3-Act Story Structure
One of the most famous and fun topics in story structure is the 3-Act Story Structure. It’s basically the beginning, the middle and the ending, including plot points that mark different points in a story. There are many different 3-act structures in circulations, but I will show the plot points that I use (throughout single blogposts, which are linked when published). Which are:
Act 1
1. The Hook: Introduction to the main character and the inner conflict
2. Inciting Incident: Something pushes the character on their journey
3. Build-up: There is an impossible question for the main character to answer
4. First Plot Point: The character makes a choice
5. First Pinch Point: The bad guy/opposite force is introduced
Act 2
6. Pre-Midpoint: The main character faces their fear
7. Midpoint: Plot-twist that changes the plot
8. Post-Midpoint: The main character faces the problem differently
9. Second Pinch Point: The bad guy/opposite force comes closer
Act 3
10. Supposed Victory: The main character thinks they have won
11. Disaster: The card house collapses
12. Dark Moment: The main character hits rock bottom
13. Aha Moment: Hope ignites
14. Climactic Confrontation: The final (and biggest) challenge
15. Victory: The main character overcomes this final challenge
16. Resolution: Wrapping up the plot (or a cliffhanger/extra plot twist if it’s a series)
Important
I want to stress something before you’re done reading this post, because I believe in writing the story YOU want to write. With this series, I’m not trying to tell you how you should write your story – only you know how to tell your story and what is best for your characters/plot. But what I want to accomplish with this series is to look at other (amazing) stories and see how they fit into the 3-act story structure. Some stories play around with it and some stories keep to it very strictly, which I want you to explore for yourself!
Don’t feel “fixed” in the way you need to do things, but rather feel free to play around with your ideas. This is just a “story structure” and not “the one and only way to do stories”. However, you’ll come to find that the majority of stories fit inside the 3-act story structure, one way or another.
Lots of Love,
Britt
