As You Read, Fill in the Chart Outlining the Major Conflict Within Your Novel.

In today'southward post, I'm going to prove you how to use the Hero's Journey to map out your novel.

If you aren't familiar with the Hero'due south Journeying, it'southward a popular story structure template that subdivides the offset, middle, and cease of a story into 12 stages. Each of these stages has a specific purpose and serves a item part within your over-arching, global story.

Wait, await, wait—are you lot really going to tell me to utilise a formula to write my book!? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of creative writing?I hear this a lot—and my respond is always no. Knowing how to construction your story does not make your story formulaic.

Think of story structure equally an like shooting fish in a barrel to follow blueprint that volition aid yous write a story that works.It helps you determine the order in which the events of your plot should happen and, maybe fifty-fifty more importantly, the timing of when they should happen. Combine this with a character who needs to change—and does alter—and you lot've got a story worth telling.

The Hero's Outer vs. Inner Journey

The Hero's Journey is a model for both plot and character evolution–as the Hero traverses the world, they'll undergo inner and outer transformation at each stage of the journey.

The outer journey follows the external plot line and includes all of the obstacles that the hero faces during her quest to accomplish her goal. It's all near what your character wants; the tangible goal. Moving through the outer journey is all about overcoming obstacles that prevent them from getting this tangible thing.

The inner journey is all about the hero's emotional evolution–his journey to get what he really needs. He learns and grows because of the obstacles he faces on the outer journey. While the hero undergoes all sorts of adventures and challenges on his outer journey, he also has to undergo some sort of inner turmoil equally well. In other words, it's the emotional path your character needs to navigate so they can grow and change.

For your story to be successful, your grapheme must travel both simultaneously. This creates the conflict and tension that volition move your story forrad and keep readers on the edge of their seats.

At present, without further ado, let's take a wait at how to outline your novel with the Hero's Journeying. For my example, I'll be using a programme of 80,000 words. Feel free to use whatever target discussion count y'all're comfy with as you work through each stride.

Step 1: Divide Your Target Word Count into 3 Acts

The beginning thing we need to do is break downwards our total target word count into three sections—or acts. In full general:

• Human activity 1 "Departure" represents about 25% of the full give-and-take count
• Act 2 "Descent" and Initiation" represents about 50% of the total give-and-take count
• Act three "Render" represents about 25% of the give-and-take count

Then, that means we can break downwards our 80,000-target word count similar this:

• Human action 1 "Difference" (fourscore,000 x .25) = about 20,000 words
• Act two "Descent" and "Initiation" (lxxx,000 x .50) = well-nigh 40,000 words
• Act 3 "Return" (80,000 x .25) = about 20,000 words

Step 2: Split Each Act into a Target Number of Scenes

Now that you know approximately how many words volition make upwards each act, you lot tin split each section into a target number of scenes.

If you don't know how many words per scene you write on average, use a target give-and-take count of i,500 words per scene. I e'er recommend writing scenes between 1,000 and 2,000 words with the sweet spot being around ane,500 words. A 1,500-word scene is long enough to convey what'due south happening and curt enough to hold your reader's attention and make them want to proceed reading.

So, here's how we can break downward each human action into a target number of scenes:

• Act 1 "Deviation" (twenty,000 words / one,500-word scenes) = near 14 scenes
• Human action ii "Descent" and Initiation" (40,000 words / 1,500-word scenes) = most 28 scenes
• Act 3 "Return" (20,000 words / one,500-discussion scenes) = about 14 scenes

Based on the math, our target scene count is 56 scenes. You'll probably detect I rounded up the number of scenes for each act—that's totally okay! I'one thousand showing you lot how to make a plan for your novel—it's not something you have to follow to a tee.

Step 3: Effigy Out Where Each Stage of the Hero's Journey Goes

Now that you know how many scenes go in each act, you can first to effigy out where each of the 12 stages of the hero's journeying will go. (Note: The below percentages represent thejudge locationof each of the 12 stages.)

