(with Juan Martinez, Valerie Estelle Frankel, W.B.J. Williams (moderator) and Walter Jon Williams)

Traditional three-act structures and the "hero's journey" used to dominate SFF, at least in Western markets, but things are changing! Jane Alison suggests that stories don't have to arc: they can "meander, spiral, explode." Non-Western story formats, such as kishōtenketsu, are gaining prominence in SFF-related fields, while hopepunk's development is leading to a resurgence of the picaresque and other dramatic structures. What are the pros, cons, and possibilities of storytelling with different forms?