“John is the only person I trust to deliver clear, actionable, and emotionally resonant story consulting to help get my script where it needs to be.”
— Zack Keller, Writer/Director
Master the Art of Storytelling
Start with your Imagination
Struggling to get the story in your head onto the page? It’s not as hard as you think.
Analyze why your story matters
Figure out why your story matters, and the subtextual message behind it.
Build your audience
Turn your passion project into a flourishing career with a solid following.
Communicate your vision
Learn to structure your story with clear and entertaining story beats.
“The best thing about John is that not only does he have an extensive knowledge of Dramatica theory and narrative structure, but he is also an insanely creative writer and storyteller. It's a rare mix—that breed of artist and wisdom—that you'll find unique to working with John on any project.”
— Jim Hull, founder Narrative First
Meet John
After decades as a story artist and director in film and television, I’ve decided to combine my professional experience with my expertise in the Dramatica Theory of Story to offer one-on-one consulting designed to do one thing: help creative talent tell great stories that really matter. Over the years, like many others, I have found myself starved for great content, but no one seems to be making it. But if hosting Narrative First’s weekly story workshop, Conflict Corner, has proven anything… it’s that the stories are out there. Most people just need an assist to bring us their vision.
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John is a story artist and director with decades experience in the entertainment industry. Earning a degree in Film from the prestigious CalArts, his professional credits have included the Emmy Award winning series COSMOS: A Spacetime Odyssey, Disney's DuckTales, Legend of the Three Caballeros, and several feature films including, Smallfoot, SCOOB!, LEGO Ninjago, LEGO 2, Space Jam: A New Legacy, and the upcoming projects Toto and Scoob! Holiday Haunt.
A Head of Story at Warner Bros. Feature Animation (WAG), John also hosts a weekly Story Theory Workshop for Narrative First. He is a certified Dramatica Story Expert and is available for personalized story classes and consultations.
John lives in Los Angeles with his wife, three children and questionably sane dogs.
“I've been mulling your comments over for the last month without realizing it. I've been avoiding the things I should be writing about, even though I've done so much background work on this 'world'.”
— Daniel Williams, Writer/Producer
Glimpse into the process.
In addition to private consultations, John teaches a weekly interactive story workshop that demonstrates the greatest writer-friendly online app for making stories: Subtxt.
Finding your story’s Crucial Scene
John shows how authors can dig deep into the inner workings of a narrative to discover insights and understanding that other story theories can't offer. Using Disney's Peter Pan, John unlocks the subtextual message and intent behind the film by analyzing its "Crucial Scene."
John’s weekly Story Workshops are FREE with a subscription to Subtxt.
Writer’s Tools — Subtxt
In conjunction with one-on-one private consultation, John suggests that writers add an essential development tool to their arsenal. Subtxt is an online, intelligent outliner that works with your writer's intuition, not against it. Designed to supercharge your storytelling abilities, Subtxt helps you define the argument of your story before you even write your first word--getting you off to a strong start because you know from the beginning why you're writing your piece.
“John is the first person I talk to when I get stuck in my story and need someone to get me out of the weeds.”
— Mike Wollaeger, Screenwriter