PLOTTING THE 8-POINT ARC BUILDING BLOCKS TO GET A WRITER

FROM BEGINNING TO END

STASIS: (The situation before the story begins) Once upon a time
TRIGGER: Something out of the ordinary happens
THE QUEST: That causes the protagonist to seek something
SURPRISE: But things dont go as expected
CRITICAL CHOICE: Forcing the protagonist to make a difficult decision
CLIMAX: Which has consequences
REVERSAL: The result of which is a change in circumstances
RESOLUTION: And they all lived happily ever after (or didnt)
The stasis is the base reality of the tale, what life is like in general, not much upheaval or
anything out of the ordinary.
The trigger is an event beyond the control of the protagonist which turns things from
the average to the exceptional. It can be huge or tiny, pleasant or unpleasant, it may not
be recognized as significant at the time, but this is the point where the characters come
to life. This is the first blip on an otherwise stable line.
The effect of the trigger is to generate the need for a quest. In the case of an unpleasant
trigger, it could be a need to return to the original stasis; in the case of a pleasant
trigger, it could be to maintain or increase the pleasure. The quest can change
throughout the novel, but if it does, it should incorporate the first quest in order to up
the stakes all the time for the protagonist.
The characters need to encounter obstacles on their quest. At the very least, the
unexpected must happen. Sometimes the surprises will be pleasant, helping the central
character on his or her way. More important are the unpleasant surprises. Surprise is
conflict made concrete, and may be caused by another person or by the environment. It
may happen suddenly or as the result of an accumulation of events. For it to work well,
we need to balance two things: unexpectedness and plausibility. A poorly constructed
surprise is often predictable, foreseen ten pages back and boring to wait for. It is no
good being unexpected if it doesnt happen within the bounds of credibility, however.
If the unexpected brick wall in a heros path in insurmountable, then he comes to a stop
and the story is over. If he is to continue the quest, however, he will have to change
course, change tactic, and that means making a difficult decision. The word drama is a
Greek word meaning a thing done. Not a thing happening by chance or being done to
another, but the action of human beings when faced with obstacles. Our protagonists
must respond rather than react. The difference between the two is a question of

decisiveness. The characters may be compulsive, driven, inadequate, and deluded, but
they must be responsible for their actions, even if those actions are not enough to
achieve what they want. Unless the character is in some way accountable for his or her
actions all we have are accident, coincidence, and chaos.
These critical choices come to a head in the climax the decision made manifest.
Sometimes the two are back to back, seemingly one action. At other times there can be a
long delay. This climax is an event something occurring in the tangible world of
things and bodies. It need not be spectacular but it must be visible.
Aristotle defined a reversal as a change from one state of affairs to its opposite which
should develop out of the very structure of the plot, so that they are the inevitable or
probable consequence of what has gone before. If the climax does not result in a
reversal, then it begs the question if the climax was there solely for spectacle. The climax
must change the status of the characters. The reversal should be inevitable and
probable.
Resolution is the new stasis, a return to the state of suspended animation on a new
level.

The eight point arch by Nigel Watts

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Stasis
Trigger
The quest
Surprise
Critical choice
Climax
Reversal
Resolution

He explains that every classic plot passes through these stages and that he doesnt tend
to use them to plan a story, but instead uses the points during the writing process:
I find [the eight-point arc] most useful as a checklist against which to measure a work in
progress. If I sense a story is going wrong, I see if Ive unwittingly missed out a stage of
the eight-point arc. It may not guarantee you write a brilliant story, but it will help you
avoid some of the pitfalls of a brilliant idea gone wrong.
So, what do the eight points mean?

Stasis
This is the everyday life in which the story is set. Think of Cinderella sweeping the
ashes, Jack (of Beanstalk fame) living in poverty with his mum and a cow, or Harry
Potter living with the Dursleys.

Trigger
Something beyond the control of the protagonist (hero/heroine) is the trigger which
sparks off the story. A fairy godmother appears, someone pays in magic beans not gold,
a mysterious letter arrives you get the picture.

The quest
The trigger results in a quest an unpleasant trigger (e.g. a protagonist losing his job)
might involve a quest to return to the status quo; a pleasant trigger (e.g. finding a
treasure map) means a quest to maintain or increase the new pleasant state.

Surprise
This stage involves not one but several elements, and takes up most of the middle part
of the story. Surprise includes pleasant events, but more often means obstacles,
complications, conflict and trouble for the protagonist.
Watts emphasizes that surprises shouldnt be too random or too predictable they need
to be unexpected, but plausible. The reader has to think I should have seen that
coming!

Critical choice
At some stage, your protagonist needs to make a crucial decision; a critical choice. This is
often when we find out exactly who a character is, as real personalities are revealed at
moments of high stress. Watts stresses that this has to be a decision by the character to
take a particular path not just something that happens by chance.
In many classic stories, the critical choice involves choosing between a good, but
hard, path and a bad, but easy, one.
In tragedies, the unhappy ending often stems from a character making the wrong choice
at this point Romeo poisoning himself on seeing Juliet supposedly dead, for example.

