How to Use the 3 ACT STORY Structure
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.ค. 2024
- Ready to start outlining our NaNo novels using the 3-act story structure?? I'm so excited for today's video! We're going to dive into what the 3-act story structure is and WHY it's so awesome. In this episode I take my protagonist's character profile and combine it with the 3-act structure to create my FIRST real outline. So stoked!!
GRAB THE 3-ACT STORY STRUCTURE TEMPLATE:
DOCX: bit.ly/32uVHlz
PRINTABLE PDF: bit.ly/2MLZmVd
Comment below and tell me: how is YOUR preptober going? Did you use the three act story structure and if so, how did it go??
0:00 Introduction
1:18 Why I Love the 3 Act Structure
3:19 Act One
6:39 Act Two
9:10 Act Three
13:42 How I Outline My Story Structure
16:15 Update on my NaNo Novel
17:43 Outro
________________________________
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✨ A B O U T ✨
My name is Abbie Emmons I teach writers how to make their stories matter by harnessing the power and psychology of storytelling, transforming their ideas into a masterpiece, and creating a lifestyle that makes their author dreams come true.
Story isn’t about “what happens” - it’s about how what happens affects and transforms the characters. I believe that there is an exact science (a recipe, if you will) behind a perfect story. And if you know what ingredients you need, you can create your own perfect story with ease and confidence. That’s what we talk about every week on this channel - and if it’s something you’re into, be sure to subscribe and join this community!
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![Solve Your Story Structure Problems In 11 Steps - Pat Verducci [FULL INTERVIEW]](/img/n.gif)
I pay closer attention to these videos than 99.9% of any schooling I've taken.
Callie LeClaire I am literally watching this during a high level algebra test... and I’m failing. 😂
@@justanabsoluteloser340 Mood.
Saaammmee
I do feel sorry for you, probably you made very bad choices regarding schools then.
@@Retfie719 eh sometimes your parents stick you in a school and you're like welp
Maybe this sounds strange, but I love that you say What's up my Friend as opposed to Friends. Sounds like you're talking just to me. 😊
loneliness
@@crishcrish8212 Fr
2 years later and this is still sad
Lmbo I JUST saw this today. Funny how people take things. Definitely not lonely it was a description lol. Direct talk as opposed to general. But thanks for the “concern” 😂😂😂 Even more hilarious considering it’s a channel about WRITING. You’d think what I meant was understood by people into learning to write better books.
You're right, their comprehension is sadder knowing they came to learn writing. 😂
Your comment was fine bro.
I learned more about crafting a story in this 20 min video than I did in 4 years of college getting my BA in Creative Writing! Thank you!
Then can I ask you a practical question? I’m a bit confused. In the 3-act structure set-up, do each of the items represent a story beat, or a story chapter, or can they - even, should they - be the same thing. I feel as though I might get more clarity after I watch her video on pacing, but I’ve already drafted the first chapter of my memoir, and it contains both the hook and the inciting incident.
@@ashleystearns2486 they represent a story beat, but it can be a chapter if you'd like
PREACH
@@ashleystearns2486 Wait, you're using story structure in a memoir? Are you sure that's the best way to write nonfiction of any kind? I mean, by all means take some notes and find the most compelling way to arrange the information but 3 Acts, seriously?
@@isaachiggs1925 The story of your life is a story like any other story. If you want people to find it interesting, it needs to have structure, not just be diary entries of mostly ordinary days mixed in with the occasional thing that matters. Of course, someone's life doesn't necessary follow all the parts Abbie outlined (maybe there's never been a plot twist in your life), or go in quite the same order, but your story, in which you are the protagonist, needs to roughly follow a play in 3 acts to make the reader care about where you end up (and do that before they get bored).
