Story Structure (K.M. Weiland)

Percentages show roughly where each beat lands in the finished story — the midpoint of a 110-page screenplay is page 55. Write your version under each; it saves in your browser as you go.

1. 1.Hook

   ~1%

   Open on a question the reader needs answered. Establish the protagonist, the normal, and a hint of the coming conflict - without front-loading backstory.

2. 2.Inciting Event

   ~12%

   The protagonist's first real brush with the main conflict - the Call to Adventure that unsettles the normal world.

3. 3.First Plot Point

   ~25%

   The protagonist crosses fully into the main conflict and can't go back. The story's true engine starts here.

4. 4.First Pinch Point

   ~37%

   A reminder of the antagonistic force's power - a direct or glimpsed show of what the protagonist is up against.

5. 5.Midpoint (Second Plot Point)

   ~50%

   A Moment of Truth: a revelation or reversal that shifts the protagonist from reacting to acting with purpose.

6. 6.Second Pinch Point

   ~62%

   The antagonist presses again, harder - stakes and pressure climb toward the low point.

7. 7.Third Plot Point

   ~75%

   The low moment - the dark night of the soul. An apparent defeat that forces the protagonist to choose who they'll be.

8. 8.Climax

   ~88%

   The final confrontation builds: the protagonist takes the fight to the conflict with everything they've learned.

9. 9.Climactic Moment

   ~95%

   The decisive beat where the main conflict resolves - the question the story asked is answered for good.

10. 10.Resolution

    ~98%

    The new normal. Tie off the threads, show the changed protagonist, and land the final image.

More Novels & prose beat sheets

Browse all beat sheets →

Terms used in this guide