On Fri, 1 Aug 1997, G.L.Sandborn/Uncle Fester wrote:

        As a recent birthday present, I received a gift of some
kind of 'writers software'.  It's called: 'Dramatica-Writer's 
Dream Kit', For novelists, Playwrights, Screenwriters, and
Fiction Writers of All Kinds.

I have a similar software package...  It's called Word Perfect v 6.0 for
DOS.

        It includes: 
        A Detailed Query System - that allows one to answer a whole 
series of questions that cover the overall plot or logical side of 
the story and tracks the emotional growth of the characters.

Um, just wondering, how would this be useful?  I mean as an author, you
should know how your characters are developing out??

        The Story Engine - allows the writer to easily change various
elements of the story to see instantly what the impact of such a 
change might have on the story, character, plot, and theme.

That's why I like to map out my story on paper... It's much easier,
cheaper and not easy to screw up with a wrong mouse click... :)

        Frankly, I'm lost.  It tries to help with already filled out
story lines for such classics as: Star Wars, ST-TNG, The Glass Menagerie,
Hamlet, The Great Gatsby, etc. so I can see examples of how it works.
But I'm still trying to grasp just how to fit my stories into all this.
I hate to just shove it into a drawer, unused, because someone spent
a lot (read: A LOT) of money on it, but it's really got me buffaloed.

Yes, Wordperfect 6.0 costed me $20 used from a friend.  But since the gift
was THAT expensive, I guess using it would nice for your benefactor nice.
Here's a hint, strip the program down to a bare bones wordprocessor and
just add in one feature at a time....

After a lot of reading (the manual is the size of a good college
English primer), and some fiddling around with trying to fit the
'Ranma 1/2' story into its formulas, I'm still not sure it's going
to be much help.  (I'm fairly sure Takahashi didn't start this way.)
        Anyhow, the whole thing strikes me as quite mechanical and
totally contrary to the way stories get written.  I'm sure I'm wrong
because the 'Writer's Digest' rates the thing as Excellent and CNN
Furure Watch can't say enough nice things about it.

Well, it's assuming of course, the author knows how to use the piece of
software.  In fact, some authors these days still swear by the pen and
paper, trying to achieve a purer way of writing rather than typing away
furiously at the keyboard.  (I don't have the time to write out everything
though, but I'd like to try...)

        I donno, I'll keep knocking around with it in hopes I finally
figure out the combination.  I'll let you all know how it works out.

Please do.

        If nothing else, I might prevent someone else from blowing
a wad of cash on something worthless.  Then again, as the back cover
claims, it might "...help the Stephen Spielbergs of tomorrow work
their way through writers block."  (Somehow I just can't see ole
Steve building his characters using a 'Hollywood Squares' type of
relationship tool.)

It won't.  From what you say, this program is guaranteed to scare off
authors...  And besides, since when did Stephen become a screenwriter?
He's a great director, but screenwriter?  These are totally different
fields, ne?

Personally, I love wordperfect 6.0.  It's spellcheck, whenever I get the
chance to use it, is adequate.  And who the hell needs the grammar
checker? And besides, in win95 it's tons more stable than word95 which has
done it's more than fair share of malicious crashing and loss of data...
:(