Let’s Talk Books! – Story Structures (Based on Save the Cat)

Stories are multifaceted pieces of art. They not only have a beginning, middle, and end, but they have beats and elements within the story that are designed to keep the reader invested throughout the book. Act one is there to prepare the reader, to set the stage, so to speak. Act two is where all the fun happens. Act three is where it all gets resolved. Not every book only has three acts, but three is a great number, and three acts is a common format.

There are many ways one can approach the construction of a story structure, but my personal favorite is found in a book called Save the Cat! Writes a Novel, by Jessica Brody. In this book, there is what is called a beat sheet. A list of fifteen beats that must be hit in a story to keep the reader engaged and give the “heroes” of the story all they need to reach the end. In this book, Brody explains the fifteen “beats” she uses to write a great story (this process was originally developed for screenwriters). She points out a collection of books that used these fifteen beats before she wrote her book, showing this is a common layout. But what are these fifteen beats, and what is their role in the story? Let’s dive into this process and take a look.

Act One

From beginning to end, according to Brody, a book should cover fifteen beats, each taking place at a certain point in the story. In act one, there are five beats: opening image, theme stated, setup, catalyst, and debate (page 29). With these five beats, the writer sets up the reader to understand where the character starts, what problem they need to solve, how their world works, the catalyst that thrusts them into the rest of the story, and the process that character goes through to decide how they should respond to that catalyst. Let’s look a closer look at these five beats.

Opening Image and Theme Stated

The opening image is the first part of your story that tells people who your character is. Bordy calls this a “before” snapshot of your hero and their world” (page 24). This image shows your reader who this book is about and their state of mind before they go on whatever journey you have prepared for them in the pages of your novel.

The theme stated is a statement that points out what problem your main character will need to face and learn from. This is more of a personal problem rather than a physical struggle. The theme is usually tied very closely to the main character’s personal flaw. Brody says this statement “hints” at what your main character’s “life lesson” will be (page 24).

Setup

The setup of a novel is “where we learn what the hero’s life looks like before its epic transformation” (page 24). This differs from the opening image in two ways. One, it is more focused on the world around the character, the world the main character lives in, than it is on the main character. However, it contains some of the same elements as the opening image. The second way they differ is in scope. The setup encompasses a larger portion of the book than the opening image and includes other characters who may be important to the rest of the story or the main character’s arc.

Catalyst and Debate

The catalyst is the event that thrusts your main character into the rest of the book. Brody says this beat is what changes it all and should be big enough to leave the character with no choice but to change (page 25). This can be a death, a job change, or a natural disaster. There are all kinds of catalysis, but the important part is that it has a profound impact on the main character.

The debate is what happens when the character comes face to face with this catalyst. It is in this beat where the main character decides what they will do. Brody says this is a “reaction sequence” and is “usually presented in the form of a question” (page 25). The main character may ask what they will do about the change, having an internal, or sometimes external, conversation where they make this critical decision.

Act Two

Next, we get into act two, where the story picks up, and your main character goes through all the hoops and over the obstacles as deep and personal change takes place. This part of the story is where things get exciting. Act two includes the largest portion of the story, taking up about sixty percent of the story and including seven of the fifteen beats.

Break into 2, B Story, and Fun and Games

“Break into 2” is the beat where the main character begins their journey. Brody says this is where they “accept the call to action, leave their comfort zone, try something new, or venture into a new world or a new way of thinking” (page 25). This is where it all begins to change.

The “B story” is where everything else comes into play. Other characters are added, specifically one who will help the main character achieve their goal. Brody says this can be “a love interest, a nemesis, a mentor, a family member, or a friend” who helps the main character learn their lesson (page 25).

Then comes the fun part. This beat is so fun to write that Brody refers to it as “Fun and Games” (page 25). Fun and games is a large chunk of the book where the main character is going through it all, either in a good way or a bad way. In some stories, the character fails miserably; in others, they seem to be getting it all right. Still, in other stories, maybe they are going on a more up-and-down path to the next beat.

