Save the Cat! Writes a Novel

by Jessica Brody

  13. BREAK INTO 3

  WHAT DOES IT DO? Brings the hero into the synthesis world of Act 3, where they will finally fix things the right way.

  WHERE DOES IT GO? 80%

  Voilà! The answer! The solution! The fix!

  The Break Into 3 beat is literally a breakthrough. At this very moment, thanks to all their struggles in the upside-down world, thanks to all the lessons they’ve learned from their thematic B Story character(s), thanks to this emotional roller coaster you’ve put them on, your hero finally realizes what they must do to not only fix all of the problems they’ve caused in Act 2 (and there are plenty!) but also, more important, how to fix themselves.

  If the Break Into 2 was the hero figuring out how to fix things the wrong way, then the Break Into 3 is when the hero finally figures out how to fix things the right way. No more shortcuts. No more cheats. No more avoiding the bigger issues. They’ve lost everything, they’ve hit rock bottom and gone through a Dark Night of the Soul, and now they know what they have to do.

  Louisa Clark has to get on that flight to Switzerland to be present at Will’s death (Me Before You). Becky Bloomwood has to write the article of her life and expose the wrongdoings of the financial institution (Confessions of a Shopaholic). Mark Watney has to figure out how to get to the Ares 4 site without NASA’s help (The Martian). Amos Decker has to confront his family’s murderers alone (Memory Man). Starr Williams has to use her real weapon—her voice (The Hate U Give). And Tom Joad can’t run away from his problems anymore; he has to help organize the workers and put an end to injustices (The Grapes of Wrath).

  The Break Into 3 almost always includes the following realization for the hero: It was never them who had to change; it was always me.

  Up until this point your hero has tried everything they can to avoid the real issues in their life. They’ve ignored the Theme Stated, they’ve chased after what they want instead of what they need, they’ve tried to fix their life the wrong way and failed, they’ve blamed everyone else but themselves. It’s time to wise up and face the cold, hard truth:

  I am flawed. But now that I know that, I can fix it.

  This is a single-scene beat. You get one scene or chapter to show this realization and the decision that comes out of it. (Although I’ve seen it done successfully in as little as one page or one paragraph.) This is the beat you will use to guide your hero (and your reader!) swiftly and surely into the third and final act.

  14. FINALE

  WHAT DOES IT DO? Resolves all the problems created in Act 2 and proves that your hero has learned the theme and has been transformed.

  WHERE DOES IT GO? 80% to 99%

  Your hero has finally wised up and figured out what they have to do. What comes next? Well, now they have to, you know, actually do it. It’s one thing to sit around and talk about change; it’s quite another to enact it. It’s time for your hero to put their money where their mouth is and put their brilliant new Break Into 3 plan into action! This is the final test. Can they pull it off? We’ll soon see.

  You might have noticed that the third act has only three beats, compared to the first act, which has five, and the second act, which has a whopping seven beats. Which means that the Finale beat is often a very long beat. It’s a multi-scene beat that spans pretty much the entire third act (nearly 20 percent of the novel!).

  So what is happening over all of those pages and chapters?

  The hero is enacting their new plan, yes. But how do we stretch that out over the entire third act so it feels compelling and exciting and not too rushed?

  The answer is a dazzling and genius thing called the Five-Point Finale, and I guarantee it will change your life!

  The Five-Point Finale breaks down the Finale into five sub-beats, giving us even more road markers to break up the last section of our trip. And thank goodness, because we’re nearing the finish line of this very long journey. We’ve been driving forever. We’re tired. We’re weary. We need smaller goals and shorter driving distances to get us to the end.

  The Five-Point Finale is a blueprint for what every third act is essentially all about: storming the Castle! The castle is a metaphor. It can be anything. Getting to Switzerland before Will’s death (Me Before You), winning the Games (The Hunger Games), reaching the Ares 4 landing site (The Martian). And of course, it can be a literal castle like the royal ball that Cinder must get to in order to warn Prince Kai of Queen Levana’s evil scheme (Cinder by Marissa Meyer).

  Basically, the castle is the plan. And the Five-Point Finale helps you masterfully execute that plan to give you the most compelling third act possible. So let’s take a look at it, point by point.

  Point 1: Gathering the Team

  Before the hero can “storm the castle,” they need some help. They need allies. They need to assemble troops! These troops can be literal troops or just some good friends to help out. However, keep in mind your hero might not be on speaking terms with some of their friends after the All Is Lost. They might have to mend a few fences in order to solicit help. That’s also a big part of the Gathering the Team sub-beat (and the third act in general). Your hero has to make amends and admit that they were wrong and stupid and blind. It’s just another step in the completion of their transformative arc. In The Hunger Games, after the Gamemakers announce the rule change that allows for two victors, Katniss knows she needs to team up with Peeta. But first she has to find him.

  Your hero doesn’t necessarily need a team to storm the castle, however. Plenty of memorable heroes have stormed a castle on their own. This sub-beat can also be a Gathering of the Tools (strapping on weapons, making plans, collecting supplies, laying out the route, and so on). Before Mark Watney can set out for the Ares 4 site in The Martian, he has to prep the rover and plot his course. This is essentially a preparation section before the hero executes the big, exciting plan they came up with in the Break Into 3 beat.