1. The Ordinary World – 0% to 12%
2. The Call to Chance – 12%
3. The Refusal of the Telephone call – 12% to 25%
4. Coming together with the Mentor – 12% to 25%
5. Crossing the First Threshold – 25%
6. Tests, Allies, Enemies – 25% to 50%
7. Approach to the Inmost Cavern – 50%
8. The Ordeal – 50% to 75%
9. The Reward – 75% to 80%
10. The Road Dorsum – eighty% to xc%
11. The Resurrection – 90% to 99%
12. Return with the Elixir – 99% to 100%

For those of you who are "math-challenged," (don't worry—I am, as well!) you tin either accept your total word count or your total number of scenes and multiply it by the per centum listed in a higher place.

So, for instance, the Call to Adventure occurs around the 12% mark of a story, so y'all'd take the full number of scenes and multiply that past .12 (56 scenes ten .12 = the Call to Adventure occurs around the 7th scene). Yous can also practice this with your full word count (80,000 words x .12 = the Telephone call to Chance occurs around 10,000 words). Personally, I adopt using the number of scenes, only you lot can do any you lot want.

Now, allow's have a look at what our 56 scenes look like in each act, broken out by each of the 12 stages on the hero'south journey:

Each white box represents a unmarried scene. You'll notice some stages merely crave one or ii scenes while others require more than than a few. This is something that really confused me at commencement, just in one case I broke it out visually, it made a lot more than sense. Y'all can download a copy of this Hero'southward Journeying scene map here. As mentioned, this scene map should only be used as a guideline and can be adapted based on the needs of your story.

Ane thing I desire to explain is the general placement of The Ordeal phase. A lot of resources out in that location say that The Ordeal should occur around the Midpoint of the story. In Christopher Vogler'sThe Writer'due south Way: Mythic Structure for Writers,he says that the placement of The Ordeal depends on the needs of the story and the tastes of the storyteller. Basically, there are two options:

Option #1. The Ordeal occurs about the Midpoint. In that case, you'll still need a turning point at the end of Act 2 (where the 2nd Plot Point typically occurs at the 75% mark).

Option #2. The Ordeal occurs near the end of Act 2 (at the 75% marking where the Second Plot Point typically occurs). In that case, you lot'll nonetheless need some kind of trigger point in the center of the story to push your protagonist from a reactive land to a proactive country.

Regardless of where information technology'south placed, every story needs to have a moment that conveys The Ordeal'due south sense of death and rebirth–whether information technology's in the middle of the story or about the end of Act 2.

Stride 4: What Happens in Each Stage?

So, now that y'all accept the guess location of the stages figured out, you lot can start brainstorming what each phase will look similar in your story. As you read through the description of each phase below, write down whatever ideas you have on the downloadable worksheet or in your notebook.

Act ane / Departure

The hero leaves the ordinary world to pursue some kind of hazard.

1. The Ordinary World – The reader meets the hero in his or her every twenty-four hour period, relatively safety, life. The hero is usually introduced sympathetically so that the audience tin identify with his or her electric current situation, worldview, and problem. This section usually includes some kind of Hook–or something to pique the reader's interest and get them to read by the offset few pages.

2. The Phone call to Adventure – Something happens that upsets the balance of the hero's life and presents a challenge or call to adventure. This is the Inciting Incident of the story, and it can either exist causal (a result of an agile pick made past your character) or coincidental (something unexpected, random, or accidental happens).

3. The Refusal of the Call – Sometimes the hero experiences hesitation in answering the call to chance or he or she outright refuses. In this case, some other influence–a change in circumstances, a further crime against the natural social club of things, or some encouragement from a mentor–is needed to get the hero past their initial reluctance and fear.

