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Your Plot: Act by Act
While every plot is different, there are certain beats that your readers will expect if you are to draw them into the flow. This seven page booklet outlines touch points of each of your acts plus the denouement.
8 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 22, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 14, 2021
This is a very short book at about 1500 words, which takes a look at the standard three-act story structure, splits each act into beginning, middle, and end, and then suggests the kind of things which should happen in each of these nine sections.
As well as a reader, I also try to write. To help with that (and not at all as a way of putting off the, you know, actual writing) I have been collecting a lot of books about writing. I have read a few of them, but not recently, so i decided it was time to delve into the archive and pluck one or two out to see if they helped. With this one, the answer, on balance, is yes. The book is very short, and correspondingly it gives a very brief overview of its topic - picking apart some of the assumptions and stereotypes about heroes and villains.
This book is part of a large series of books loosely gathered around the idea of “Dramatica” which seems to be a combination of theory and writing school. The Dramatica team have published a large number of these short books on a variety of topics, and I am working my way through as many as I can get hold of.
The basic premise of this book is simple. To plan a story you need to understand what will happen, and that means you have to think of a structure. This applies regardless of whether your story is an action packed adventure or a gentle exploration of human relationships. To be interesting to a reader, a story needs to rise and fall. Things need to move from being easy to being hard, goals need to change, and we need to be with the protagonist for successes and for failures.
The particular approach that Phillips takes in this book is based on the “three-act” model. However, unlike some other three-act books it does not claim that there is one true way of structuring and pacing the events in a story. By breaking each of the acts into three sections, this model allows for some flexibility in placement of significant points, allowing for a more organic feel to a story.
Unfortunately, the brevity of the book means that this is just about as far as it gets. There is a very light dusting of illustrating examples, but it can still sometimes be hard to work out how to apply what is being suggested. A book two or even three times this length could have still been almost as quick to read, but could have left room for some more detailed illustrations and exploration of the possibilities.
As usual with these books, although it is interesting, I can’t help wondering if it might have been better as something like a blog post or a book chapter rather than a book in its own right. Even at just 0.99 for the ebook it still feels expensive for the amount of words.
As well as a reader, I also try to write. To help with that (and not at all as a way of putting off the, you know, actual writing) I have been collecting a lot of books about writing. I have read a few of them, but not recently, so i decided it was time to delve into the archive and pluck one or two out to see if they helped. With this one, the answer, on balance, is yes. The book is very short, and correspondingly it gives a very brief overview of its topic - picking apart some of the assumptions and stereotypes about heroes and villains.
This book is part of a large series of books loosely gathered around the idea of “Dramatica” which seems to be a combination of theory and writing school. The Dramatica team have published a large number of these short books on a variety of topics, and I am working my way through as many as I can get hold of.
The basic premise of this book is simple. To plan a story you need to understand what will happen, and that means you have to think of a structure. This applies regardless of whether your story is an action packed adventure or a gentle exploration of human relationships. To be interesting to a reader, a story needs to rise and fall. Things need to move from being easy to being hard, goals need to change, and we need to be with the protagonist for successes and for failures.
The particular approach that Phillips takes in this book is based on the “three-act” model. However, unlike some other three-act books it does not claim that there is one true way of structuring and pacing the events in a story. By breaking each of the acts into three sections, this model allows for some flexibility in placement of significant points, allowing for a more organic feel to a story.
Unfortunately, the brevity of the book means that this is just about as far as it gets. There is a very light dusting of illustrating examples, but it can still sometimes be hard to work out how to apply what is being suggested. A book two or even three times this length could have still been almost as quick to read, but could have left room for some more detailed illustrations and exploration of the possibilities.
As usual with these books, although it is interesting, I can’t help wondering if it might have been better as something like a blog post or a book chapter rather than a book in its own right. Even at just 0.99 for the ebook it still feels expensive for the amount of words.
September 13, 2021
My Growing Boredom: Page By Page
Insubstantial, un-original, Many positive things can be said about this book. Such as, how useful it’s been as a sleeping aid, or as a reminder of why not all written or typed material should be made public.
The “book” goes over some highly general guidelines as to what makes up an act and how that content should be ordered depending on where that content might lay. That’s about as insightful as a pile of rocks randomly sorted by size. It’s a waste of your time, don’t bother.
Insubstantial, un-original, Many positive things can be said about this book. Such as, how useful it’s been as a sleeping aid, or as a reminder of why not all written or typed material should be made public.
The “book” goes over some highly general guidelines as to what makes up an act and how that content should be ordered depending on where that content might lay. That’s about as insightful as a pile of rocks randomly sorted by size. It’s a waste of your time, don’t bother.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews