If you've been in the writing world for any period of time, you probably know that the three-act structure has been the way to plot out your story for many years. However, there is a new plotting method that has come out in recent years that is gaining more traction as time passes. The seven-point structure is a more modern take on the three-act structure. In this blog, I will compare the two and discuss the pros and cons of each method.
What is the Three-Act Structure?
Originating in 1979 by Syd Field, the three-act structure has been the standard for story writing for many years. You've likely been seeing it in all the media you consume without even realizing it as it is used by authors, playwrights, and screenwriters alike. The three-act structure is the gold standard for novels, plays, movies, and television.
The three-act structure breaks your story into three larger sections to help you visualize your plot better. In layman's terms, you could say that it was divided into beginning, middle, and end. Although, the writing world calls them set-up, confrontation, and resolution or denouement. The image below shows you how the three-act structure plays out. Keep reading to learn more about the three sections.
Act One: The Set-Up
The first act of the three-act structure is the very beginning of your story. This is where you introduce your main character, any important side characters, and the problem. The first act houses the exposition, the inciting incident, and second thoughts. Let's take a closer look at act one.
Act one should be about a quarter (1/4) of your novel. It begins with the exposition where you introduce the reader to the characters and let them get comfortable with the setting of the story. Make sure any relevant details about your main character are mentioned here to start foreshadowing the plot. You should be about 6% of the way into your novel through exposition alone.
The next major section of act one is the inciting incident. This is where something happens to your main character that they can't avoid. It forces them to get into a situation where they need to make a decision. Someone close to them dies, they get into trouble that forces them to change life plans, they're forced to move away, etc. Any number of things can happen to your character. This is sometimes also referred to as the catalyst because it's what launches your story into motion. About 12% of your novel is completed after the inciting incident.
Before act one can conclude, your character must decide what to do. This is often referred to as second thoughts. Your character chooses how to react, deals with the consequences of their actions, and decides how to move forward from there. You should be at the 19% mark by the time you finish second thoughts.
The climax of act one should give your readers some resolution from the first problem. Whether this is them getting out of a sticky situation caused by their original decision or pushing forward with their original plan, your reader should feel both content with the story and ready to read what happens next. This gets you to the 25% mark of your story.
For example, imagine you are writing a story about a girl, Amber, who is caring for her ill mother. That's the only parent she has ever known, and she passes. When going through her mother's stuff for the funeral, Amber finds a note from her father that explains why he couldn't be a part of her life. She gets angry and burns the note. After calming down a bit, friends tell Amber she should try to find her father. She regrets burning the note as the envelope had a return address on it. However, she knows the letter was from her city and remembers his name. She beings to look for him. That is act one of the novel.
Act Two: Confrontation
Act two will take up the largest portion of your novel with nearly 50% of the novel being spent here. This is the journey your character must go on. Whether it is run-ins with the villain or other aspects that set your main character back, there will be plenty of obstacles that make it seem like the main character is getting so close only to not complete what they set out for.
The first two parts of act two are obstacles or pinch points. Set something up so that your character has to backtrack or reroute to solve their problem. Again, there should be small resolutions to each problem, but nothing to solve the main issue. These will take you from 25% of your novel to 50% of your story.
In Amber's story, she finds his name in an old phone book or through a research system in a public library, but her city is so big there are multiple men with her father's first and last name. She gets bummed, but her best guy friend tells Amber she needs to keep searching for her father. She goes back to the phone book or library and starts writing down all the addresses of the men and decides to follow them.
When you reach the midpoint of your story, things get worse. This is directly in the middle of your story, so this needs to be a major rerouting. This isn't the most devastating thing to happen to your character, but it shouldn't feel good.
The midpoint in Amber's story would be her going door-to-door until she gets to the last house with a man with her father's name. When someone comes to the door, it's a woman and she says no one of that name lives there anymore. The records were bad and she's back to square one.
Things get better for your character but only for a brief moment. Then they get worse again. Another obstacle befalls your main character followed by a disastrous event that leads them to fall into a crisis. Then act two reaches its climax with the character getting a resolution to their original goal.
With Amber, she gets a DNA test to help her figure out who her father is and where he lives. Amber has to wait a few weeks for databases to be scoured, and she waits rather impatiently. Her results come back and she has a match for her father. Without hesitation, Amber gets online and searches for the location with her father's name. He's dead. Amber spirals knowing that she'll never get to meet him and slips into a depression.
In "Save the Cat" by Blake Snyder, this point is given in two ways. Either you have a low moment before the main character can be happy again or you can have a happy moment that slips into a low moment before the happy resolution. No matter what, from the midpoint to the climax of act two, you will move from 50% of your novel to 75% completion.
Act Three: The Resolution
While the main goal may be reached, your readers still need some resolution or clarity to help them make sense of everything they just read. Your readers want to be satisfied and just ending the story when the goal is reached doesn't mean that your readers will be happy about it. This is sometimes called the falling or descending action because instead of working up toward the goal and getting exciting, things are relaxing and moving past the goal.
Plus, you need something to move your character out of the crisis and get your story from 75% complete to 100% complete. Did Star Wars end when Luke found out Vader was his father? Did Hunger Games end when Katniss and Peeta found out there couldn't be two victors? No, so neither can your story.
Amber's dilemma is a special case because she needs someone else to pull her out of her depression. Say her guy friend comes over and takes care of her for a while. He decides to look up the dad on his own. When he reads through the obituary, he finds out that Amber's dad is survived by two other kids and a wife. He reaches out to them, and they agree to meet. Under the false pretense of a trip to help cheer Amber up, the guy friend takes Amber to meet the wife and kids. They tell her stories about her dad, and she feels like she gets to know him through them.
Three-Act Structure Pros & Cons:
Pros:
Highly flexible - nothing is set in stone/most things can be mixed around a bit or omitted
Used in all things - can be used for every form of writing from short stories to feature films
Helps visualization - you can see and track how your story is supposed to progress
Cons
Dull middle - with many obstacles back-to-back the middle of your story may lack excitement
Inhibits spontaneity - if you follow this structure, you likely have your entire story planned
Roboticism - if you hyperfocus on this structure, your story may seem robotic or inorganic
What is the Seven-Point Structure?
Created in 2013 by sci-fi author Dan Wells, the seven-point structure has been gaining traction ever since. If you've never heard of it, don't worry. I hadn't heard about it until @tips.for.writers posted about a seven-act structure on Instagram.
Instead of breaking your story into acts, this structure prefers to focus on the seven big points that have to occur in every story. You still have a beginning, middle, and end just like the three-act structure, but they are called the hook, midpoint, and resolution. As you can see, midpoint and resolution appear in both, so those are very important aspects of your story. Check out the graphic below and the following paragraphs to learn more about the seven-point structure.
Alternatively to the three-act structure, the seven-point structure asks its users to start at the end with the resolution. To be successful in using the seven-point structure, you need to know where your story is going. The resolution can be as simple as your main character (MC) reaching their initial goal. Once you have a resolution, you can move on to your hook.
The hook needs to be a compelling introduction to the world you are laying out for your reader. They should be intrigued by the story and want to keep going once they read the hook. Introduce them to a unique and fantastical world or bring in a fun character that they want to know more about.
As you continue in this process, the third planning point should be your midpoint. The midpoint is something special in the seven-point structure. Since it is directly in the middle of your novel, it divides your main character's journey. In the first half (hook to midpoint) your character is reacting. The second half (midpoint to resolution) is where your character is changing. Typically their goal changes or they have to take a new direction to solve their goal at the midpoint, which creates this change.
Your fourth step in the seven-point process is creating your plot points. With plot point one, you want to create a catalyst or inciting incident to set your character on their journey. It disrupts the standard world that you just introduced to your reader. As for plot point two, you typically have your main character solve the main goal. This is the climax of your story. This is where you have the final showdown and push for the resolution.
The last step is to add in your two pinch points or conflicts/obstacles. In pinch point one, your character has just decided to go on this journey and things are probably going alright for them. How can you make it more interesting? Your character needs to fail. How often do you solve a problem the first time you go to fix something? Typically, very rarely. With plot point two, you want your character to have a crisis. They just changed course and are moving toward the goal. This is your "all is lost" moment for your character. Until plot point two comes along, they don't feel like they can keep going.
Seven-Point Structure Pros & Cons
Pros:
Very simple - it only has seven things to remember and all seem straightforward
Allows creativity - since it isn't as rigid as the three-act structure, you can use spontaneity
Easy character arc - with this method you can see your story and character progress
Cons:
More than a Hook - hook can be misleading since it's more exposition and world-building
Too bare bones - you may not feel that your story has enough meat when using this method
One more point - climax and falling action are in resolution, so your story may not feel resolved
Which Should You Use?
Either or neither. While planning and knowing how to structure your story are important (there are points that need to be hit in every story), you will only write best with the tools that work for you. Have you always used the three-act structure and had success with the way you use it? Keep using it. Never planned before but don't need all the stuff in the three-act structure? Try the seven-point structure. Are you a pantser (not sure, check here), don't use either of them but be aware of the plot points.
At the end of the day, every writer has their own way of plotting. I just make bullet points of the information I have when I start the story. That's it. I can add or subtract along the way if need be. Do what feels right to you.
Until next time,
Ally Mac
Comments