The allure of good fiction is in the process of its creation. For the writer, writing fiction is a creative escapade involving ideation, character development, crafting dialogues, and world building among others. For the reader, good fiction is a captivating journey; engaging their senses, thoughts, emotions and imagination throughout the story. To write good fiction, you must craft a story that becomes a journey for the reader, and to do this, your story will need structure. Without structure, your story will eventually become a chaotic sequence of events, and your reader will be unable to make it past the first half!
Think of it this way: Would your favorite book still be your favorite if you struggled to follow or understand the progression of events in the story? Probably not. That is exactly what happens when you write a story without structure.
SO WHY DO YOU NEED A STORY STRUCTURE?
Firstly, a story structure is the underlying framework of your narrative. It is the way a story is organized; comprising the sequence of events, characters, and plot elements in the story. You need good story structure for clarity, and clarity begets a story worth reading. For an immersive reader experience, there must be coherence and a logical flow of events in your writing, because nobody wants to read a story they cannot understand. Story structure not only helps the reader but also aids your writing. It keeps you from getting stuck in a part of your book with uncertainty on how to go forward. Having structure is a fantastic way to ensure that your story stays cohesive, while fulfilling its dramatic purposes.
IS STORY STRUCTURE THE SAME AS PLOT?
Frankly, there is a thin difference between the story structure and plot, and this is why some writers tend to mix up the two: Plot refers to the sequence of events (including the twists, turns, conflicts and resolution) that make up your story.
Think of it this way: structure is the skeletal framework that holds your story together, while plot comprises the cells, organs, and systems that makeup the full body of your story. Your structure is the frame of your story, while the plot is the content.
In his book “Plot and Structure’’, James Scott defines the two concepts as follows: “Plot is about elements, those things that go into the mix of making a good story even better. Structure is about timing — where in the mix those elements go.”
Story structure answers basic questions such as:
• What event starts the story?
• What situation disrupts the status quo?
• What are the central conflicts in the story?
• What is the most intense or pivotal moment in the story?
• Where do I leave red herrings? Twists?
• Where do I hint at elements I can build on later?
• How are the loose ends addressed?
• How are the conflicts resolved?
On the other hand, the plot of a story is more concerned with questions such as:
• How do characters react to conflict in the story?
• How do the characters’ actions drive the story forward?
• What motivates the character to take certain actions?
Structure defines and segments the distinct parts of your story; plot contains the intricacies of these parts.
HOW DO YOU USE STRUCTURE?
You can learn to use structure the practical way and the best way: by learning from splendid examples FIRST, and then practice structuring on your own.
Do you have a favorite novel? Try reading it again. If you don’t have one, you can also confirm with any work of fiction at your disposal. You’ll find that most fiction follows an inherent structure even when the writer is a pantser. All stories have at least a version of the following parts:
• An Introduction
• A conflict
• A resolution
There are varieties of story structures you could use to enliven your book:
• The Three-Act Structure
• The Hero’s Journey
• In Media Res
• The 7 Point Story structure
• Freytag’s Pyramid
• The Fichtean curve
• Save the cat.
For emphasis, we will spotlight one of the most common story structures there is: The Three-Act Structure.
WHAT IS THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE?
The three-act structure assumes that a story can be divided into three parts: the Play, the Climax, and the Counter-play. The three-act structure divides the narrative into three distinct acts:
ACT I: The setup
ACT II: The Confrontation
Act III: The Resolution
Let’s delve into it.
ACT I: The setup (Exposition, inciting incident, Plot point one)
1. Exposition: This is where your story’s world and your main character is introduced. Your readers get insight into the protagonist’s status quo and the setting of the story.
Let’s illustrate with a storyline:
George Hanks lives with his family in a small town called ‘Mai’. He works with his father in a furniture shop, from which they earn barely enough to meet their basic needs as a family. With a sick mother whose treatment takes up a great deal of their family’s income, George’s family is far from comfortable.
Here, we set the stage for the rest of the story by revealing details of George’s life. The exposition immediately sets the theme for the rest of the story: it implies the direction of the protagonist based upon a certain stake, notion or need.
2. Inciting Incident: This is a part of the narrative that disrupts the status quo and causes the main character to act. Leading from the exposition, it could be in light of new developments or new information.