I remember years ago watching "The Osbournes" and I was struck by the editing of the episodes. Despite the fact that they appear, on the surface, to just be video diary entries of a dysfunctional rich family, they actually have structure. Issues that are raised during the episode get resolved in some way by the end. Multiple loose ends get tied up or converge into the resolution. Surprisingly, Sharon Osbourne was the main editor of the show (at least that's how I understood the credits; I think their son also did editing and camera work). The whole family appears to be flailing around like British white trash that won the lottery, but when you know that Sharon edited the episodes, you realize that she's surprisingly introspective. Most people can't observe themselves from the outside--can't see themselves the way other people see them--and tell the story of their lives as a writer writes a character; most people are too close and emotionally involved to treat themselves as a character and their life as a plot. But "The Osbournes" worked because she was able to do that. She crafted the bits of their lives into a sitcom.
If you're wondering how long does it take to outline a full novel, I'm telling ya, it can take up to 3 months. But the result? A masterpiece if you did it well. Please don't skip the time you need for a good outline.
@Bzake frl ‼️ (i’m struggling so bad)
@Bzake Real authors fail if that's the case lmao
Unless you're a pantser. That's ok too. Everyone has their process.
If you're writing fantasy it can take even longer. The worldbuilding takes up a TON of time
Even worse when you hit writer’s bloc
Who needs sleep at 4 am when there's a new video 🙃
3 act structure
ACT 1
3:22 Hook
4:10 Inciting Incident
4:59 Build Up
5:16 1st Plot Point
6:11 1st Pinch Point
ACT 2
6:44 Pre Midpoint Reactionary Hero
7:26 Game Changing Midpoint
8:02 Post Midpoint Action Hero
8:41 2nd Pinch Point
ACT 3
9:28 Supposed Victory
10:02 Disaster
10:39 Dark Moment
11:04 Aha Moment
11:50 Climatic Confrontation
12:35 Victory
13:03 Resolution / Plot twist
Thank you! ☺️
Thank you ❤
I just watched this AFTER I wrote down my basic idea for my story, looking to revise the first draft and improve. I must say, I’m pretty proud of myself because I accidentally used this structure without intentionally using it 😅
Hey, my fiction novel project will take inspiration from actual happenings in my life, and I was so surprised that the actual happenings in my life follow this structure 😂😂😂
Same
We all have come in contact with stories since childhood. We subconsciously should have a pretty good idea how to write a story.
Your 3 Act Structure worksheets have helped me so much this Preptober! I was originally going to write book 2 in my series for NaNo, but I realized that book 1 had too many problems so now I'm going to rewrite that book instead.
Your outlining methods have been a life-saver for me. I'm new to writing and when I wrote my first book (the aforementioned book 1 in the series) I had no idea what I was doing. But now I feel much more confident in my ability to create an amazing story. Thank you so much!!
Abbie: "Okay, I'm so excited for the next couple fo weeks!"
Me: Refreshing my subscriptions page at 12am every Thursday and jumping off my seat when she uploads.
This is so well explained, that I'm already answering every question that pops up from the structure.
I roughly scripted my first movie idea while watching this video. My first draft of the screenplay will now be ready sooner than it would have. Thanks a ton! ♥️🙌🏻
Hello, im from the future and curious. Did you manage to finish it?
11:00 the evil laugh 😂
You’re gonna be the reason I go from being a writer to an author!
Currently writing my first novel thanks to these videos, I've always had a desire to write a fantasy epic, but was intimidated by the logistics honestly, but thanks to your videos, I've been writing for 2 weeks now and am filling out these templates, I'm super excited about it, thank you for providing me with the information to pursue a passion of mine that I didn't think was realistically feasible for me!
Abbie! Just wanna thank you
You rock!
I usually don't comment on videos but i need to tell you how AWESOME this one is (the rest of your channel is awesome too!) Whenever i start writing a new story i come back to this one vid and it makes the outlining process sooo much easier, you're a great teacher Abbie!
I just found your channel and I am so over the moon with excitement! This has to be the absolute best channel for writing advice! Thank you for creating such wonderful content!
