Epics by the Numbers

     When you discuss an epic like The Odyssey, you talk about a quest that the main character undergoes. Over the centuries our tastes in high adventure have yielded a certain fundamental pattern in the way such fiction is written.

     In the simplest works, the heroes will need to get to a place X, or obtain an object Y. The Odyssey involves the former for most of the book, with Odyssesus trying to get home to Ithaca. Tolkein's Lord of the Rings combines the two, revolves around getting object Y (The Ring) to place X (Mordor). Writers can weave any number of "equations" using these variables.
     Sometimes though, the what and where won't cut it. Sometimes you need a who.

Eh, close enough.

     Enter Person Z. The adversary who covets the Y, or whom the hero must prevent from reaching X.
Or, perhaps they're the only one who knows how to get to X, and will accompany the hero throughout the story. There can be any number of X's, Y's, and Z's in a story. Z-characters, however, are often nost plentiful. They will often take major roles in the plot; specifically a role the main protagonist or villain would not be able to cover. Marlin would not be able to assume Dory's responsibilities as comic relief if she was absent from the final draft of Finding Nemo, but Anchor, Chum, and Bruce could have been roled into one shark and not really altered the end product.

Now, not all genres are this formulaic (the more philosophical and artsy you get as a writer, the less you'll adhere to convention), but looking for the X,Y, and Z can make adventure fiction like The Odyssey much easier to understand.