Plot: The Seven-Point Plot Structure
I had originally thought to include all or at least several plot structures in one post, but I think it might be less confusing if I did just one at a time. It also allows us to get a more thorough look at one particular plot structure.
This week: The Seven-Point Plot Structure
This is a plotting technique that is often used in screenwriting, but can also be adapted for novels. It is basically an analysis of how stories work. Below, I'll run through a quick plot using Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as an example. Spoiler alerts! :)
1) Hook - The story opener; what pulls the reader into the lives of your character. HPSS example: Harry is a poor, mistreated orphan who lives under the stairs.
2) Plot Turn I - Also known in the Hero's Journey archetype as the "Call to Adventure." This is the thing that gets the character out of his or her routine. HPSS example: Hagrid tells Harry that he's a wizard and that he gets to go to Hogwarts to learn magic
3) Pinch I - The "pinch" puts pressure on the characters. It forces them to do something; to take action. This may also set your hero up for a greater victory at the climax of the story. HPSS: Harry, Ron, and Hermione fight a troll in the bathroom. This small victory sets up Harry and his friends for fighting through the maze to get the Voldemort at the end of the book
4) Midpoint - When your character must move from reaction to action. When they've had enough of running away and want to stand and fight. This doesn't necessarily have to happen in the middle of the story; it's location is flexible depending on your particular plot. HPSS example: In the Forbidden Forest, Harry comes across Quirrellmort drinking the unicorn's blood and that experience is a key moment for him: he realizes that this is a terrible monster that not only killed his parents but is killing innocent creatures and something needs to be done about it. Harry and his friends are bent more than ever on solving the mystery.
5) Pinch II - This is a harder pinch than the first; this point really turns up the heat. This sometimes comes with the death or loss of a mentor or friend, making the hero have to stand on their own and solve the problem with their own wits. HPSS example: Dumbledore is lured away from Hogwarts by a false call to the Ministry when Harry and his friends think that Snape will be going after the Stone to give to Voldemort. But there's also a second component in HP: during the actual solving of the maze's problems, both Ron and Hermione get taken away and Harry has to face Voldemort alone.
6) Plot Turn II - The hero gets the last piece of information needed to save the day; the puzzle is solved, the weak point is revealed, etc. HPSS example: Harry discovers how to get the Stone away from the Mirror.
7) Resolution - Now that the key information is obtained, the plot can wrap up. HPSS example: Harry survives his fight with Quirrellmort and grows as a character.
Now that I've been researching this, the plot of Mass Effect 1 also fits neatly into this plot structure, perhaps not surprising but interesting all the same.
The important thing to remember is that these seven points are not the only things that happen in your story. If you've read HPSS, you can tell that I left a lot of things out. These points can serve as lighthouses as you're writing; something to write toward, to help you get from Hook to Resolution (which, by the way, should be opposites of each other). The Pinch/Plot cycles ensure your character doesn't succeed too quickly; they have to work for their victory to make it emotionally satisfying for a reader.
What's also cool about this structure is you can have another 7-points layered beneath the main story for subplots.
Resources:
+ Writing Excuses discusses the 7-point Plot Structure - a quick 19 minute run down of this structure in podcast form, discussed by an author who actually uses it. Note: I used the same examples he did, so if you hear some same stuff, this podcast is where I got it.
+ The 7-point Story Structure, video 1 of 5. Dan Wells from the podcast above explains this more in depth. He also explains how this is useful for not only outline writers, but discovery writers as well. This video also explains how this plot structure can be used not just for fantasy but romance, tragedy, horror as well.
This week: The Seven-Point Plot Structure
This is a plotting technique that is often used in screenwriting, but can also be adapted for novels. It is basically an analysis of how stories work. Below, I'll run through a quick plot using Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as an example. Spoiler alerts! :)
1) Hook - The story opener; what pulls the reader into the lives of your character. HPSS example: Harry is a poor, mistreated orphan who lives under the stairs.
2) Plot Turn I - Also known in the Hero's Journey archetype as the "Call to Adventure." This is the thing that gets the character out of his or her routine. HPSS example: Hagrid tells Harry that he's a wizard and that he gets to go to Hogwarts to learn magic
3) Pinch I - The "pinch" puts pressure on the characters. It forces them to do something; to take action. This may also set your hero up for a greater victory at the climax of the story. HPSS: Harry, Ron, and Hermione fight a troll in the bathroom. This small victory sets up Harry and his friends for fighting through the maze to get the Voldemort at the end of the book
4) Midpoint - When your character must move from reaction to action. When they've had enough of running away and want to stand and fight. This doesn't necessarily have to happen in the middle of the story; it's location is flexible depending on your particular plot. HPSS example: In the Forbidden Forest, Harry comes across Quirrellmort drinking the unicorn's blood and that experience is a key moment for him: he realizes that this is a terrible monster that not only killed his parents but is killing innocent creatures and something needs to be done about it. Harry and his friends are bent more than ever on solving the mystery.
5) Pinch II - This is a harder pinch than the first; this point really turns up the heat. This sometimes comes with the death or loss of a mentor or friend, making the hero have to stand on their own and solve the problem with their own wits. HPSS example: Dumbledore is lured away from Hogwarts by a false call to the Ministry when Harry and his friends think that Snape will be going after the Stone to give to Voldemort. But there's also a second component in HP: during the actual solving of the maze's problems, both Ron and Hermione get taken away and Harry has to face Voldemort alone.
6) Plot Turn II - The hero gets the last piece of information needed to save the day; the puzzle is solved, the weak point is revealed, etc. HPSS example: Harry discovers how to get the Stone away from the Mirror.
7) Resolution - Now that the key information is obtained, the plot can wrap up. HPSS example: Harry survives his fight with Quirrellmort and grows as a character.
Now that I've been researching this, the plot of Mass Effect 1 also fits neatly into this plot structure, perhaps not surprising but interesting all the same.
The important thing to remember is that these seven points are not the only things that happen in your story. If you've read HPSS, you can tell that I left a lot of things out. These points can serve as lighthouses as you're writing; something to write toward, to help you get from Hook to Resolution (which, by the way, should be opposites of each other). The Pinch/Plot cycles ensure your character doesn't succeed too quickly; they have to work for their victory to make it emotionally satisfying for a reader.
What's also cool about this structure is you can have another 7-points layered beneath the main story for subplots.
Resources:
+ Writing Excuses discusses the 7-point Plot Structure - a quick 19 minute run down of this structure in podcast form, discussed by an author who actually uses it. Note: I used the same examples he did, so if you hear some same stuff, this podcast is where I got it.
+ The 7-point Story Structure, video 1 of 5. Dan Wells from the podcast above explains this more in depth. He also explains how this is useful for not only outline writers, but discovery writers as well. This video also explains how this plot structure can be used not just for fantasy but romance, tragedy, horror as well.