Story Structure: Your Guide to Writing Plot Arcs that Hook Readers

Story structure is the backbone of any compelling work of fiction. Without a solid framework to build on, even the most imaginative ideas can fall flat. 

As a writer, it’s essential to understand story elements like plot structure to make smart choices about your narrative arc.

In this guide, we’ll break down the key components of story structure in novels, look at famous examples, and provide tips to help you choose the right structural approach to strengthen your work. Master these techniques, and you’ll keep readers hooked from the first page to the last.

What is Plot? 

Plot refers to the sequence of events that make up your narrative. It can also be referred to as your story structure or story arc, and it covers what happens in your story and the order it happens in. 

Before going further, you might want to review the basic building blocks of any strong plot:

• Character: The protagonists and antagonists driving the story forward.
• Conflict: The central problem causing dramatic tension.
• Causality: The relationship between cause and effect in the story events.
• Pacing: The speed at which events unfold.
• Theme: The underlying messages, morals, or ideals being conveyed through the story.

Thinking carefully about these story elements in relation to your plot helps ensure an engaging reading experience for your readers.

Defining the Parts of a Plot 

When it comes to story structure, every fiction genre follows different conventions. But behind the scenes, most novels share a similar story arc.

This common underlying framework was outlined in the 19th century by dramatist Gustav Freytag as "Freytag's Pyramid." His model depicts five basic phases that make the narrative flow for dramatic storytelling:

1. Exposition
2. Rising Action
3. Climax
4. Falling Action
5. Resolution / Denouement

Let's examine each of these five parts of a plot in greater detail:

Exposition

This is the very beginning of your tale where you reveal essential background information to your readers. You introduce the protagonist and other major characters, establish the setting and time period, and foreshadow the central conflict.

The exposition should give readers just enough details to ground them in the story world without bogging them down. Too much background info can slow down the pace, so keep exposition, or introduction, concise. This balance is especially important for science fiction, fantasy, or historical fiction, where you need to be precise with your worldbuilding to paint a scene for your readers. 

J.R.R. Tolkien masters exposition in The Hobbit, which follows the classic arc of the “Hero’s Journey”. He introduces the peaceful and unadventurous life of Bilbo Baggins in the Shire, briefly detailing the history, hobbit’s habits, and Bilbo’s contentedness.

The exposition usually ends with an “inciting incident”. This is the event that disrupts the protagonist’s status quo, or calm world, and makes them embark on a new journey. An effective inciting incident intrigues readers, raises questions, presents a challenge, and establishes what's at stake if the protagonist fails.

Rising Action 

After the stage is set, the plot picks up momentum through a series of events that build dramatic tension. These intensifying actions get us from the exposition to the climax. 

You can introduce or develop more characters in the rising action. Secondary conflicts might arise, obstacles can be thrown in the protagonist's path, and stakes should continue to heighten. 

For example, in the dystopian novel, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, the rising action kicks off after the protagonist, Katniss, volunteers to take her sister’s place in the brutal games arena. The action intensifies as she prepares for the games, deepens her relationship with Peeta, and begins to fight in the arena, making alliances and surviving challenges along the way. 

This is usually the longest part of the novel. Everything that happens in this part of the story should propel your readers towards the peak, or climax.

Climax

This is the turning point or most pivotal moment in your plot and the story’s highest peak of interest. Your protagonist will face their biggest challenge, which may result in the resolution or lead to further complications.

The climax is your chance to surprise readers while exploring pivotal moments for characters, stakes, and themes. This section should be impactful and engaging.

In the story The Notebook, by Nicholas Sparks, the romance plot comes to a head when the protagonist, Allie, must choose between the true love of her youth, Noah, and her fiance, Lon. It’s an intense and emotional choice that affects the course of multiple lives and leans into themes of enduring love. 

The choice Allie makes, as it should for nearly every protagonist, will lead to the falling action and resolution.

Falling Action

The falling action begins to tie up any loose ends, resolve conflicts, release tension, and reveal secrets bound up in the climax. For some novels, this part of the story, along with the resolution, may be very brief. 

Falling action doesn’t necessarily lead to a happy ending. Some stories have negative outcomes where the falling action deals with the aftermath and painful consequences of the choice made in the climax. Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, is a good example of this.

Resolution

The resolution, the final section of a typical story structure, offers closure for both your readers and characters. It can give a glimpse of your character’s new world, and you should resolve the protagonist’s main conflict. That being said, some plot threads can remain unanswered—left up to the readers to ponder or for potential sequels to address.

Example and a plot spoiler: 

In Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, the resolution is memorable because it’s left for the reader to decipher from two unreliable narrators. We learn that Amy orchestrated her own disappearance and may be psychopathic, but her husband, Nick, stays with her for the sake of their unborn child. Unlike many thrillers or mysteries, there is no clear moral or justice served.