Back to our story now:
In the heat of an argument with his father, George learns a shocking truth. Before moving to Mai owing to penury, his father once co-owned a large and thriving furniture company with a friend. Unfortunately, this friend duped his father and made away with the company and all the returns from his father’s hard work and investment.
In this case the inciting incident is what George learns about his father.
3. Plot point one: This is a crucial point in the story. Here, the main character makes a decision or takes an action that drives the narrative forward:
Tired of his family’s squalid living, George gathers information on the whereabouts of his father’s ex business partner, determined to recover all that rightfully belonged to him and his family. George sets out on a journey to the big city of ‘Ou’ to find this swindler and retrieve his family’s possession.
ACT II: The Confrontation (Rising action, midpoint, plot point two).
1. Rising Action: Here, the main character must face challenges or obstacles that stops them from getting what they want. They are thrown into a race towards their goal, in which they must overcome each trial to evolve in personality and mindset. They begin to take a different shape as each hurdle teaches them something or makes them unlearn something:
George gets robbed on his first night in Ou. He is left with just a change of clothes and nothing to help him achieve his goal. Luckily, he meets the elegant Miss Silvia, who helps him with accommodation in her father’s motel, and helps with his basic needs. As the story progresses, sparks fly between George and Silvia. They both begin to work as a team; George highly motivated to win back his inheritance, and Silvia highly motivated by love. Silvia introduces him as an industrious young man to her father and goes on to bankroll George’s endeavors whilst clinging to the mirage of marriage.
2. Midpoint: Here the main character takes a stance or action in the story towards the attainment of his goals. They are at a crossroads between compromising themselves in their bid to achieve their objective, or sacrificing more to win their goal. The midpoint is like another inciting incident in the story that drives the narrative forward. This is what the midpoint in our current story looks like:
George manipulates Silvia with promises of a forever together, blinded by his own passion to win justice for his family. He finally finds his father’s ex business partner, a Mr. Jordan Bough; He has been through four marriages and now lives alone in an old mansion on a secluded piece of land.
3. Plot point two: This is a low point where the main character faces a setback or disappointment in the story. This crisis could also lead to another turning point revelation in the story.
Using Silvia’s support, George launches a legal attack on Jordan but does not win the case as it is revealed that Jordan swindled George’s Father into signing a fake contract of agreement many years ago. George’s Father was listed as an employee and never a partner owning any share at the company.
ACT III: The Resolution (Pre-climax, Climax, Denouement)
1. Pre-climax: This occurs just before the climax. Here the tension in the story heightens as the characters try to find their way out of their current situation.
Left with no recourse, George realizes he has lost, and there is no way to regain what his father is owed. He turns to Silvia, who he realizes he can swindle as well.
2. Climax: This is where the tension and conflict in your story reaches its most crucial stage. The climax is an intense stage where all of the action and tension in the story heightens. The climax in our story occurs at this point:
Faced with defeat, George begins to unravel, and turns on Silvia. Having groomed her to utter dependency on himself, he pulls the same trick on her, manipulating her into relinquishing some of her assets to him on the promise of marriage. He liquidates these properties and prepares to steal away from her, back to Mai. Silvia discovers George’s plot to take from her and abandon her. She confronts him and a fight ensues, with an accident that kills her.
3. Denouement: This is the story’s final and most intense part. Here, mysteries are unravelled, questions are answered and loose ends are tied up. It brings a closure to the story which may be a happy or not so happy one. Your story’s resolution could look a little like this:
Upon Silvia’s death, George attempts to flee Ou, with his ill-gotten wealth. However, Silvia’s father and his men soon catch up with him. Silvia’s father discloses that his daughter had only good intentions for George; she convinced him to make George a part of their family’s business. She had also planned to share a part of her inheritance, with George as a wedding gift to him. She was also willing to extend financial assistance to his family. All of which George traded on the altar of greed. George gets a death sentence for his crimes. A few weeks later, Silvia’s father sends money to George’s family, enough to foot the bills of his mother’s treatment and to help their furniture business. This is in honour of Silvia’s wish before her death.
And there you have an overview of what the three-act structure looks like. You may not always use the three act structure for your book. But you will need structure if you want to leave your readers with a riveting experience and keep them connected to your story.
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