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Writing Notes: 7-Point Plot Structure

by Dan Wells

STORY ORDER

I. Hook - hero in opposite state to their end state

Writing Notes: Hooking your Readers ⚜ The Beginning of your Story

II. Plot Turn 1

Introduce the conflict

The hero’s world changes; call to adventure

New ideas

New people

New secrets

III. Pinch 1

Apply pressure: (a) Something goes wrong (b) Bad guys attack (c) Peace is destroyed

Forces the hero into action

Introduce villain

IV. Midpoint

Movement from one state to the other

Shift from reaction to action

V. Pinch 2

Apply more pressure until situation seems hopeless: (a) A plan fails (b) A mentor dies (c) The bad guy seems to win

The jaws of defeat

VI. Plot Turn 2

Move the story from midpoint to end

Hero obtains final piece to move from midpoint to resolution

“The power is in you!”

Hero snatches victory from the jaws of defeat

VII. Resolution

Hero follows through on their decision from the midpoint

Hero becomes the opposite of their Hook state

Writing Notes: Types of Endings ⚜ Writing the Last Lines of Your Story

PLOTTING ORDER

Resolution

Hook

Midpoint

Plot Turn 1

Plot Turn 2

Pinch 1

Pinch 2

FLESH OUT THE SKELETON

Rounded characters (Sample Worksheet)

Rich environments (References on Worldbuilding)

An “ice monster” prologue (see below)

Try-fail cycles (see below)

Subplots

"Ice Monster" Prologue

Sets the stakes for the story and promises the sort of action the audience can expect to come later.

Dan Wells named it after the prologue of A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin.

Incorporating this addition to the 7-point method is an excellent opportunity to begin your story by using a technique known as in media res, in which a narrative starts "in the middle of the action."

Try-Fail Cycle

Adds a series of crises for your protagonist to contend with—they aren't meant to achieve all of their goals with ease, after all.

Here, your hero must strive to overcome a series of obstacles and setbacks before making progress toward the Resolution.

The most effective approach to this would be to add these challenges after Pinch 1 to show an escalation toward the midpoint, and after the midpoint to serve as tests leading to the final crisis.

Sources: 1 2 ⚜ Plot ⚜ Character ⚜ Notes & References

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WIP

All Pandora knew was that kissing Lily was like kissing fire.

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WHAT WE REALLY NEED IS A...

FEMININOMENON !!!

HEY! HI! things are rough out here right now, and i think in times of unrest like this, when we're not quite sure what the next day will hold or where our place in the wider world is, community is more important than ever. and i think we're all in agreement when i say fandom can be such a lovely resting spot from all of it so, hey. hi. you have a place here!

this fest is dedicated to female and genderqueer stories, art and edits, aiming to represent those who are feeling unsteady right now, and give us all a bit of space to breathe, be seen, and simply Be.

THE BASICS:

Signups are open here from today (November 11th) until December 13th.

Fanfictions, edits, and fanart are all accepted as submissions

Two servers: 18+ and 16-17 will be placed in separate servers (nothing else is different! just keeping it as safe and comfy as possible <3)

Fics: told from pov of female/gq character(s)

Any era/pairings/au allowed (or no pairings! you pretty much have free reign!)

No minimum of maximum WC for fics: oneshots or first chapter of a multi-chapter fic.

You can do as many submission across as many of the three categories as you want.

EXEMPTIONS: non-con and family pairings are excluded from this fest.

DEADLINE: working deadline of March 1st for submissions - flexible! (taking into account holidays, Jan 20th and all the emotions surrounding that <3)

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE !!!