But when you’re struggling to figure out what should happen next, it can act as a narrative arc guide to suggest the next milestone.Ĭlick to tweet! The 12 Steps of the Hero’s Journey You can instead think of it as a map: you can stray from the set path whenever you like. But remember that authors don't necessarily need to follow it beat by beat. The Hero's Journey has its fingerprints in everything from The Lion King and horror novels to Star Wars and Arrival. (This is the version we’ll dissect later in this post.) In it, Vogler expanded upon Campbell’s three phases, defining 12 stages that make it up. In 2007, screenwriter Christopher Vogler refined Campbell’s original structure in his book, The Writer’s Journey. The Return Act: the Hero returns in triumph.The Initiation Act: the Hero ventures into unknown territory (the 'Special World') and is birthed into a true champion through various trials and challenges.The Departure Act: the Hero leaves the Ordinary World.Here are the original three stages of the hero’s journey as coined by Campbell:

This framework was popularized by academic Joseph Campbell’s mythology book The Hero with a Thousand Faces.

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