The Third Act is what readers, writers, and characters have all been waiting for. This final section of the story is the point. It’s what you’ve been building up to all this time. If the First and Second Acts were engaging and aesthetic labyrinths, the Third Act is where X marks the spot. You’ve found […]
September 23, 2024 by 5 Comments Novel EndingsThe Third Act (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 9 of 12)
September 9, 2024 by 9 Comments Plotting Your NovelThe Second Half of the Second Act (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 8 of 12)
After the Midpoint, your story heats up. The Second Half of the Second Act is where your plot really begins popping. Your main characters cap the dramatic event at the Midpoint with a decision that allows them to stop reacting and start acting. Almost always, this is born of a personal revelation, even if the […]
September 2, 2024 by 19 Comments Plotting Your NovelThe Midpoint (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 7 of 12)
Halfway through the Second Act, something marvelous happens. There you are, minding your own business, toiling in the seemingly endless desert of the Second Act, when everything changes all over again. Legendary director Sam Peckinpah talked about how he always looked for a “centerpiece” on which to “hang” his story. That centerpiece is your Second […]
August 26, 2024 by 24 Comments Plotting Your NovelThe First Half of the Second Act (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 6 of 12)
Every segment of a story offers its own challenges, but perhaps none leaves more writers bewildered than the Second Act. At least beginnings and endings provide a checklist of things to accomplish. The middle of the story, on the other hand, is a yawning blank. You may feel like you’re entirely without a guide as […]
August 12, 2024 by 17 Comments Plotting Your NovelThe First Plot Point (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 5 of 12)
The First Plot Point is a linchpin in narrative architecture. This pivotal moment thrusts the protagonist into a new and irrevocable direction. Positioned around the 25% mark, it serves as a seismic shift, propelling the tale from the initial groundwork of the First Act into the uncharted territory of escalating tension and conflict. This juncture […]
August 5, 2024 by 12 Comments Beginning Your BookThe Inciting Event (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 4 of 12)
The Inciting Event is one of the most crucial turning points in story structure. It can either make or break your narrative. Many writers, however, struggle with its intricacies and timing. Is the Inciting Event the initial brush with the main conflict? Is it a Call to Adventure met with refusal? Where does it belong […]
July 29, 2024 by 21 Comments Beginning Your BookThe First Act (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 3 of 12)
The First Act is the first major section within story structure. It comprises the first quarter of the story and focuses primarily on setting up and introducing the plot. As the foundation for everything, a solid First Act ensures your plot can achieve solidity and depth in subsequent acts. Within the First Act, we find […]
July 22, 2024 by 15 Comments Beginning Your BookThe Hook (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 2 of 12)
Readers are like fish. Smart fish. Fish who know authors are out to get them, reel them in, and capture them for the rest of their sea-going lives. Like all self-respecting fish, readers aren’t caught easily. They aren’t about to surrender to the lure of your story unless you present them with an irresistible Hook. […]
July 15, 2024 by 25 Comments Podcast5 Reasons Story Structure Is Important (Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 1 of 12)
What’s the single most overlooked, misunderstood—and yet important—part of storytelling? If you read the post title, you already know the answer is story structure. Twelve years ago, I shared the series “Secrets of Story Structure” on this site. That series became the basis of one of my best-known writing-craft books, Structuring Your Novel. That original […]
July 8, 2024 by 356 Comments NewsLaunch Day! Two New Books for Writers (+Win a Freewrite Alpha!)
Hooray! Today, I am so happy to be sharing with you not one but two book launches—a revised and expanded second edition of Structuring Your Novel and a brand-new “sequel” Next Level Plot Structure. (And be sure to check out the giveaway for a Freewrite Alpha at the bottom of the post.) If you want to write a […]
