In one of my script writing classes today we talked about drama, and how to create it. Being a teenage girl, I assumed that I know everything there is to know about drama, but there was a whole different lesson in it for me.

“There is a protagonist, who has an overall objective,” the professor said.

This concept was easy to digest. Then she explained that every scene has to have an objective, or has to help the protagonist towards their main objective.

“So everything they do has to help?” I asked.

If I use my life as an example, it means everything I do has to serve a purpose. But what about when I decide to watch TV instead of do my homework? Or stay up too late talking to friends? I immediately started over analyzing everything I do, wondering how it helps me reach my objective. Not knowing what my objective is in life, it is hard to decide if my actions help me obtain it. I have short-term objectives, sure, but life long, that’s a really long time.

Right before I broke out in a sweat of panic, my professor threw me a bone.

“There is some back story, of course, stuff we don’t see,” she said. I ignored whatever this was supposed to explain, and turned it into being everything I do that might not be deemed the most productive. Back story, I decided, is really important.