Because of its fixed nature, story structure, once learned,
is easy to grasp. However, it’s also a subject that inspires endless questions.
A few weeks ago, while I was finishing up the last of the posts in this series,
I asked those of you who follow me on Facebook and Twitter for story-structure questions you’d like me to address before I wrap up the
series. Following are five. If you have a question that hasn’t been addressed,
please ask it in the comments section!
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| Any discussion of story structure prompts questions from authors. What is yours? |
Does deviating from a three-act structure doom me to not being published?
—Sam Jenne
The short answer is yes.
A quick perusal of any number of successful published books will show us they adhere to all the basic principles of story structure we’ve talked about: the
hook, the inciting and key events, the period of character reactions, the
midpoint, the period of character actions, the climax, and the resolution. As I
talked about in the first post in this series, there’s a reason story structure is so important, and that reason is the simple fact that structure is what
shapes character and conflict into an intellectually and emotionally resonant
journey.
On the other hand, the longer—and potentially misleading—answer is that not all the authors of these successful books were necessarily conscious of
structure as they were writing their bestsellers. Another reason for the
importance of structure is the fact that story structure is deeply instinctual.
Most readers don’t know a thing about structure; but they do know when a story
doesn’t work because something in its structure is off. Same goes for authors.
Many successful authors write without any knowledge of structure, and their
stories still work because they’re instinctively following the tenets of structure
without even realizing it.
However, if we’re talking about purposely deviating from structure, then we’re wading into murky
and dangerous waters. Writing rules are made to broken—but only when we can do
it brilliantly. And I don’t know of any author brilliant enough to spurn story
structure and live to publish a successful tale.
I’ve always wondered what the split variant between rising action, climax, and falling action/denouement looks like across genres. It seems like mysteries have a lot of exposition and rising action, with a short climax, followed by a longish ending. High fantasy, by contrast, tries to shove a ton of exposition into a short rising action section to keep the climax running long to cram in lots of action.
—Logan L. Masterson
The basics of story structure remain the same across all
genres. No matter the type of story you’re writing, the placement of major plot
points (at the 25%, 50%, and 75% marks) and the three acts will remain the
same. However, the balance of the conflict within those parameters can vary
from genre to genre—and even within genre. A good story is a
good story, regardless of genre, but understanding the specific tendencies of
each genre is always important.
Some stories will open with a first quarter full of
action (The Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher); some don’t get to the action until the midway point (Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton); others don’t crank
up the pace until the climax (The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald). To some extent, this is dependent on the demands
of the individual stories, as much as their genres. But a dedicated study of your
chosen genre is important. Read widely and read with attention, taking note of
the major moments in the structure and how they play out.
What about flashbacks?
—Brian Jones
Although flashbacks can present coils and curves of possible
confusion within the chronological timeline,
they actually affect the structure not at all. Except in the instance of the
inciting event occurring before the beginning of the story proper—and then
being related in a flashback—the placement of flashbacks within the story
should be treated no differently than any other scene within the book. A flashback can sometimes function as one of the major plot points, but only
if the character’s remembering this incident changes his course within the main
story and prompts him to react in a decisive and plot-altering way.
Where do prologues and epilogues fit into a novel’s basic structure? Or don’t they?
—Aya Katz
We often view prologues and epilogues as taking place
outside the main story, but in order for them to work they not only can fit into the
novel’s basic structure, but they must.
An easy trick for picturing the role played by a prologue or epilogue within the overall
story structure is to simply forget about their special titles and think of
them as nothing more than the first and last chapter. As such, the prologue
must include, at the least, all the features of the hook, while the epilogue will function as the resolution.
However, I’d be remiss to leave any discussion of prologues
and epilogues without harping on my favorite caveat: If you don’t need ’em, don’t use ’em. Even properly
structured prologues and epilogues run the risk of becoming so much deadweight.
Including a prologue usually means you’re asking your readers to begin your
story twice, since the prologue is
usually at a remove (because of a different time, place, or narrative
viewpoint) from the story’s true beginning in the first chapter. By the same plug nickel, including an
epilogue can sometimes end up dragging out the resolution much longer than
necessary. You’ll remember from our post last week that, when it comes to
resolutions, shorter is almost always better. So use with sparing care!
I’d love to get some ideas about transition from one novel to the next in a series. E.g., what subplots can be left hanging, tips on giving the protagonist a victory while hinting that the win may not be quite as simple as thought.
—London Crockett
Each book within a series must adhere to its own individual
structure just as clearly as does a standalone book. However, a book in an
ongoing series does allow a little more leeway in its resolution. Climaxes must
still present a definitive outcome and usually at least a partial victory
(think The Empire Strikes Back), but
many of the loose ends can be ignored altogether, since you’ll have whole
books in which to deal with them.
Depending on your genre and the needs of your
individual story, you’ll probably end early books in the series by either
having the protagonist gain a small victory against the antagonist (for
example, in Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games, Katniss
scores a victory against President Snow, but doesn’t vanquish him) or by
allowing him to conquer a lesser antagonist on his way up the ladder to finally
defeating the main antagonist (such as Vin’s destruction of the Lord Ruler in Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn, which leads her to the discovery of the even more evil and powerful Deepness in the further books in
the trilogy).
