The Unconscious Writer.

DOROTHEA BRAND says:

"Each writer's unconscious will be found
to have, if I may put it so, a type-story
of its own: because of the individual's
history, he will tend to see certain
dilemmas as dramatic and overlook
others entirely, as he will also have his
own idea of the greatest possible happiness
and personal good. Of course, it follows
that each writer's stories will always bear
a fundamental likeness to each other. This
need not be seen as a threat of monotony,
but the conscious mind must be enough
aware of it to alter, recombine, introduce
elements of surprise and freshness into
each new story project.

"Because of the tendency of the unconscious
to see things in types, it is the unconscious,
in the long run, which dictates the form of the
story.... If this is so a great deal of instruction on
plot making is a waste of time. Certain ingenuities
can be suggested, the popular story of any
given period can be isolated and studied,
and formulas for its writing can be devised; but
unless a given formula is already congenial
to the student, he will get little help by
attempting to model his own work upon it."