit their novel.

The concept of the Hero's Journey, also known as the monomyth, is a fundamental narrative template that describes a hero's adventure, crisis, victory, and transformation. This archetypal journey was first identified and detailed by mythologist Joseph Campbell in his 1949 work, "The Hero with a Thousand Faces." Campbell argued that this basic pattern is found in many myths and stories from around the world, across different cultures and historical periods. The Hero's Journey has since become a widely used framework in storytelling, serving as a guideline for crafting compelling narratives in literature, film, and other media.

History of the Hero's Journey

Campbell's work drew heavily on the theories of psychologist Carl Jung, particularly the concept of universal archetypes that are shared by human cultures worldwide. Through his study of myths, Campbell outlined the Hero's Journey as a series of stages that many heroes go through in their adventures. These stages include the Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call, Meeting the Mentor, Crossing the Threshold, Trials and Tribulations, Approaching the Innermost Cave, the Ordeal, the Reward, the Road Back, the Resurrection, and Return with the Elixir.

The idea is that this journey represents the inner psychological journey of an individual toward self-discovery and personal transformation. Each stage of the journey has its own challenges and lessons, which collectively contribute to the hero's growth and the fulfillment of their quest.

Use in Stories Today

The Hero's Journey has had a profound impact on modern storytelling, influencing writers, filmmakers, and creatives across various mediums. Here are some ways in which the Hero's Journey is used in stories today:

Screenwriting and Filmmaking: Perhaps the most famous application of the Hero's Journey in contemporary times is in the film industry. George Lucas famously used Campbell's monomyth as a template for "Star Wars," which has become one of the most iconic examples of the Hero's Journey in action. Since then, countless films have used the structure to shape their narratives, from epic fantasies to intimate character dramas.
Literature: Authors of novels and short stories continue to use the Hero's Journey as a scaffold for their narratives, crafting tales that resonate with readers on a deep, archetypal level. This structure is particularly prevalent in the fantasy and science fiction genres, where the journey can be both literal and metaphorical, but it's also used in other genres to frame character development and plot progression.
Personal Development and Education: Beyond its application in creative works, the Hero's Journey is also used as a metaphor for personal growth and development. Educators, psychologists, and self-help authors draw on the structure to help individuals understand their own life experiences and challenges as part of a broader journey toward self-actualization.

Despite its widespread use, some critics argue that the Hero's Journey can be too prescriptive, leading to formulaic storytelling. However, its enduring popularity suggests that the basic outline remains a powerful tool for creating narratives that speak to the universal human experience. The flexibility of the Hero's Journey allows for endless variations, ensuring that stories can be both familiar and fresh, resonating with audiences while reflecting the diversity of the human condition.

A writing coach, equipped with an understanding of the Hero's Journey, can significantly enrich their pedagogy and provide clients with a robust framework to craft compelling narratives. Here’s how this foundational knowledge can be utilized in coaching sessions:

1. Structural Blueprint

The Hero's Journey offers a tried-and-true structural blueprint for storytelling. A writing coach can guide clients through each stage of the journey, helping them to structure their narrative in a way that resonates with readers. By breaking down the journey into its constituent parts, the coach can make the task of plotting a story less daunting, providing a clear roadmap from beginning to end.

2. Character Development

The archetypes and stages within the Hero's Journey can serve as powerful tools for character development. Coaches can encourage writers to delve deeply into their protagonist's motivations, fears, and growth, ensuring that characters are not just moving through plot points but are experiencing a meaningful transformation. This focus on character arc can lead to richer, more relatable characters.

3. Engagement with Universal Themes

Understanding the Hero's Journey allows coaches to highlight the universal themes and motifs present in a writer's work, making the narrative more engaging and profound. Coaches can help writers to explore how their stories connect to larger human experiences, thus ensuring that their work has a broader appeal.

4. Encouragement of Creativity and Originality

While the Hero's Journey provides a structure, it's also flexible enough to encourage creativity and originality. Coaches can challenge writers to subvert or reinterpret traditional stages and archetypes, thereby breathing new life into familiar templates. This approach fosters innovation and helps writers to develop unique voices and perspectives.

5. Analytical Skills

A writing coach can use the Hero's Journey to enhance writers' analytical skills by studying and deconstructing classic and contemporary works that utilize this narrative structure. Through analysis, writers learn to identify what works and why, gaining insights they can apply to their own storytelling.

6. Problem-Solving

The Hero's Journey can also be a tool for troubleshooting narrative problems. If a story feels flat or unengaging, examining it through the lens of the Hero's Journey can help identify missing or underdeveloped elements, such as a lackluster Call to Adventure or an unsatisfying Resolution.

7. Emotional Resonance

Finally, understanding the psychological underpinnings of the Hero's Journey enables coaches to help writers craft narratives that resonate emotionally with audiences. By focusing on the inner journey of the hero, writers can create stories that offer genuine insights into the human condition.

Incorporating the Hero's Journey into a writing coach’s pedagogy offers a holistic approach to storytelling that balances structure with creativity, analysis with intuition, and personal expression with universal appeal. This methodology not only aids in the development of engaging narratives but also equips writers with a deeper understanding of the art and craft of storytelling.