Entertainment can’t succeed if it can’t fail. The more we protect ourselves against mistakes, the more we protect ourselves against kismet. Basically, take risks.
The risks go beyond the primary story
There’s the story of an entertainment thing ( John McClane needs to save the Nakatomi Plaza and he’s putting his life on the line), but then there’s also the meta-story. The story of “This director took a risk” or “This composer is just doing the same thing as always” is just as much a part of the story for audiences.
There can be a lot of layers to the meta, also. Depending on the audience, they might notice all of them or only a few, but only a naive person would think the audience only sees a single narrative and is capable of being focused on only that.
There’s risk built in to all entertainment
Public speaking is believed to be Americans’ greatest fear. When someone stands out and asks for the spotlight, they’re taking a risk. That risk goes away when that person is crazy or is obviously driven by some crazy-making force (like a fame).
Sane charisma amplifies this risk because someone charismatic is showing a total commitment to deserving the attention.
Failing at goals is entertaining too
…So failing is succeeding, but going for the middle is not anything.
So, let’s find the risk. Let’s stuff our stuff full of it on every level. Let’s surround ourselves with bold people. Let’s make ourselves stories of risk and success.