3 Classic Story Structure Examples

Understanding the parts of a plot helps you leverage or subvert them in your own writing. Now that we’ve covered the essentials of story structure, let’s look at some of the most common frameworks for novel’s today.

Three Act Structure

This straightforward template divides stories into three parts: 

• Act 1: Exposition culminates in an “inciting incident” that launches rising action.
• Act 2: Complications build through escalating conflict. The climax usually occurs near the midpoint. 
• Act 3: Falling action provides resolution after the climax.

With a predictable three-part division, readers can easily grasp this story plot. Short stories and jokes often follow a three-act model as well because it progresses the story in a clear and concise way.

Hero’s Journey

This archetypal narrative pattern builds on the theories of writer Joseph Campbell. Often used in epic tales, the main stages of the hero's journey are: 

• Departure: The hero is called to adventure and crosses the first threshold.
• Initiation: Trials and tribulations transform the hero through tests of skill and character.
• Return: The hero brings lessons learned back to positively impact the ordinary world.

Incorporating familiar hero’s journey motifs like mentorship, mystical awakening, and resurrection can tap into a sense of collective meaning that resonates with your readers. But you can also subvert tropes for a fresh take or twist.

The Hobbit or Star Wars are classic examples of the hero’s journey.

Save the Cat

You can find this 15-beat story structure proposed by Blake Snyder in many popular novels and movies. The main beats include:

• Opening Image: The protagonist's status quo. 
• Catalyst: The inciting incident.
• Midpoint Twist: Major escalation of conflict.
• All is Lost: Devastating setback for the protagonist.
• Dark Night of the Soul: Protagonist hits rock bottom.
• Final Image: Represents the protagonist's growth.

Because it maps common plot points to a flexible structure, this model can help you create a commercially viable story arc..

Experiment with these different story structures or create your own. Formulas help some writers tackle pacing and flow while too much structure can make others feel stifled. Outline if it helps your process, but don't let conventions constrain your original ideas.

Choosing the Right Structure for Your Story

Facing writer’s block as you write a novel? Plotting it out can help. Here are some tips to help you figure out the best story structure for an idea or draft.

Match structure to genre: 

Certain forms adhere to genre conventions (e.g. mystery, romance, thriller). Consider both meeting and subverting reader expectations for your chosen genre.

Consider your process: 

Outliners benefit from defined structure planned ahead of writing. Pantsers might start writing to discover the structure as they go. Know yourself as a writer when deciding how strictly to pre-plan your story plot.

Look to inspiration: 

Study the plot structures of books, films, or myths you want to emulate. Analyze how the structure serves the story in examples you admire before implementing similar pacing and plot points in your own work.

Be OK breaking the rules: 

Bending genre conventions and narrative formulas can help you innovate and intrigue readers. Just ensure rule-breaking ultimately what you want to achieve with your characters, stakes, and themes.

Get a second opinion: 

Have beta readers, editors, or sensitivity readers tell you whether your plot structure makes sense. Outside perspectives can identify confusing leaps in plot logic you may be too close to notice.

Keep asking WHY: 

Constantly ask yourself "why?" about each plot point and story beat. Don't just arrange events in a logical sequence. Make sure each narrative milestone directly serves a deeper purpose related to your character, stakes, or theme.

While there's no single "right" way to structure your story, training your plot instincts through study and practice will help craft an engaging tale. Mastering the essential elements empowers you to write the kinds of narratives that hook attention and linger in the imagination long after "The End".

And if you want to study more, the resources below are a great place to start.

Best Books on Story Structure

Looking to deepen your understanding of story structure? Here are some of the best books on mastering narrative flow, plot, and story arcs:

Save the Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody

This popular book builds on Blake Snyder's Save the Cat! beat sheet to give you a structural blueprint tailored to novels. It demystifies storytelling formulas in a practical, engaging guide. 

The Anatomy of Story by John Truby

Truby's in-depth manual dissects the narrative elements shared by great stories throughout history. It offers a rich toolkit to build an immersive and emotionally impactful tale.

Story Genius by Lisa Cron

This innovative guide combines craft and neuroscience to reveal how the mind craves story. Cron explains how to construct a riveting novel plot that hooks attention and emotion. 

Creating Character Arcs by K.M. Weiland

Weiland's acclaimed method explores how protagonists and antagonists change through the course of a narrative. She provides practical strategies to build characters that come alive on the page.

Into the Woods by John Yorke

Yorke unpacks the unifying patterns of storytelling and shows how the most effective narratives operate.

Immersing yourself in these resources will unlock your understanding of core story structures and help you master engaging arcs.