Midpoint

The midpoint is where it all changes once again. This is where, as Brody says in her book, “Fun and Games culminates in either a false victory…or a false defeat” (page 25). In other words, everything the character has gone through during fun and games either turns out to be a success or a failure, but they don’t know it yet. They find out at the midpoint. This midpoint throws the main character on their head and raises the stakes.

Bad Guys Close In, All is Lost, and Dark Night of the Soul

Bad guys close in is where Bordy says the outcome of the midpoint begins to show itself. “If the Midpoint was a false victory, this section will be a downward path…If the Midpoint was a false defeat, this section will be an upward path…” (page 25). Whatever the outcome, this is also where the tension rises as the bad guys begin to get closer to their own goal.

Speaking of the bad guys, the next beat, all is lost, is where it seems they have won. The main character is in shambles; they have reached the end of their rope, they might even be on the verge of death, and there seems to be no way out. Brody says they have reached “rock bottom.” What will happen next? How will they respond?

Having experienced rock bottom in the previous beat, your main character must now respond in the dark night of the soul beat. Will they return to how they were before their journey, or will they improve? This is very similar to the debate beat as it includes your main characters’ internal and sometimes eternal battle to overcome and decide how they will respond. Brody says this beat is “the last moment before the real change occurs” (page 63).

Act Three

Finally, your main character arrives at act three with only three beats left in the story. This act is where it all comes to a close. Where the story is completed, and your character arrives at their new and improved self.

Break into 3

This act starts with what Brody calls “Break into 3,” where the character emerges from their dark night of the soul and sets foot in their new world. Brody says this is the main character’s “aha moment,” where the main character “realizes what they must do” to solve their problems and improve himself (page 26).

Finale and Final image

Now that your main character knows what to do to solve the problems they have been facing throughout the book, they set off on the final act of the story, the finale. That one final act that will bring their arc to a close for this book and resolve all the questions asked and battles fought. But not only has the main character solved their problem, their world has changed. Brody says this beat is where the main character’s world is a “better place than it was before” (page 26).

This leads to the final image. Much like the opening image, this final image leaves the reader with an impression of how the main character has changed. It shows their new world, the one their trials and tribulations have led them to. Bordy calls this a “mirror to the opening image” and an “‘after’ snapshot” of the hero after they have learned their lesson and grown into a new person (page 26).

Closing Thoughts

If you are about to write a novel, Save the Cat! Writes a Novel is a great resource. While I have only covered the main beats that Brody discusses in her book, there is so much more to learn about in the pages of Brody’s book, including deeper dives into what each beat entails, tips for how to write each beat, percentages that tell you where in your book each beat should be addressed, and more!

Resource: Save the Cat! Writes a Novel

Disclaimer: Please be aware that I am an Amazon associate and I earn from qualifying purchases through links.

Writing Fun – Picking a Color Scheme for My Next Book

I am plotting a new book right now that will be the start of a new series, and I need to decide on a color scheme. Choosing a color scheme is part of my plotting process. I start with an outline, then once I find out what the story is about, I build a profile, sometimes on paper, sometimes not. Part of this profile for the book is the main color scheme of the overall book. As I learn how I like to plot, I have been learning that I often end up with a color scheme for each of the main characters. But for now, all I need is the main color scheme for the whole book (In the past, I have used this to help my cover artist design the cover of each book).

Currently, I have whittled it down to three options: white, grey, and black. White, green, brown, and gold. White, silver, and royal blue. I have always imagined this first book in the series to be primarily white and black. The accent colors have flipped back and forth between blues and golds, blues and silvers, and green and golds. So far, as the story develops, I have felt like it is a white, green, and gold book. Though, if I'm honest, I keep wanting to use blue and silver.

I am curious to see what colors others like to see on fantasy book covers. Which color schemes do you like? Leave a comment and let me know!