OMG "Thank you for 10K" is a whole vibe considering I am watching this FOUR YEARS LATER and you are at 430K. GOOOOO ABBIE!
you make some of the best videos around on story stuff. thank you!
Thank you so much for creating this channel you don't know how much it means to me 💚💚💚💚
You're an absolute angel, thank you for explaining the three act structure and giving a document with questions, you've made everything so much more clearer for me ❤️
These videos are gold to me. You made an excellent job explaining the concepts in a very clear way. Thanks
So glad I discovered your channel. so many practical advice, especially since I participating in NaNo this year with a new project. Thank you!
Congrats on reaching 10K subscribers!!! You are so amazing and I'm so HAPPY AND STOKED for you!!! I love your videos so much, but not only that, the encouragement you've given me for my book and for life... your friendship means so much to me! Love you, girl!
I love your videos! They always have so good quality and your tips are super useful!!!
This video gave me multiple HUGE breakthroughs for the three part novel I’ve been working on. You’re an angel.
Been waiting impatiently for this all week :D
Eeeeee, Congrats on 10k, Abbie!!! 💙💙💙 Super excited to continue watching this series and everything beyond! Best wishes on your writing!
I looooove these videos! This is all I wanted to know about story structure, and I'm so happy I found your channel. I'm about to binge watch more videos XD
Hi Abbie, Thank you so much for your writing series. You have helped me sooooooo much!
Thank you! Your enthusiasm as a writer, collaborator, happiness and good all around person comes shining through your videos. So grateful you showed up on my TH-cam feed; so grateful you are motivated to share your gifts with us. You rock! Love & Light 🙏
Isn't it so delightful to see '400K'?! Congratulations, dear Abbie, you deserve it and even more!
You drop so much wisdom in these videos! I'm going to have to go through and rewatch when I can actually take notes. I wish I could squeeze in a rewatch, all of the NaNo prepping I have to do in Preptober and everything else in my life in the next 15 days. AHH! But my novel this November is going to be 1,000% better because of things I've learned here. So, thanks!
Abbie you are a life saver!
I needed to turn ideas into an actual novel and had no idea how to do it, but as you went through all your points my story started to come alive on its own
Girl I love your videos and they have helped me so much. I am hoping to finish my book by end of year and you have given me some good tips
you are my favorite youtuber! you inspire me to keep writing!❤️
This makes so much sense. other writers on here didn't go into much details about this sorta stuff. I'm working on a novel and this helping me so much. Thank you!1
I think you are awesome! Your energy is very contagiously motivating me to begin a journey of becoming a writer for personal growth and development. Using the written word as part of my therapy for being a helpless procrastinator I feel like I can at the very least tell my story in detail, how I became so hesitant at just doing what I say I’m going to do. Thank you for you, I love you!
I stumbled across one of your videos and have now been binge watching them over the last week. Your approach to writing is clear, simple and refreshing. Each video, whether it is something I already knew or not, makes me look at it in a new way. Thank you.
If you have a chance sometime, I would love to see a video on how to apply this to a longer series so things are carried out over multiple books.
Now to not so patiently wait for the next episode.
This outline is helpful. Listening to you go over it while figuring out where parts of my brainstorming and scene ideas would fit.
Abbie is truly amazing, this was so helpful. I love your channel and videos, congratulations on 10K!!!
I remember watching this a few weeks ago, and I felt super intimidated, but after watching your other videos explaining in detail, each story act helped me understand everything you're saying.
Thank you so much! I can't wait to start organizing my mess. 😍
Abbie!!! This video is soooo good and mobilizing and inspiring. (I'm not even sure I'm doing Nano, but I am outlining.) We are such different writers, and the stories we tell are as different as stories come, but I find it really amazing how you're able to give advice that is so specific yet so far-reaching. Kudos, girlie.