As for which subplots can be left safely hanging, that’s a
tricky one to answer, since subplots will vary wildly from story to story.
However, as a general rule, figure that you must tie off everything relating to
the main conflict. Anything else is fair game to be carried over to
subsequent books. This is particularly true of relationships, which often don’t
reach a full resolution until the final book in a series. The trick is to make certain
that, even if the subplot isn’t resolved, it also isn’t left stagnate.
And now we’ve come to the end! I hope you’ve enjoyed these
last few months’ journey through the exciting landscape of story structure. By
now, you should have the tools to identify and understand the important
plot points in any story and to consciously apply them to your own books. With the
knowledge of story structure in your writing toolbox you can deliberately craft
and tweak your stories to make certain you’re giving readers the rise and fall
and ebb and flow that will suck them into your story world and convince them of the credibility of your characters’ strong arcs. Happy writing!
Tell me your opinion: What’s your most burning question about story structure?
Related Posts: The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 1: Why Should Authors Care?
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 2: The Hook
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 3: The First Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 4: The First Plot Point
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 5: The Inciting Event and the Key Event
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 6: The First Half of the Second Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 7: The Midpoint
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 8: The Second Half of the Second Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 9: The Third Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 10: The Climax
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 11: The Resolution
_________________
Click the “Play” button to Listen to Audio Version (or subscribe to the Wordplay podcast in iTunes).
Tell me your opinion: What’s your most burning question about story structure?
Related Posts: The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 1: Why Should Authors Care?
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 2: The Hook
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 3: The First Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 4: The First Plot Point
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 5: The Inciting Event and the Key Event
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 6: The First Half of the Second Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 7: The Midpoint
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 8: The Second Half of the Second Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 9: The Third Act
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 10: The Climax
The Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 11: The Resolution
_________________
Click the “Play” button to Listen to Audio Version (or subscribe to the Wordplay podcast in iTunes).
Story by K.M. Weiland
Tags: epilogue , Feature , flashback , genres , prologue , secrets of story structure , story structure , subplot , SYN
I just finished reading all the related posts, thank you for the amazing secrets, really very helpful!!
Glad you enjoyed it and found it useful!
Here's a weird question: is there any relation between the hook (as you've described it, the question that propels the protagonist into the story and must be answered) and a hook line, or log line?
The latter is more of a summation of the main action of the story, a kind of micro-synopsis.
The hook seems to be more thematic, and while tied to plot does not necessarily encapsulate the whole.
I know a hook line doesn't have much to do with story structure, but I'm trying to develop one and it's kicking my writerly butt :)
Any advice would be most welcome.
Good question. And, you're right, the hook as a part of the story structure is unrelated to the hook line - except in the sense that the hook line often includes or hints at the main hook. Since the whole point of a log line is to catch an agent's interest, it often includes the hook itself, in part or whole. However, the log line is also much more, since it also has to indicate such important playing pieces as the main character, the main conflict, and even the main setting. You may find these articles helpful:
6 Reasons a Premise Sentence Strengthens Your Story
How to Write a Novel in Two Sentences
Thank you Katy for a great recap of your series on Structure.
Thanks for stopping by, Rich!
Thank you, Kim! Thanks for being brave and saying if you don't follow story structure your story won't sell (well).
I don't care what people say--even if you don't know you're doing it ... you ARE following structure. Maybe your beta readers inadvertently addressed plot/character issues but didn't call it "structure".
Thank you for such a great series. There are so many writing blogs, so few good ones. So many are little more than sound bites rehashing the same old stuff. This was something substantial and very, very helpful. Thanks again.
This is one of the most beneficial posts I've read in blogland. Thanks for all the links. We all as writers struggle with the structure, but this helps!
Denise
Thanks as always!!
This has been an awesome series. I'm working on a very complex novel, and this series has helped me revise and understand where the plot points truly fall and what I need to do with them. Thank you!
@Rebecca: That's one of things I find most fascinating about structure: it's so innate to the human mind. We instinctively understand the rise and fall necessary to compelling stories - right down to the placement of the major plot points at the quarter marks.
@Terry: I'm so glad you enjoyed the series! I had a lot of fun putting it together.
@Denise: Fortunately for us, structure is relatively simple once we've grasped its basic tenets. From there, it's just a matter of applying its generalities to the specifics of our individual stories.
@Traci: Thanks for reading!
@Stacy: The more we have going on in a story, the more difficult it can be to pull it all together. But structure can work wonders in this area! Glad you enjoyed the series.
Popping over from Elizabeth's to say Hi!
I don't plan my writing out in writing - but I always have a very basic idea in my head of the inciting incident, the complexities and that resolution. I didn't know what they were all called when I started this writing journey, but reading voraciously for decades has helped me internalize the structure I think :)
I'm glad you stopped by! :) Most of us start out with a basic understanding of story structure, particularly if we've been voracious readers (it's amazing what we can learn through osmosis). Still, being able to put a name on what we know can go a long ways toward helping us become the master of our stories, rather than the other way around.