Climax
The critical choice(s) made by your protagonist need to result in the climax, the highest
peak of tension, in your story.
For some stories, this could be the firing squad leveling their guns to shoot, a battle
commencing, a high-speed chase or something equally dramatic. In other stories, the
climax could be a huge argument between a husband and wife, or a playground fight
between children, or Cinderella and the Ugly Sisters trying on the glass slipper.

Reversal
The reversal should be the consequence of the critical choice and the climax, and it
should change the status of the characters especially your protagonist. For example, a
downtrodden wife might leave her husband after a row; a bullied child might stand up
for a fellow victim and realize that the bully no longer has any power over him;
Cinderella might be recognized by the prince.

Your story reversals should be inevitable and probable. Nothing should happen for any
reason, changes in status should not fall out of the sky. The story should unfold as life
unfolds: relentlessly, implacably, and plausibly.

Resolution
The resolution is a return to a fresh stasis one where the characters should be changed,
wiser and enlightened, but where the story being told is complete.
(You can always start off a new story, a sequel, with another trigger)
Ive only covered Watts eight-point arc in brief here. In the book, he gives several
examples of how the eight-point arc applies to various stories. He also explains how a
longer story (such as a novel) should include arcs-within-arcs subplots and scenes
where the same eight-point structure is followed, but at a more minor level than for the
arc of the entire story.

Writing the Story - The 8-Point Arc

Writers all think that writing a story should not be formulaic in any way, shape or form,
but when a story is done, a story always has a system if it is flowing correctly and
results in the readers satisfaction. The system that all stories fall into is known as the 8point arc.
When beginning to write creatively, a new writer needs somewhere to start and some
way to think of a story in an almost mathematic sense. Knowing the 8-point arc can lead
to properly structured stories that seem to rise in height to the best place that the reader
follows the journey to. Entering the story we must progressively heighten that story in
order that the resulting staircase doesnt have too wide of steps or too tall of steps but is
a one step at a time journey. Planning a story around the 8-point arc provides each step
with a proper height and a proper width and the reader climbs with a relatively similar
speed with each story that they may have enjoyed. There is nothing new about story
writing and the reader has become savvy enough to detect very early that a storys plot
and ease of reading is nonexistent.
What are these 8-points? I will discuss each point according to the point of their
importance and the proper use of them when constructing your story.

Writings 8 Points
The Stasis
The Trigger
The Quest
The Surprise
The Critical Choice
The Climax
The Rehearsal
The Resolution

The First Point of Story Structure

Stasis is the world in which we enter. During the introduction, we should get to
comprehend the characters everyday world. This world and this situation define
everything.
In a show like The Walking Dead we open the series with a police officer and his
partner and they end up talking about their issues with the women of their lives. We get
familiar rather quickly with how one seems to be a bit of a womanizer and the other is a
married man. We soon find ourselves drawn to a car chase and the married man sheriff
ends up shot.

This is the stasis. We gain some familiarity with our characters world and come to an
understanding of exactly who we are dealing with and the world in which they live.
The stasis is where what enters this world as in the beginning but stasis can change.
That is a part of plots and story structure. Just because we enter the world as policemen
who have women troubles and all else is completely normal does not mean
circumstance cannot change according to our next point on the arc.

The Second Point of Story Structure

The trigger is the point by which circumstance changes. The trigger is writing the
storys reason and purpose for the journey about to be taken. The trigger departs from
the stasis and something must be done because this trigger has set forth circumstances
to propel the characters into something they cannot change by wishing it so. Something
has to happen. This is otherwise known as the inciting incident and in longer fiction
should still happen fairly quickly in order that the reader becomes invested.
In The Walking Dead we quickly discover that the fallen policeman is in the hospital
and something is not quite right. The world has changed drastically while he was
unconscious. The world has turned into a nightmarish land of the walking dead and
our sheriff is catapulted into a situation that he is forced to take control of.
The trigger does not have to be met with bravery or action at first. Your characters may
take some time to get a handle on their emotions and self-doubt. They might cry or lay
in bed for a month. It doesnt matter how they initially respond to this sudden problem,
but it is sure that a problem needs to arise. The problem does need to be so catastrophic
as to encompass the entire world. It can be a problem as small as seeing a black mole on
their arm and beginning to think it may be cancer. It can be that they find a briefcase
full of money and do not know what their luck is really bringing them.
Whatever you choose is up to you and the journeys need arises when the trigger is set
off.

