Series 2/6: Editing using Walter Murch's Rule of Six (Story)

Have you ever heard of neck scoliosis??

It’s explained in this video!?

Last week I was invited to a free screening of Garfield, but the only seats available were going to result in neck scoliosis.?

It was also making my friend nauseous, so we went to see The Fall Guy instead and…

It was pretty good! ??

If you’re not familiar, it’s an Action RomCom about a stunt double (Ryan Gosling) who is in love with the director of photography (Emily Blunt) but at the prime of his career and feelings, he suffers a major injury from a freak accident.?

Since it’s new, I don’t want to give too much away but the story juggled three major storylines:

1. Love/Romance

1. Mystery

1. And of course, Action

Initially, I thought it might be too much but it worked because of the emotional investment in the main character (emotion being Walter Murch’s first rule) and how these things occur naturally in the main character’s life/story.

It’s also easy to suspend your disbelief when you know something is a comedy.

And, the movie was directed by filmmaker and stuntman David Leitch, so he simply created what he knew.??

That’s why you should always write what you know, and not make up stories in your marketing copy to fit a narrative or agenda.?

Most people can feel when something is not authentic. And trying to appear cool or interesting at the expense of the story won’t resonate if the story doesn’t make sense first.?

How does this translate to editing your marketing copy?

Let’s take this example from part one of this article series and expand it:

“I raced to the bar at Treasure Island, not to order alcohol, but to desperately thwart a fainting spell. By the time I reached the bartender and asked for water, it was too late. My legs weighed a ton, my vision dissolved to blackness, and sounds were muffled like I was just beneath the surface of the water. I guess I was just beneath the surface of consciousness because I quickly came to and said, “Don’t call an ambulance!”?

I self-examined my head, lucky I hadn’t hit it on the way down, then decided I was fine, although, shaken up. At the time I was a student working part-time at Zara and didn’t want to be stuck with a huge medical bill.?

“Are you sure?” someone - maybe the manager - asked.?

I nodded and with the help of a security guard got back on my feet for a moment before sitting down, drinking a glass of water among strangers with cocktails, watching the pirate show up close.”?

In this example, I hoped I evoked a sense of urgency, maybe some heart-pounding, and what it feels like to lose control of your body.?

But the story is that I was young and more afraid of the financial burden than I was of the prospect that something was really wrong, which is a relatable sentiment and story for many.?

The message is that we often put finances before health, and then act like it’s okay.??

So when you’re writing your story in your marketing copy, here are some things to keep in mind.?

1. Hook your audience in with an action and tie it to an emotion (i.e. "racing to desperately thwart a fainting spell.")
2. Write about what was going on in your head at that moment and why you thought or think that way (i.e. "I was a college student working at Zara and didn’t want to be stuck with a huge medical bill.")
3. Decide what the message is for the story, and use subtext to support irony, contradiction, or any other literary device. (i.e. "watching the pirate show up close.")
4. Write it like you would tell a friend and then refine it since speech doesn’t always translate tonally.?

I hope you find this breakdown of the second rule helpful with editing for emotion (rule 1) and story (rule 2) in your marketing copy.?

This is part 2 of 6 on my expansion of Walter Murch’s Rule of Six, to help you edit your own copy. Here is part 1 if you missed it and if you want a recap of all six rules, watch this video here.

Happy Memorial Day! Bye ????