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You can read about the stages of the Hero’s Journey in more detail here.īefore we go any further, let’s address some questions that writers sometimes raise with regards to the Hero’s Journey and other plot outlines. The greatest battle and most dangerous encounter The hero begins their journey back to everyday life The hero receives some kind of reward for facing their demons

The hero must face great demons, which could be internal or external, or both The hero prepares to battle terrible danger or inner conflict They face various challenges, and make new friends They change location or burn bridges in a metaphorical sense, meaning they cannot simply return to their old life as if nothing has happened They meet someone who gives them advice that will be useful for the coming challenges The hero often has doubts, just wants to stay in their safe existence Something happens to shake up the hero’s everyday life The protagonist is introduced in their normal everyday life However, there’s a high chance that readers will still feel less engaged and emotionally involved. This is an important lesson, because while the diagram above is almost laughable, it might not be so obvious when stages are out of order when using a more advanced structure. Imagine what it would be like to read.Īpplying this distortion to the simplest of plot outline makes it clear why getting the stages out of order can be confusing, unsettling and even nonsensical. Imagine how a reader might feel if you wrote a story with the stages in this order: Using these stages will help ensure the story feels satisfying to a reader. So you may want to expand it into something like this:įor many people, this is enough of a structure on which to hang the main points of their story. End – He manages to stop an evil wizard from stealing an important artefact, and returns home confident and able to stand up for himselfīut that’s simplistic to the point of being of limited use.Middle – He joins a magical school and learns of great friends, enemies and challenges.Beginning – Harry is a bullied orphan living with his aunt and uncle, who mistreat him.The simplest plot outline could be based on the three act structure: Its sticks to the heart of the story – which is usually the personal journey of the protagonist, from who they are at the beginning to who they are at the end.įor some people an outline may simply be a few ideas floating around their head, for others it may be a 50,000 word document.įor our purposes, we’ll assume a plot outline is a written document of a few pages, covering key stages and turning points. It doesn’t list all of the chapters, or everything that happens in them. It sketches out the underlying structure of your novel: its key stages, including critical developments and pivotal moments. It’s the bones on which you hang the flesh, blood, sweat and tears of your story. What are the disadvantages of writing a plot outline?Ī plot outline is like your story’s skeleton.What are the benefits of writing a plot outline?.Evolving the Hero’s Journey / Universal Plot Outline.Who came up with these stages anyway and why should I trust them?.Doesn’t using this set of stages stifle creativity and turn us all into repetitive automatons?.The Hero’s Journey / The Universal Storyline.The Ultimate Guide to Plot Outlines Contents: That’s why we created this plot structures resource to help give you a better idea which direction you’d like to head as you create the plot of your story.Īs well as creating a list of plot templates for easy, practical use, we've also created a detailed guide to what plot outlines are, how they've evolved over time and looking at the advantage and disadvantages of using them.Ĭlick here to skip straight to the plot templates, or read on. We know the drill-your frustration is all too familiar for many beginning writers. You’re ready to start writing, and you’re confused about which plot structure will best fit your story. Maybe you even started writing your outline, but you’re frustrated. You’ve spent a great deal of time developing your characters. You’ve settled on the idea you believe has potential for a great novel.