Don’t you love uncovering a secret? Unlocking the truth, and seeing the light? So does your reader! And that’s the final key to a powerful Act 2. A powerful ACT 2 includes the growing relationship between the Hero and Heroine, the Unexpected Twists and Turns, dropping of Truth Tidbits and finally the uncovering Secrets. The secrets of the suspense plot are uncovered through the Act 2 scenes. You want each decision, each action to reveal more of the plot and cause the villain or element to up the stakes, to make it harder, to increase the pressure, to add more tension. Here’s a trick: Often when I plot, I start with the Antagonist, and his goals. I ask: What does the villain want? What choices does he have? […]
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Act 2: The Road to Truth
Last week, we covered the first two main elements of the GUTS section. The GUTS, or Act 2 of the book is the section where more stories get flabby and boring…or, it can be the part where the story really takes and starts rockin’. We touched on the first two elements – 1. The Growing relationship of the hero and heroine. 2. The Unexpected twists and turns. Both of these elements, however, are tools of the next element… 3. The Truth. Or, the Spiritual, Romantic & Plot truths that lead to the eventual epiphany. In Act 2, as the hero and heroine progress through challenges, triumphs and failure, they will learn tiny life lessons, or truths that contribute to the epiphany they will encounter after the black […]
Read the RestAct 2: Adding in Unexpected Twists, Turns and Tests
Last week, we talked about the GUTS, or Act 2 of your novel, the first element being the Growing romance of the hero and heroine. However, this romance only happens through the next element: U- Unexpected Twists, Turns and Tests: During the GUTS portion of the story, the hero and heroine’s mettle will be tested – especially as it relates to their competence, that thing they do well. The point of the middle to cause them to grow as human beings through lessons, revelations, challenges and epiphanies. However, the middle is often where the tension sags – and that’s usually because we run out of the unexpected, and our motivation to keep going sags. The key to a powerful middle is using the peripheral plotting, and stakes […]
Read the RestAct 2: Getting to the Good Stuff
Getting to the good stuff: Act 2 Writing a suspense is all about the adventure, romance, suspense and disasters that happen in the middle of the novel. A great suspense should pick up speed as the hero/heroine launches into the second act. All the great stuff happens during the Guts phase – confronting fears, reaching out in the darkness for the girl’s hand, stealing a kiss, failing big, learning something new about yourself and summoning your courage. The overall concept is Make it Worse. At the start of every chapter, the character will have choices. He’ll contemplate these choices, weigh them against possible outcomes, consider his motivations and then move forward into the danger, during which something bad will happen he didn’t expect, and will cause him […]
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