What Walt Disney Can Teach You about Writing
How many of you remember Sunday nights when you were a kid? In my home, that night meant racing through bath time so we could be in front of the TV before Wild Kingdom and The Wonderful World of Disney came on.
I loved both programs, but I think I enjoyed Disney just a touch more. As a kid, I dreamed of becoming an animator at Disney studios, and Walt Disney was half the inspiration for my passion of drawing wildlife. My Dad was the other half.
Some of the best episodes of Walt Disney – for me – were the ones when Walt took viewers on tours through Disneyland. I was only five or six at the time. It wasn’t until I was in my twenties that I actually visited Disney World in Florida. Boy, was it ever surreal. I was back in my childhood, enjoying every minute.
But until now, I hadn’t realized how much Walt had inspired me. He’d done more than stir up an urge to draw pictures of animals.
He taught me how to write and tell a story.
What’s That Doing There?
Walt Disney could weave a good tale, and his talents went much further than the silver screen. His theme parks tell a story in themselves. Many of the key elements used in storytelling are right there in each Disney experience.
If you’ve never been to Disney World or Disneyland, the first thing you notice is the atmosphere. Each section of theme park flows seamlessly from one to another. No matter what area of the park you visit, you feel like you’re in a completely separate world.
There’s a reason for that.
The story goes that when Disneyland first opened in 1955, Walt saw one of the theme park characters walking through Tomorrow Land. The displaced actor was just trying to get from one end of the park to the other, but Walt disliked the effect it had on the futuristic setting of that particular section of the park.
So Walt made sure something like this never happened again. He created an underground network of tunnels that workers use to travel their rounds during daily operations.
These tunnels help maintain suspension of disbelief for every theme park visitor. As you walk through the sections of the park, you can almost believe that you are in the future or the past or at Cinderella’s castle.
Pretty neat, huh? And when you write, you need to work to make sure nothing sticks out of place so that your readers believe they’re in the moment and nowhere else in the world.
Think Fast; Think Ahead
Walt Disney was (and his studios still are) on the cutting edge of technology. Many of his innovations laid the foundation for much of what we see today in entertainment and technology.
Disney’s interactive rides and exhibits paved the way for theme parks around the world. For example, Disney was the first to use rolled steel bars in the Matterhorn roller coaster instead of traditional wooden tracks. NASA is studying the magnetized system of the Monorail in order to help launch rockets into space.
These technological breakthroughs came about because Walt’s audience wanted bigger, faster thrills. Walt made sure to always be a step ahead of changing times.
As a writer, you have to stay a step ahead of your readers, too. You have to maintain the story and upgrade anticipation as it flows along to keep your audience on the edge of their seats wondering what’s coming next.
Lose that edge, and you’ve lost your audience.
Land of Illusion
Disney ran into some interesting challenges during the construction of Disney World. Chief among them involved the crowning glory, Cinderella’s Castle.
Walt wanted this structure to be large and impressive. It is. With its golden spires and pristine blue and white walls, it’s the perfect fairy tale effect for any true-blooded princess or dragon-slaying prince.
But the problem with Cinderella’s Castle was its height. Florida restrictions stated that any structure over 200 feet tall needed a flashing red beacon at the top to warn airplanes of a potential danger.
While that beacon ensured safety, it would ruin the castle’s effect. The solution? A touch of illusion.
Disney designers were pretty clever. They created an optical illusion to fool the eye, by building the castle 198 feet tall but scaling down upper spires to give them the appearance of distance and height.
When we write, we do much the same – we use props to create an effect, an illusion. We draw readers in with emotional cues and descriptions to create an atmosphere of setting. Or, we deliberately give only enough information, just enough detail, that readers fill in the blanks through their own imagination.
Alfred Hitchcock once said something about how the best horror scenes are the ones we create in our own minds.
Yes indeed. The imagination is a very powerful thing.
Imagineering Your Writing
Imagineers are the backbone of the Disney Empire. These people spend their days developing new ideas for the theme parks. They’re architects, artists, writers, landscapers, designers, technicians, structural engineers, programmers, and almost any other professional who contributes to creating an ambiance.
If you write, you need to be an Imagineer, too. Every word becomes part of the ambiance you create to capture your readers. You may not be working with steel or hydraulics, but you are working with the structure of language.
Each time you write, you weave a tale and craft together elements for the people you want to draw into your world. You might want to share a message, sell a product, tell a story about yourself or get other people to talk about you. It all comes down to the same.
Your imagination is your foundation, and your words are the steel that holds it together.
24 Responses to “What Walt Disney Can Teach You about Writing”
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“Imagineering Your Writing” is right on. As I kid, I loved The Wonderful World of Disney. Thinking back, it was the story telling that always captured my attention. There was something different every time yet it always felt familiar. Like they crafted the story using a complex formula. I guess it was the consistent stylized framework that kept me coming back.
Jarie Bolander´s last blog ..Best Biz Practices: SBA Grants For Micro-Entrepreneurs
Oh wow, the Wonderful World of Walt Disney – what memories!! That and the After School Specials (not to mention Kukla, Fran and Ollie…am I dating myself yet?
)
Anywhos, I love letting readers or visitors or what have you use their imaginations to connect the dots…often that results in a memory that’s far more lasting than one where no mental interaction is encouraged.
Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s last blog ..Make money by MASTERING Your Niche Part 1 – Keep Proactively Current via RSS
Nice article. Disneyland opened in 1955, not 1964 though.