  Point 2: Executing the Plan

  In this sub-beat, we storm the castle (either literally or figuratively.) The team is assembled, the weapons are strapped on, the supplies are collected, and the route is all mapped out. It’s go time! Mark Watney sets out for the Ares 4 site (The Martian), Louisa boards the flight for Switzerland (Me Before You), Katniss and Peeta defeat the rest of the tributes until they are the only two left in the arena (The Hunger Games).

  As your hero and their team (if they have one) execute the plan, there should be a sense of impossibility in their endeavor. A Can this really work? moment. The plan should at first seem crazy. But then, as the team works together and makes progress, there’s a growing sense of accomplishment. Maybe some quirky secondary characters will “have their moment” here. Maybe some strange skill or device or idiosyncrasy you’ve set up earlier in the book will pay off. But little by little, the plan seems to be working. The team seems to be making progress. Maybe this plan wasn’t as crazy as they thought! Maybe this is going to be—dare they say it?—easy!

  This sub-beat is also where a lot of secondary characters or team members make a B Story Sacrifice, sacrificing themselves for the cause. They start dropping off. Maybe they die, maybe they take a bullet for the hero, or maybe they simply move aside to allow the hero a chance to shine. In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling, after the three kids go down through the trap door looking for the Sorcerer’s Stone, both Ron and Hermione sacrifice themselves so that Harry can reach the final room. This is purposeful. Because with every team member who falls away, the hero is forced to do it on their own—showing us that they really do have what it takes.

  Point 3: The High Tower Surprise

  The hero and their team have executed the plan; they’ve stormed the castle, and all seems to be going well. But you should know by now that in the world of Save the Cat! nothing is ever what it seems. Enter the High Tower Surprise. This sub-beat is named after that moment in a classic fairy tale adventure when the her
o storms the castle to save the princess only to find…surprise! The princess isn’t there! And worse yet, the bad guys have led the hero right into a trap!

  Sure, you may not have literal bad guys or a literal high tower or even a literal princess, but the purpose of this beat is the same, regardless: to show just how overconfident and naïve the hero and their team have become. This plan was never going to work! It was never going to be that easy. After Katniss and Peeta survive the Hunger Games, the Gamemakers announce another rule change: Only one person can win. After Louisa arrives in Switzerland, she still has one last hope that Will will change his mind. He doesn’t. Once Mark Watney reaches the Ares 4 site, NASA tells him about the “invasive procedures” he’ll have to do to the MAV in order to get it off Mars. His reaction: “Are you f*cking kidding me?” (page 330).

  The High Tower Surprise is simply another twist, another challenge to force the hero to really prove their worth. In a way, it’s yet another Catalyst. A curve ball thrown at your hero that they now must figure out how to deal with. And this time, pure effort, brawns, weapons, even smarts won’t get your hero through. Your hero must dig deeper than that.

  Point 4: Dig Deep Down

  If the High Tower Surprise was yet another Catalyst, then the Dig Deep Down is—you guessed it—another Debate! Are you starting to sense a pattern here? Cause and effect. Action and reaction. That’s the underlying pattern of the storytelling code. It’s why the beat sheet works, and it’s what makes stories work.

  This sub-beat is the moment we’ve been waiting for throughout the entire Finale, or—dare I say it?—the entire novel. It’s when the hero has once again seemingly failed (in the High Tower Surprise) and has nothing left. No plan. No backup. No hope. And yet, they still have something. They may not realize it just yet, but there’s something deep down inside of them that will turn out to be the most important weapon of all.

  It’s the theme of the story.

  It’s the flaw they’ve overcome.

  It’s the proof that they’ve changed.

  And above all else, it’s something your hero would never have done at the start of the book. They’ve come a long way since their days as that flawed little caterpillar. It’s time to show us what a beautiful, powerful butterfly they’ve turned into.

  Remember all of those flaws we set up in chapter 1? Remember when I forced you to look at your hero as an imperfect soul in need of transformation, and to think of a small shard of glass that has been buried inside your hero for years?

  Well, now it’s time for your hero to dig deep down and pull out that shard of glass. Remove their flaws at the source and become victorious. This is the memorable moment in The Hunger Games when Katniss prepares to eat the poisonous berries, defying the Capitol and proving once and for all that she’s not a pawn in their games. This is the moment when Louisa finally accepts Will’s choice, realizing that she can’t live anyone else’s life but her own (Me Before You). This is the moment when Mark Watney faces “the real possibility that [he] will die today” (The Martian, page 340).

  This sub-beat is also called a touched-by-the-divine moment. No, your story doesn’t have to be spiritual or religious to have a touched-by-the-divine moment. But your story does have to have a soul. It has to speak to us on some deeper level. And here’s where the hero takes a final leap of faith.

  Point 5: The Execution of the New Plan

  Only now, when your hero has dug deep down to find the truth, removed that shard of glass, and leaped off the bridge with no net to catch them, can we really see them triumph.

