Dan Harmon's Story Circle

The beats, in order

Percentages show roughly where each beat lands in the finished story — the midpoint of a 110-page screenplay is page 55.

1. 1.You — A character is in a zone of comfort

   ~10%

   Establish the protagonist in their stable, familiar situation. Show enough of the routine that we feel the texture of their life.

2. 2.Need — But they want something

   ~20%

   Surface the protagonist's want or unmet need. It can be conscious (a goal) or unconscious (a lack they don't yet name).

3. 3.Go — They enter an unfamiliar situation

   ~30%

   The protagonist crosses into new territory. Could be literal (a new place) or figurative (a new dynamic, a confrontation, a decision).

4. 4.Search — Adapt to it

   ~45%

   The protagonist tries to navigate the new situation. They struggle, fail, learn the rules, recruit help, encounter obstacles.

5. 5.Find — Find what they wanted

   ~60%

   The protagonist achieves what they were after. The goal is in their grasp. But success looks different than they expected.

6. 6.Take — Pay a heavy price for it

   ~75%

   Achieving the want costs something serious: a relationship, a belief, comfort, self-image. The price recontextualizes the victory.

7. 7.Return — Return to their familiar situation

   ~90%

   The protagonist comes back to where they started, often physically but always thematically. We see the contrast between then and now.

8. 8.Change — Having changed

   ~100%

   The protagonist is different. Sometimes wiser, sometimes diminished, always altered. The change is the story's actual subject.

Terms used in this guide