Sorting and filtering by property

Q & A
#1

On IOS….

Given: I have a user defined property entitled story beat defined as a multi list, eg, inciting incident, debate, etc. I number the items so they will sort properly and 01-Opening Image will list before 05-Debate, 14-Final Image, etc.

I assign this item to some but not all events. To keep things simple, let’s say I have two characters, Dick and Jane. By assigning a beat property to an event where Dick is the participant, I can model Dick’s “storyline”, same for Jane.

Required:
I would like to be able to list all events assigned a beat for a given character, grouped by beat. The value of the beat should show as well as the events with that beat value in IOS list mode. I would filter this list by character and the events for each beat would list out in beat order.

This way I will be able to tell if I am missing any beats for a given character, Jane is missing a “05-Debate” event.

Is this possible? Or to meet my requirements, is there an alternative approach.

Thanks in advance.

#2

Not possible I guess.

#3

Maybe a different approach will do. I haven’t tried it myself yet, but it looks to me like the subway line map view does what you need.

It might also help if you separate the chronological events and the plot outline by setting up a narrative. You then could assign the events to scenes where the plot points are visible in the title.

#4

Peter,

Thanks for the response. That differing approach could probably be a solution on OSX but since subway view isn’t available on IOS, I have to try something different.

One thing I’m in the process of evaluating is creating an ‘Uber Event,’ one for each beat and assigning the real events’ proper beat as the parent. If I set the ‘04-Catalyst’ Uber beat’s start-stop dates then it will appear on the chrono view in IOS so I can drag and drop assigning events, say ‘car crash’ to 04-catalyst as a child.

Somewhat of a sledgehammer vs scalpel approach but since I plot in dribs and drabs in short spurts primarily on my phone, I’m constrained. Heavy load dying can be done later at my desk.

I like to think of character in terms of arcs and story. The arc is easy to model using subway, again not available on a phone. But a story, to me, would be suspect and have holes if it is missing a key critical beat or two.

Again, what I ultimately want is to easily see all real events for a particular beat to avoid story holes and determine where character arcs parallel and cross.

Easier to do using SQL in a relational DBMS with a group by property query but there is no way I’m going to ever not use AEON for laying out complex plots with complex arcs, themes, etc.

As a database guy in a former life I think it is astounding what Aeon has done with the ability to add properties and still provide the flexibility of creating AND SAVING complex queries and have all that sophistication in a shinny flat thing that fits in your pocket.

If I think of a new story or a new way to torment some character, pull out the phone and boom, it’s captured forever.

#5

Well, too bad it doesn’t work on the phone. Basically, Aeon 3 offers quite attractive means to connect events with story structure. The way via event properties could have been a workaround under Aeon 2. Although I would prefer the approach via special structuring events here, as it is probably your plan now.

Of what you are looking for, the “DramaQueen” software gives a good impression; it specializes in plot schemes and character arcs. It’s not a direct competitor to Aeon Timeline, though, I think, because it’s built around a word processor.

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