In character arcs, as in plot, the Climax is the dot on the end of the exclamation point. The Climax is the reason for the story. This is where the author reveals what the journey the character just endured was really all about—and, in a positive change arc, why that journey has turned out to be […]
May 11, 2014 by 19 Comments CharactersCreating Stunning Character Arcs, Pt. 13: The Third Act
Character arcs in the Third Act are all about intensity. On the story’s exterior, the conflict is heating up. The protagonist is a runaway train thundering toward what has now become an inevitable confrontation with the antagonistic force. But, on the inside, he’s reeling. The Third Plot Point sucker punched him. Something horrible and unexpected came […]
May 4, 2014 by 56 Comments CharactersCreating Stunning Character Arcs, Pt. 12: The Third Plot Point
If you had pick the single most important moment in characters arcs, what would it be? The Third Plot Point, you say? Well, you’d be right. Now here’s the harder question: Why is it the most important moment? The Third Plot Point is the low moment in your story. A minute ago, at the end […]
December 19, 2012 by 9 Comments CharactersWhat’s the Most Important Moment in Your Character Arc?
Character and change. This is what story is all about. You take a handful of people and you force them onto a journey that will change them forever, usually for the better. This is character arc. If your characters are following a Positive Change Arc, they will start out less-than-fulfilled, perhaps even personally stunted. They […]
May 23, 2012 by 20 Comments CharactersStay True to Your Protagonist in Your Story’s Climax
In the posts on my blog, we’ve spent the last couple months talking about story structure, and one of those posts was devoted entirely to the Climax. However, in writing that post, there was one potential pitfall of the Climax I didn’t touch upon. One of my favorite sword-and-sandals epics from the 1950s is Cecil […]
April 29, 2012 by 31 Comments Structuring Your NovelThe Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 10: The Climax
And, now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for! The climax is the pièce de résistance of our gourmet meal of a novel. When we wheel out the climax and lift the serving dish’s gleaming silver lid, this is the bit that gets all the “oohs” and “aahs.” The climax of a story should have readers on the edges […]
April 22, 2012 by 44 Comments Structuring Your NovelThe Secrets of Story Structure, Pt. 9: The Third Act
The third act is the moment we’ve all been waiting for—readers, writers, and characters alike. This final section of the story is the point. It’s what we’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. We’ve found the treasure. […]