Trevor May´s last blog ..Backgrounds: The art behind the animation
@Jarie: The way people tell stories always fascinates me, and like you, I wonder if the tellers are aware they’re using complex formulas or if they’re just telling what they see in their heads and it all falls together. I’ve always been a part of the latter group, I very rarely consciously think about the technical aspect until I start re-reading and connecting dots.
@Barbara: Dating yourself? I think we both are, I remember KF&O too. And Cecil and Beanie, and Simba the White Lion, and…
Ok, that’s quite enough.
Yes, the imagination is an amazing thing indeed. I think that’s why so many books don’t translate well into film. There are very few movies I can think of where I walked away and thought they were better than the book.
@Trevor: Thanks for the catch! Actually, I was just testing you all…(yeah, right, Harry).
Love the analogy used here. I’ve been to the theme park in Florida, although it’s been almost 20 years. But I understand your point about effect.
Thanks for such an inspiring and informative post.
Dawn Herring
JournalWriter Freelance
Be Refreshed!
@Dawn: The analogy was one of those light bulb moments for sure. You’re welcome, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Oh Harry,
Talk about bringing me back to a moment in time! Growing up in a family that discourged tv, Sunday night was exta special, freshly bathed, still smelling like bubbles and sitting in our pj’s on the floor, exitedly counting down the moments while Mom popped pocorn in the kitchen and we waited for tinkerbell to come flying toward the magical castle. It had the power to take my breath away every single week.
And I love what you said about Illusion. Sometimes just the hint of something is the perfect amount of spice. Too much and it overpowers the scene, too much detail and the story is bogged down.
Disney is a great example of a place that gets it just right. A perfect slight of the hand.
Great post!
Wendi Kelly-Life’s Little Inspirations´s last blog ..Standing in the Moment
198 feet high, huh? I think that’s my favorite fact from this post (though it’s full of goodies, make no mistake!). There are rules in place that seem created to ruin the magic, but our job as writers is to make sure that the glory of the story isn’t lost anyway.
Or something. I’m actually a little bitter. I usually ended up getting in trouble and not being allowed to watch Saturday night shows. No peeing in the bathtub. Pshaw. See what I mean about rules that are no fun? Fight the system!
Great post, Harry.
Beachcombers, Fraggle Rock and Passe Partout. Mmhm. Okay, and Walt Disney – both in both French AND English! Ha!
Harry, this is a great article and you had me at the first paragraph.
This topic of Disney has come up a couple of times today for me. I got an email from my sister-in-law telling a bunch of us about how my brother, her, and my niece were going to Disney World at the end of this month. It was hard to tell who was going to enjoy it more – my sister-in-law or my niece. Also I came across a recent article on a Disney promotion. The article is titled – ‘Disney offers free admission to volunteers – One million people will get free admission to a Disney park in exchange for a day of community volunteer work. The link to the article is at http://www.miamiherald.com/news/southflorida/story/1258878.html . Disney still gets it. Thanks for the tidbits on the tunnels, monorail, and Cinderella’s Castle.
@Wendi: Welcome to Harry’s Fabulous Time Machine! But don’t tell Ed the Time Lord I’ve got one.
@Rose: That’s an interesting perspective. As writers, designers, or folks in any creative or engineering field it’s our job to solve problems. Oh, wait, not “solve problems”. Let’s be positive about this. The correct phrase would be “find solutions”.
@James: Hm, Fraggle Rock was a bit after my time. That doesn’t mean I didn’t watch it! Heck, I’d still watch Saturday morning cartoons if they were any good.
@Mark: You know what this means, don’t you? Yes, you’re supposed to take us all to Disneyland! So…when do we leave?
I totally like what you said. But I agree with you mostly on the imagination part. While it is good to have your work as a mirror of reality, going beyond the boundaries is still a better trait. And imagination helps us fulfill that.
Thanks for sharing.
Loved the ideas and “Imagineering”–didn’t know that word.
@Brochure: Can I call you Broch? Brochure seems so formal, lol. It’s always good to push the limits on imagination, that’s the only way we come up with anything new.
@Mary: I like that word too. Fun to say and fun to do.
I was at Disneyworld this Spring and I know exactly what you’re talking about. Even as an adult it sends you to another world…everything from the scenery to the music tell a story of hope.
They are also brilliant at monetization.
Nathan Hangen´s last blog ..5 Ways to Unleash the Beast
@Nathan: I’m sure a whole other post could be written about Disney’s monetization *gives James the MwP Marketing God a friendly poke with an elbow*
I love it! Combining my favorite place in the world with my career passion in one post. Wow! Thanks for doing it.
Interesting post.
Walt Disney also employed a unique creative strategy using different perceptual positions.
The strategy is discussed and the process taught in The Wealthy Author
great article!
I loved the flashbacks and I too was deeply moved by the reminder of “imagineering your writing”.
Thank you for this inspiration on this a perfect day for it.
Debbe
Debbe Kennedy
author, Putting Our Differences to Work
The Fastest Way to Innovation, Leadership, and High Performance.
Great post. I too was inspired by Disneyland. This post is my take on what Disney taught me about writing – http://www.bubblecow.co.uk/2009/07/what-walt-disney-taught-me-about-writing/
I’ve never thought of Walt Disney in terms of improving my writing…interesting post.
Robert´s last blog ..Worst Day Ever: Couple Hit By Car, Then Have Their Car Stolen