I'm working through your book, and I think your approach is quintessential.

In my opinion, what confuses writers and theorists is the fact that an enthralling story has to be both familiar and new. Most theorists / gurus focus on the familiar. Anti-theorists / anti-gurus focus on the new. But each approach will fail to engage the audience if it lacks the opposite pole.

To be both familiar and new requires art, not formula. Viewers know this. Alas, most theorists / gurus don't.