Marvel's Werewolf By Night Is The Perfect Example Of A Well-Written Short Story
Let Me Show You How
Author’s Note 1:
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Author’s Note 2:
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Last month, I saw Marvel’s Werewolf By Night on Disney+ and had SO MUCH FUN!
Only Marvel could make me — a person who creeps out of watching anything scary — watch a horror movie.
But what surprised me the most was my inner voice when it said, “This is a great example of a short story.”
That comment from my inner voice made me whip my head, pause for a brief second and go, “Yeah!”
So here’s the short story framework you can learn from Marvel’s Werewolf By Night.
Disclaimer: Spoilers ahead! Watch the 52-minute film on Disney+ first.
And I am analysing the film, in the context of a short story, based on the lessons I learned from How to Write Short Stories And Use Them to Further Your Writing Career by James Scott Bell.
One Arc And One Protagonist
Usually, a short story should have one arc and one protagonist. The reason is a short story doesn’t have enough word count for world and character building.
But since Werewolf By Night is a one-hour film, it has two arcs, following our two protagonists.
Jack Russel is there at the ceremonial hunt to save his monster friend. And Elsa Bloodstone is there to get the ancient relic stone, capable of killing monsters, called the Bloodstone.
That is the only purpose of the complete arc. There are no fillers or extra information added to the film.
That’s exactly how a short story is — short, crisp and to the point. Share just enough information to get readers interested in the story.
Immediate Backstory
The film starts with an introduction to the MCU world of monsters and their hunters.
Within the first few minutes, we know
the origin of monster hunting,
about the patriarch and great monster hunter Ulysses Bloodstone,
about the ancient relic Bloodstone,
why the hunters (and we, the audience) are gathered for his funeral,
about Elsa Bloodstone, daughter of Ulysses Bloodstone, who forwent her right to inherit the stone when she left her father 20 years ago, and
how deadly these six hunters are, therefore also letting each other know their capabilities.
If your short story has a backstory, it’s best to introduce it the backstory as soon as possible to let the readers know what they are getting into.
The exception could be if the backstory is a plot twist or shattering moment. Then it can be introduced when the shattering moment is required.
Shattering Moment
A shattering moment is just like a plot twist. Once this happens, there is no going back (for both the characters and the audience/readers).
In Werewolf By Night, two shattering moments happen.
First (at the beginning of Act 2), Jack is not there to kill the monster and earn the Bloodstone but to save it. Turns out the monster named Ted is Jack’s friend. He is there to save Ted’s ass.
Second (at the end of Act 2), Jack is a monster pretending to be a hunter.
Unconsciously, when reading a short story (or any story or watching a movie), we look for the shattering moment — the plot twist. That’s what we are waiting for — to see what gasp-worthy situation occurs, which will lead our characters to take the next step in their journey.
And it is this shattering moment that keeps us hooked on the story.
Emotional Experience
This is easier shown than written, but it is a necessary part of any storytelling.
You have to take your readers through an emotional experience.
If the shattering moment hooks us, the emotional experience keeps us invested in the story, sometimes even long after we are done.
(Think about your favourite book or movie you’d love to experience for the first time again, and you’ll know what I am talking about.)
Werewolf By Night does this amazingly.
by setting up the creepy, monster atmosphere,
showing the camaraderie between Jack and Ted,
showing the feeling of being the black sheep of the family that Jack and Elsa share,
through Jack’s helplessness as a werewolf and balancing it with his human self,
with the fact that not all monsters are evil, there’s a human inside fighting their tangible inner demon.
Whatever your character goes through in your short story, you must make it emotional enough for the reader to relate to them.
You hit the storytelling jackpot when your readers can see themselves in your character or at least imagine how it might feel to be in their shoes.
