Welcome to Day Six
You made it past Day 5 🎉
I really hope you watched the full video yesterday. I know it was longer than our usual bite-sized lessons, but that zoomed-out overview is doing a lot of heavy lifting for us. It’s the map. And now, as we move through the individual parts of the journey, that map is what will stop things from feeling random or overwhelming.
From today on, we’re going to start zooming back in again.
We’ll take this structure apart piece by piece and work through it slowly, so you’re never trying to hold the whole thing in your head at once.
Today, we’re starting with your hero: specifically, the core flaw and the core transformation that makes this a story rather than just a sequence of events.
Today’s focus: the Hero’s core flaw and transformation
There are always two things happening in a story:
The plot: what happens, the events, the pressure you put your character under
The character arc: how your hero changes because of that pressure
Plot is what you do to the hero.
Character arc is what the hero becomes because of it.
Today is about the second one.
If your hero doesn’t change, you don’t really have a story…you just have things happening.
The core flaw: what’s keeping your hero safe (and stuck)
Every strong hero starts with a core flaw.
It’s not just “they’re shy” or “they’re angry” or “they’re bad at relationships.”
The core flaw is:
A fear
A habit
A belief
Or a coping mechanism
…that has kept them safe in their ordinary world.
It’s worked for them. Until now.
Once the destabilising moment happens—the call to adventure—that same flaw stops working. What once protected them now limits them, and that’s why the journey has to happen.
Some examples you already know well:
In Finding Nemo, Marlin’s flaw is holding on too tightly. His fear of loss has turned into over-control. It kept him safe after trauma…but it also keeps Nemo from growing.
In The Princess Diaries, Mia’s flaw is wanting to stay invisible. Avoiding attention has protected her from judgment…but it also stops her from stepping into responsibility.
In The Matrix, Neo’s flaw is a lack of self-belief and agency. He doesn’t believe he can act or that his choices matter.
In every case, the flaw makes sense. It’s understandable…
…but it can’t survive the story.
The 180° change:
One of the most useful ways to make this transformation concrete is to anchor it to a single action.
There is one thing your hero cannot do at the beginning of the story.
And by the end, they can.
That action is your proof of change.
For example:
Mia can’t give a public speech at the start of The Princess Diaries. By the end, she can.
Neo can’t dodge bullets at the start of The Matrix. By the end, he can.
Marlin can’t let Nemo take risks at the start of Finding Nemo. By the end, he can.
And it’s clear that it’s because they’ve grown and changed that this one thing has changed as well.
This doesn’t have to be physical or dramatic.
If you’re writing a quieter, more emotional story, it might be something like:
Saying “I love you”
Trusting someone else to lead
Letting go of control
Choosing honesty over protection
Staying instead of running
What matters is that the reader can see the shift.
Character arc vs plot (this matters)
It’s really important to keep this distinction clear:
Plot is the pressure you apply
Character arc is the internal change that pressure creates
The events of your story exist to force your hero to confront their flaw.
They will try to hold onto it.
They will fail.
They will double down.
They will resist.
And eventually, they will have to let it go…or lose everything.
That’s the arc.
A quick note on multiple heroes
A few of you have written to say you’re working with more than one protagonist.
That’s absolutely fine.
What you’re usually dealing with there is a braided narrative: multiple hero’s journeys running alongside each other.
Finding Nemo is a perfect example:
Marlin has his own full hero’s journey
Nemo has a separate, complete hero’s journey of his own
Each has:
an ordinary world
a destabilising moment
mentors
tests
growth
and transformation
You can absolutely do this; just be aware that each hero still needs a clear flaw and a clear arc.
Your task for today
Keep this simple.
Required:
In the comments below, tell me:
What is your hero’s core flaw at the start of the story?
(What fear, habit, or belief has kept them safe until now?)
Optional:
What is the one thing they cannot do at the beginning that they can do by the end?
You don’t need to have it perfectly polished. This can evolve. What matters is that you start naming it.
Reflection prompt (for the chat or comments)
I’ll open a troubleshooting thread in the chat, but here’s the reflection prompt so everyone has it:
How does your hero’s flaw shape the way they react to pressure?
And how does that flaw make their transformation necessary?
If you’re not using the chat, you can answer this directly in the comments instead.
Before I go
You’re doing really good work here. This is foundational stuff. It’s the kind of thinking that makes the rest of the blueprint fall into place later.
Tomorrow, we’ll keep building on this and start applying pressure in more specific ways.
As always, you can email me at shelly@academyofstory.com if something feels confusing or stuck.
I’ll see you tomorrow
Xx Shelly