  Katniss and Peeta start to eat the berries, but the Gamemakers stop them and announce that they’ve both won (The Hunger Games). Mark Watney blasts off into space in his stripped-down “convertible” MAV (The Martian). Louisa Clark says goodbye to Will (Me Before You).

  In this final sub-beat, your hero puts their bold, innovative, new plan into action—and of course, it works! Because after all that soul-searching and all that transformative effort, we need to know that the human spirit and perseverance do prevail. That’s how we resonate with readers. We take our heroes to hell and back, we make them work for every last victory, we force them to search deep within themselves to find the answers, and only then do we give them the ending they now rightly deserve.

  Or if your hero ultimately fails in the end, then there’s a point to the failure. There’s a human lesson to be learned from that too. It’s better to try and fail than to never try at all.

  So that is the Five-Point Finale. It’s the flashy end to your brilliant, transformative tale. It’s the climactic finish to your stunning fireworks display. It pulls the entire “message” of your story into focus and leaves the reader with something to remember. Something to ponder. Something that resonates deep in their soul.

  Is the Five-Point Finale absolutely necessary? No. I’ve read plenty of novels that are still captivating and engaging with shorter finales that don’t include all five points. Do I recommend at least giving the Five-Point Finale a try? Absolutely! Just like the fifteen beats as a whole, these five sub-beats will help you focus your story and bring it to an exciting and rewarding conclusion.

  Regardless of how you approach it, your Finale should be engaging. It shouldn’t be an automatic win for your hero. Your hero shouldn’t figure out what to do in the Break Into 3 and then just do it—with no obstacles, conflicts, or struggles. Make them work for their transformation. Finales that happen too quickly and with no heroic effort run the risk of getting a review that reads, “Great story, but was tied up too easily in the end.”

  If you put in the extra work to make your third act just as dynamic and turbulent and wrought with action and emotion as the rest of your story, your novel as a whole is going to be elevated to another level. And your very last, final beat is going to feel all the more earned for your hero, your reader…and you.

  15. FINAL IMAGE

  WHAT DOES IT DO? Provides an “after” snapshot of your hero and your hero’s life to show how much they’ve changed.

  WHERE DOES IT GO? 99% to 100% (This is the final scene or chapter of your novel.)

  Well, you’ve done it. You’ve reached the final beat.

  If the Opening Image was the “before” snapshot, then the Final Image is the “after” snapshot. It’s a single-scene beat in which you show us what your hero looks like after this epic transformative journey is complete.

  How far have they come? What have they learned? How much have they grown as a human being? What does their life look like now that they’ve journeyed through the Dark Night of the Soul, faced their demons, ripped out their shard of glass, and come out the other side better and stronger than ever before?

  In Me Before You, we see Louisa sipping coffee in a café in Paris, finally living her life. It’s a far cry from the Opening Image in which she’s trapped in her quiet little English town. In The Martian, we see Mark Watney boarding the Hermes and reuniting with his crew, an exact opposite beat to the Opening Image in which he had just been abandoned by that same crew on Mars. In The Hunger Games, we see Katniss boarding the train back to District 12 with Peeta. She’s no longer the poor girl we met in the first chapter, just trying to get by. Now she’s a victor. And a rebel.

  In this one scene or chapter, the reader should be able to very clearly identify how this story has changed your hero for the better. If the Opening Image and the Final Image aren’t starkly and obviously different, then it’s time to rethink your beats. The farther apart these two versions of your hero are, the more you’ve proved that there was a point to this journey.

  We didn’t just travel in circles. We went somewhere.

  So make it count. Set up a flawed hero in Act 1, take ’em on a wild ride through Act 2, make ’em prove their worth in Act 3, and pay off all your hard work with a Final Image that leaves the reader with only one word floating through their mind:

 
; Wow.

  The Transformation Machine

  So there you have it. The fifteen beats. The Save the Cat! Beat Sheet. The magic.

  The beat sheet is often also called a transformation machine, and you can probably see why. A flawed hero enters on one side and comes out the other side magically transformed! Essentially, the transformation machine is designed to reprogram heroes. To change the way they think, act, and operate. Think of heroes in novels as little robots bebopping around, operating by a strict (and highly flawed) set of programming that causes them to make mistakes. The transformation machine is the process that will crack open those robots and fiddle around with the wiring and programming inside until they can operate properly and can make better choices.

  In the end, that is what all great stories do. They reprogram heroes. They transform human beings. And the beat sheet is essentially your reprogramming manual. It shows you which wires to cut, which code to alter, and in what order.

  Pretty cool, huh?

  But wait! Do the beats have to come in the exact same order that I outlined in this chapter?

  Not necessarily. As you’ll see in following chapters, where I break down ten popular novels into the fifteen beats, every once in a while some of the beats get a little jumbled up. Sometimes the Theme Stated comes after the Catalyst. Sometimes the Catalyst comes so early that the Setup and Debate get mushed together. Sometimes the false victory or false defeat of the Midpoint comes slightly after or before the literal middle of the story. Sometimes the B Story character is introduced in Act 1 but doesn’t actually become important until Act 2.