Let’s Talk Books! – How Books Are Printed

According to Statista.com, over 700 million print books are sold per year. We print book lovers are still going strong! But how are these portals to other worlds made? The process of printing books has been around for a long time. Books were once handwritten, painted, and bound (for example, the book of Kells and medieval prayer books called “Books of Hours”). Books weren’t widely “printed” until the 1400s (reference 2). Since then, the process of printing books has improved even more. Now, mass-produced books can be printed much faster, making it easy to produce thousands of books a day. This also makes it possible to do what is called MOD printing. MOD stands for “Make On Demand” and means that the book is not made until a customer puts in an order for one. But how is this possible? There are many printers around the world that offer this printing strategy, one of which is Amazon. But I wanted to find out exactly how books like my print proof are printed. So, I searched YouTube and found a great video of how this is done. Let’s take a look at how MOD books are made at Amazon printing sites.

Note: All the information on how Amazon prints its books can be found on YouTube! If you want to watch the video I found that explains all of this, click the third link in my resources list!

InkJet Printing

Amazon uses two types of printing, “Inkjet Printing” and cut sheet printing. In Inkjet printing, the text is printed onto one continuous sheet of paper that is fed into a printer. The massive printer prints text onto the paper, then folds it, following these steps:

Step 1: The paper is fed into a printer that prints the text and images onto the paper.

Step 2: Next, that paper is fed into the folding machine. This machine folds the paper so the pages are in order and ready to be bound. This is done for multiple books in one stack, identified by barcodes.

Step 3: Once the paper is folded, the machine identifies each barcode, separating the books from the pile. Then, each barcode is scanned and sent to the next step in the process.

Cut Sheet Printing

The second kind of printing that Amazon uses is called “Cut Sheet Printing.” This type of printing uses individual sheets that form two pages of a book. The text is printed onto each sheet in the order they will appear in the book, following these steps:

Step 1: The book text and images are printed onto individual sheets and stacked, ready to be folded.

Step 2: The sheets of paper are cut (into two pages) and stacked rather than folded.

Cover Creation

Next, the covers are created. Once again, there is a machine for that! With cover files submitted to Amazon, the covers are printed using a color-printing machine that follows these steps:

Step 1: The covers are printed and identified by what lamination they will have, matte or glossy.

Step 2: The covers are put through a lamination machine that applies the glossy or matte finish. These are inspected by an operator who ensures there are no defects before moving them on to the next stage.

Step 3: These laminated covers are then matched with their book interiors and sent off to the binding department.

Book Binding

Bookbinding was once done by hand. Monks and bookmakers used animal skins, which they painted, then sewed, and sometimes glued to book interiors. Though the art of hand-binding books is not dead, now, Amazon uses binding machines that do most of the work. How? Their large machines apparently follow this simple process:

Step 1: The covers are interested in the machine.

Step 2: Each book interior is scanned and then inserted into the machine.

Step 3: The machine glues the binding to the outside of the book.

Trimming

With the book interior now printed, cut, stacked (or folded), and bound, it awaits one more step in construction. Next, the books are trimmed down to the correct dimensions. The extra paper called “bleed” needs to be trimmed off to ensure the book is the correct size based on the measurements the publisher requested. The trimming machine works quite fast, following these two steps:

Step 1: The books are sent from the binding machine, now with their covers on them, to the trimmer machines, where they are scanned and inserted into the machine.

Step 2: The trimmer machines (which can cut up to 2,000 books an hour) trim off the extra paper and spit out the trimmed and finished product.

Inspection

Once the book is finished being built, it is inspected by a person to ensure it is of good quality. Though this inspection at Amazon is only about six to nine seconds per book, each book is looked over from every angle before being placed in a yellow tote and sent off to be prepped for shipping and delivery.

Closing Thoughts

Being able to print books using machines means that books of all lengths and sizes can be printed within a day. Even with the use of the Gutenberg printing press, only very small books could be printed in short periods of time. Today, printed masterpieces are not quite as ornate as hand-built, written, and painted books, but they can get to people much faster. While I hope that the art of hand-built and painted books never goes extinct, I am very pleased that technology allows us to print books as quickly as we can today.

Are you happy book printing goes faster these days? Or would you prefer to see more hand-crafted books? Please leave a comment and let me know!

Resources:

Resource 1: https://www.statista.com/topics/1177/book-market/#topicOverview

Resource 2: https://www.museumofthebible.org/book-minute/the-gutenberg-press-an-invention-that-changed-the-world

Resource 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KjPcw64Izg