The Anatomy of Genres: How Story Forms Explain the Way the World Works | John Truby Replay

Apr 22, 2025

John Truby, screenwriter and founder of Truby’s Writers Studio, explains how 14 genres act as life philosophies. He maps work and leadership to genres like action, detective, western and memoir. Short, vivid examples include layoffs as horror, sales as action, and corporate culture as western. The conversation explores genre-mixing, audience identification, and how story shapes choices and careers.

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INSIGHT

Mixing Genres For Plot Density

Modern audiences expect denser plots, so mixing genres increases plot beats and keeps stories fresh.
Truby credits Star Wars with popularizing multi-genre storytelling in mass media.

ADVICE

Make Work A Detective Challenge

Keep your work intellectually challenging to avoid becoming a robotic worker.
Actively dig deeper into problems so your job continually exercises your mind.

ADVICE

Use Memoir To Build Your Future

Use memoir thinking now to design the future you want rather than waiting until retirement.
Regularly back out of daily tasks to ask if you're doing the right work for your long-term legacy.

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From an early age, John Truby knew that stories are not just something that happens on a page. Story is all around us. It structures how we interpret events, and even how we decide how to live. For John, story forms explain the way the world works.

John is a screenwriter and the founder and director of Truby’s Writers Studio in Los Angeles, where he teaches novelists, screenwriters and TV writers the deep secrets of what makes a great story. His students have generated more than fifteen billion dollars at the box office, and studios like Sony Pictures, Disney, Fox, HBO and AMC routinely consult John on how to improve the stories they tell.

In this replay episode, Dart and John discuss:
- The 14 genres that categorize everyday life
- Which genres produce the most fulfilling work
- Sales as an action story
- Business Analysis as detective story
- Corporate culture as western
- Career as coming of age and memoir
- How the horror genre lurks in the shadows around every layoff
- And more…

John Truby is a screenwriter, director, screenwriting teacher, author, and Hollywood consultant for studios such as Disney, Sony Pictures, Fox, HBO, and AMC. He is the founder and director of Truby’s Writers Studio and has worked on over 1,000 film scripts over the last 30 years.

John created his 22-step outline for storytelling in his first book, The Anatomy of Story, teaching his techniques through global masterclasses to over 50,000 students worldwide since the start of his career. His latest book, The Anatomy of Genres, was released in 2022.

Resources Mentioned:
The Anatomy of Genres, by Jon Truby: https://www.amazon.com/Anatomy-Genres-Story-Forms-Explain/dp/0374539227
The Anatomy of Criticism, by Northrop Frye https://www.amazon.com/Anatomy-Criticism-Essays-Princeton-Classics/dp/0691202567
Winning on Purpose, by Fred Reichheld: https://www.amazon.com/Winning-Purpose-Unbeatable-Strategy-Customers/dp/B09PC69XV3
The Complete Aubrey/Maturin Novels, by Patrick O’Brian: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Aubrey-Maturin-Novels-volumes/dp/039306011X
Cinema Paradiso (film), 1988
Master and Commander (film), 2003
Shane (film), 1953
Glengarry Glen Ross (play), by David Mamet
World Experience Organization: https://worldxo.org/

Connect with John:
Website: www.truby.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johntruby

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.