This video is excellent, really clearly sets out the beats that drive a story - thank you 👏
Thank you thank you thank you Abbie! This was so fruitful and helped me a lot!
Thank you for explaining this so clearly and even making a printable! Appreciate it :)
Loving the videos, Abbie. You give me so many ideas about the structure. I've been thinking about your ideas... I think the scene cards you suggest really work because the external conflict STAYS PARALLEL to the internal conflict... and that feels strong. Other tips felt like it was a dump of external conflict and then a dump of internal conflict, repeat, repeat... so thank you. I love your method.
This particular video finally helped me crack my 'shouting from the roof-tops' theme, of which there are several under themes I can work on in progression.
Not to mention it also helped me firm up my plotline considerably, so THANK YOU VERY MUCH INDEED. You are INSPIRATIONAL!
your videos are solid gold and your execution is passionate and authentic. I usually cant sit down and watch a TH-cam video for more than 10 minutes because the way people talk on youtube is so annoying but you sound more like a teacher. lol! thank you for all the work you put in, helping inexperienced writers like me get started.
I love this video! Your extensive explanations and well-defined plot structure are a huge inspiration and help for me in creating my own story. I love the passion with which you talk about writing. Thank you for every video. Greetings from Poland.
Been binging your videos and I am so happy to finally catch a new video! Your advice is so different and so much more thorough than anyone else's. Thank you tons!
join my 'army' its also a place where you can help others with planning their AMAZING novel
I've been waiting for this video since last Wednesday ahhh its so good!
I’m so excited for the next episodes for this preptober series... I’m a little too behind on my outlining but hopefully I’ll be able to catch up in these last few weeks of October...
This was just a really *really* good lecture.
Thanks!
So glad I found your channel! You are awesome and so helpful! I think I am half Pantser, and half Plotter, but I still enjoy seeing your whole process.
Thank you for all this amazing advice I truly appreciate it x
This is so helpful! Thank you~
Thank you. This fits PERFECTLY for my story.
You're so much easier to listen to than so many others and you make so much sense, Thank You for what you do, your are appreciated, one day when I'm famous I'll be sure to drop your name
ABBIE YOU'RE THE BEST!!!
Hi! Your videos about preparing for NaNoWriMo are amazing and give me a lot of motivation! This year is my first NaNo and I'm so excited! Thanks for this video, I think that it really can help me to plan my novel
I'm new to your channel. I love that your content is rich with practical, substantive advice. AND your videos are fun to watch because of your positive energy and humor. Thank you sooooo much. I'm gonna dig into the treasure trove of your past vids now and eagerly await your next creation.
join my 'army' its also a place where you can help others with planning their AMAZING novel
Thanks so much for this! I'm totally writing one this time too :D
Great way to start the day 😍
My story is aliiiivveee!! Thank you, this structure really works!!
Thank you so much for your kind words! They mean so much to me, and I am thrilled that the content I make encourages you to chase your dreams and make your story MATTER!
I am currently writing a story which I've now decIded to start uploading around NanoWrimo. I watch your videos and I immediately put them into practice (I see it as my homework😂) and it's helping a great deal. I haven't been able to stop thinking about my characters and I'm enjoying the process a lot more. As a perfectionist, it gets really tough to find a rhythym because "nothing is good enough" but this is more than good enough and it is working well. Thank you so much and God bless you!
im so freaking excited
Really thankful I found your channel
Your videos are so helpful. thank you.
Nothing is more satisfying than being able to watch this vid and point to an event in your draft that matches the point lidted.
I was using three act and didn’t even notice
Thank you for existing, you always make my Wednesdays!
Congrats on 10k, how the hell did that happen so fast? Last time I checked you had 4k😲
Thank you for your videos! I'm learning so much from you. :)
Thanks Abbie... the energy is awesome. The tips spectacular. Could you use as many examples as possible? I love when you use simple ones off the top of your head... they're the ones I remember.