The Third Point of Story Structure

Now it is time for your character or characters to begin walking toward their destiny.
The quest is when your characters make a decision that they arent just going to sit idle
and wish things werent so wrong. They will stand up and begin working toward
trying to resolve their problem.
In The Walking Dead the quest begins when our sheriff decides that he must find his
family and that no zombies are going to stop him from finding them. He heads to the
police station and gathers guns. He learns how to kill the zombies and looks a bit
stouter than that blank eyed man he came out of the hospital as. This is the point where
we begin walking toward a goal and the pace starts to speed.

Whether or not the trigger is bad or good is of no consequence, there must always be a
journey toward something and our next point complicates that journey so that things
arent too easy.

The Fourth Point of Story Structure

We can be pleasantly surprised or have traumatic surprises. The Surprise is the point of
our story that takes up the largest part of our story. These surprises should not be easily
predictable but should make the reader surprised and thinking that they should have
seen all of it coming.
Surprises can come in many different forms. They can be complications or obstacles or
new knowledge that either propels the character forward or causes a hindrance in their
quest.
In the early episodes of The Walking Dead we have a lot of stuff going on. Our sheriff
discovers that finding his family is not going too easy when he enters the city. He is met
by his first herd of walking dead and becomes stranded and isolated in a tank. He is
safe, but he cannot just walk out on his own. When a voice begins talking to him from
the tanks radio we dont know what is going to happen or who it even is.
One thing in this particular episode of The Walking Dead that is positive, our sheriff
must make a decision. Will he trust this guy or will he remain safe inside the tank?

The Fifth Point of Story Structure

At this point we are facing a critical decision and we define our character under a high
amount of stress. These situations can lead to any end but they must be placed into
your story in order to define your character and result in a higher place up the arc.
The moment in The Walking Dead when our sheriff is stuck in the tank and the voice is
calling to him and telling him what to do and when to do, the sheriff is forced to reveal
that he cannot do this alone. His critical choice to trust a fellow survivor enlightens us
to what is coming and how the journey to find his family must be made.
The Sixth Point of Story Structure
The climax is probably one of the more well know points of the story. Even the layman
knows when they have reached the climax in a movie. The climax is the result of your
characters critical choice. It is the highest point of the storys excitement. Whether the
character wins or loses doesnt matter at all, what does matters is that your reader or
audience is drawn into the excitement and care about the outcome.
In The Walking Dead episode that I have been referring to (early season 1), our sheriff
makes his decision and decides to accept help from the outside and from an outsider.

He leaves the safety of the tank and we are thrust into the heat of his fear as the herd of
zombies at first doesnt notice him but then grows aware and begin trying to get to him.
A chase ensures and the sheriffs fear becomes ours.

The Seventh Point of Story Structure

The climax is probably one of the more well know points of the story. Even the layman
knows when they have reached the climax in a movie. The climax is the result of your
characters critical choice. It is the highest point of the storys excitement. Whether the
character wins or loses doesnt matter at all, what does matters is that your reader or
audience is drawn into the excitement and care about the outcome.
In The Walking Dead episode that I have been referring to (early season 1), our sheriff
makes his decision and decides to accept help from the outside and from an outsider.
He leaves the safety of the tank and we are thrust into the heat of his fear as the herd of
zombies at first doesnt notice him but then grows aware and begin trying to get to him.
A chase ensures and the sheriffs fear becomes ours.

The Eight Point of Story Structure

The reversal is the inevitable result of the critical choice and the climax. Everything
changes at the reversal. Again, it can be negative in nature or positive. Nothing has to
be like someone has done it before, but it does have to happen. Just like driving is the
stasis and driving fast is the trigger and the wreck is the climax, your story must have
some result. Is the driver dead or just hurt? Whatever you would decide, the reversal is
the reversal of the protagonists world situation.
In The Walking Dead, after our sheriff gets away from the zombies, he meets the first of
his future cast mates. His choice to trust leads him one step closer on his path to being
able to find his family. The reversal is that he is no longer alone.

Writing to be Completely Satisfying

In television shows like The Walking Dead we have many of each one of these points of
the arc. That is the nature of television. Each episode of a series must always be
intriguing and satisfying and exciting. So, the result is a lot of examples of each point
can be drawn from one episode or the entire series. The stories on television have to be
epic in nature. They are large and one central problem is what everything revolves
around and keeps the story moving toward the series finally or the final resolution.
In The Walking Dead we are driven to attend each episode because we want to know
what happens and if the living dead problem will ever be resolved. But we are
interested in watching because each episodes arcs on varying subjects and situations.

Watching television can teach you a lot about how stories are thought up and designed.
Each one of us has this arc ingrained into our minds and you should use it when
designing your own arcs.
Whatever you write about in any of your stories, this system is not a design for setting
rules, it is a design to keep the story structured correctly and according to an age old
recipe on good story telling. Writers bend the rules often but never so much as to leave
the reader dissatisfied and losing interest. The point of this arc is to keep your writing
completely satisfying.
Keep writing and never stop dreaming.