Dramatica Pro Review

Hi Fellow-Writer,
here is my review of Dramatica Pro.

Dramatica Pro is a stand-alone program that you download and install on your computer. The goal of the program is to help you with story planning and development. Once you have finished development with Dramatica Pro, you will be ready to start writing.

In this review I'll cover:

Getting the software: how easy was it to access and start using a trial version of the software. There were some surprises here!
Using the software: how easy was it to "get" what the program wanted me to do.
Usefulness of the results: did the process help me create a good story?
Price & Guarantee

I don't bother repeating the marketing blurb from the product's websites. You can go read about that on the individual websites (links are given at the end of the review). I focus solely on how well the software worked for me as a fiction writer trying to plan a new story.

Free Trial

You can download a demo version of the Dramatica Pro software from the Dramatica Pro site. The software was very easy to install.

Limitations of the Demo version: the trial version does not allow printing, exporting or saving.

Using the Software

When you start the software you are presented with a fairly complex desktop, with 9 options to choose from. Fortunately, the first one is called "Story Guide: Start Here" and the second one is "Help". I checked out the help and it advised new users (like me!) to start with the Story Guide.

On the first page of the story guide it suggested I open a template and use that along with the story guide. Unfortunately, it took me a while to figure out how to open a template.

Next I needed to choose between Level 1 (60 questions), Level 2 (75 questions) and Level 3 (250 questions). I chose Level 1, just to get a feel for the software.

Before you can get started on the questions, there is quite a bit of reading to do. If you're not keen on reading, then Dramatica Pro is not for you. Once the questions start, you need to start thinking! The program asks you about plot, characters, and then you get to answer a bunch of questions which determine your "story-form".

It took me several hours to work through the level one questions and story form. I found I didn't have answers for many of the questions that the program asked. Sometimes thinking of an answer provided me with a great idea for my book. Sometimes I didn't actually like the ideas I came up with, but wrote them down anyway.

Usefulness of the Results

I have mixed feelings about the results of planning my book using Dramatica Pro. The questions asked were definitely very thorough, but I'm not convinced that my answers were always great. Sometimes I think it is better to let my story coalesce as I write it, because that allows for more "real" things to happen once I know my characters. In fact, I think I might start writing my story and come back to Dramatica Pro if I hit writer's block. I suspect Dramatica Pro's structure would help me map out where the problems are in my story.

In sum, I'll need to start writing to see if having this extra-detailed story plan is a good thing or a bad thing. Stay tuned :-)

Price & Guarantee

At $229, Dramatica Pro is not cheap. The best advice I can give you is to make sure you explore the demo as much as possible so you are confident in your decision.

I recommend the Writer's Store for buying Dramatica Pro. They usually have better prices (and good customer service). They have a 30-day Satisfaction Guaranteed policy (minus shipping and handling).

Summary

Dramatica Pro will suit analytical types who love to plan their stories in a fair amount of detail. The program is likely to frustrate pantsers (those who write by the seat of their pants and let the story come to them as they write).

I'm a middle-of-the-road writer, so I found the program middle-of-the-road useful :-)