You are amazing for doing this❤️
this is very helpful~~thank you for the amazing material~~
Okay so, I've been watching your videos for a while now, hoping that they'll help me actually write! I find everything in your videos is so helpful and resonates with me creatively, but I never get anywhere writing novels, and I'm more of a musician at heart, so instead, I've been using these videos as a guideline of sorts for making a concept album. Weird, and probably not what you made this video for, but hey! I just wanted to let you know that it's actually extremely helpful because I can turn the structure points into tracks as scenes from the story, and the character's motives, goals, and thoughts turn into the lyrics for the songs. Cheers!
Thanks again for these videos❣️
And do please do the individual story beat videos you mentioned. More details and linking them to the model you like best for Plot points would be super helpful.
Girl you just saved my life oml. Thank u so much for putting stuff like this out there. This has already saved me a lot of headache on trying to figure out why my story felt off and it's going to save me a lot of time and pain later.
Thank you so much for your kind words! They mean so much to me, and I am thrilled that the content I make encourages you to chase your dreams and make your story MATTER!
join my 'army' its also a place where you can help others with planning their AMAZING novel
This template has officially changed my whole writing life. Ive been trying nano unsuccessfully for 5 years...thanks to this template, I have a solid 3 acts to work with and THANK YOU!!! The way you broke it down created just enough spark in me to get my story line scenes and characters lined up and marching in a straight line!!! Thank you so much, I love you!! What you do is so important and it is so inspiring!!❤❤ Write on, sister!!!
join my 'army' its also a place where you can help others with planning their AMAZING novel
I love using the three-act structure :)
I'm literally following this videos like homework. They have helped me so much on outlining. Plus I just found out that the first week of november I'll have to get surgery and that I'll have to stay at home for at least three weeks so this Nanowrimo I'll have a little bit more time!
Thank you for the video and the tutorial. You are wise beyond your years. I am still working on my characters, so I'm a little behind.
Excellent. Love your channel. Thanks.
So helpful wow!! Thank you! 💗💗💗
Love your ideas, ... and your videos of course. And this is the most convincing and insightful version of the 3 act structure I've seen. Bless you for taking the time to make it available. I like it, and I'm going to use it, at least once. (I already have some tweaks of my own.) And, if you don't mind if I tweak this version for a future project, that would be cool too.
Thank you so much for this video❤️
Woah she about doubled her subscriber count since the last time I checked it- amazing! I'm so glad she's getting the views she deserves!
These videos are soo helpful! Thank you! :) Think I may try Nanowrimo this year. :)
This... IS PERFECT!
I'm a simple girl. I see a Writer's Wednesday video, I click on it.
This is REALLY going to help.
Did anyone found this on a playlist on how to make good gacha stories and now OBSEEEBED
I'm new to writing and have been binge watching all of your videos 😁😁
You do wonders for my ocd. It’s weird but I love it!! Teach me!!
I'm watching this instead of online school bc tbh you are the best teacher i've ever had😭
I like Abbie's videos. I've just gotten back to writing again after years of putting it off due to tours.
I am a pantser through and through and outlining is a struggle for me. I write as a form of discovery but i always get to a point where things feel sloppy and unstructured. This video helped me write out the 3 act structure and answer the questions with the story i have in the works. I was close to scrapping my idea but after sitting down with the 3 act structure and I feel like like I have a pretty banger idea. Although my story needs a lot of reshaping, this helped me organize the idea and help me create a backbone outline despite me being more than half ways through the story. Wish me luck! thank you for your help!
I've seen DOZENS of videos about three-act structure, I've even watched Brandon Sanderson's several lecture videos on this very thing: no one has come close to helping me understand that the way this video did here.
Thank you.
Loved the video. I'm here specifically because I'm preparing to write an RPG scenario. The tricky part will be writting a story where characters will make decisions that'll demand I adapt on the spot while maintaining the story structure I came up.
Love this!!!