4. Meeting with the Mentor – When the hero needs a kick in the pants to become going on his or her adventure, the Mentor comes in to help. The Mentor's job is to set up the hero for the unknown. Sometimes this includes grooming the hero, giving him or her equipment, knowledge, or advice that will help him or her on the journeying. The Mentor sometimes accompanies the hero on part of the journeying, but can but become so far before the hero must venture out alone.

v. Crossing the First Threshold – At this betoken, the hero should be fully committed to the take chances ahead. He or she will get out the ordinary world and enter into the extraordinary world full of unfamiliar rules and values. Also called the First Plot Point, this moment marks the end of the starting time (Human action 1) and brings us into the heart (Act 2) of the story.

Human action two / Descent and Initiation

The hero ventures into an unfamiliar earth where he or she makes friends and enemies and encounters various trials and challenges.

6. Tests, Allies, and Enemies – Once the hero enters the extraordinary world, he or she will brand friends and enemies, encounter various trials and challenges, and begin to learn the rules of this new and unfamiliar place. This is a key fourth dimension for character development because we get to run across how the hero and his or her companions react under the stresses of existence in a new and unlike place. This series of tests and complications are what form the bulk of Human action 2, culminating in the midpoint, where the protagonist learns or finds out something important, pushing them from a reactive state to a proactive state.

7. Approach to the Inmost Cave – The hero approaches the most dangerous place in the boggling globe where something he or she wants is subconscious (the object of the quest). The approach phase covers all the preparations for inbound this fearful place including gathering his or her team, their supplies, weapons, and tools, etc.

8. The Ordeal – One time the hero enters this dangerous place, he or she volition face up challenge later on claiming until finally, they come into a confrontation with the antagonist or their greatest fearfulness. The hero must depict upon all of his or her skills and experiences gathered during the "approach" phase in order to overcome the well-nigh difficult claiming yet. Only through some class of death and rebirth (whether literal or metaphorical) can the hero transform into a new version of themselves who is capable of defeating the adversary. Usually, this death and rebirth grants the hero a greater power or the insight necessary to fulfill his or her destiny or to reach the end of the journey. The Ordeal can occur around the Midpoint of the story or closer to the end of Deed ii depending on the needs of the story and the tastes of the storyteller.

9. Advantage – If the hero successfully overcomes his or her Ordeal, he or she can finally have possession of the Reward. The Reward tin can come in many forms–it can be an object of great importance or power, a surreptitious, greater knowledge or insight, or even reconciliation with a loved one or an ally. Whatever the Reward is, it propels the hero to the climactic moment and gives him or her the cardinal to surviving information technology.

Act iii / Return

The hero returns to the ordinary globe a changed human being or woman.

x. The Route Back – The hero is driven to consummate the adventure past either returning to the ordinary world or continuing to some other destination. The route dorsum signifies the shift into Act iii where the hero must deal with the consequences of confronting the nighttime forces in The Ordeal. Frequently this stage includes a chase scene to reinforce the danger and urgency of the mission.

xi. Resurrection – At the Climax of the story, the hero must take his concluding and nearly dangerous encounter with death. This terminal boxing with the antagonist has higher stakes and is more than difficult than annihilation he or she has faced earlier. The purpose of this final test is to see if the hero has actually learned the lessons of the journey and if they have transformed into a new person with new insights and capabilities.

12.Return with the Elixir – The hero returns home a inverse man or woman. They will have grown as a person, learned many things, fabricated new friends and enemies, faced many terrible dangers, and even expiry, simply now look frontward to a new phase in life. Their render may bring fresh promise to those left backside, a direct solution to the town'due south issues, or maybe a new perspective for everyone to consider.

Final Thoughts

And then, there you have information technology—my method for outlining a story using the 12 stages of the Hero'southward Journeying!

If this structure resonates with you, I recommend purchasing the bookThe Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers past Christopher Vogler, orThe Hero with a G Faces by Joseph Campbell—both of which go into way more particular than I can practise here.

And if this doesn't resonate with you—that's okay too! There'due south no "right" way to plot out a novel. Cheque out these other popular plotting methods to find one that works for you lot:

• How to Outline Your Novel with the Three Act Structure(coming soon)
• How to Plot Your Novel with the Salvage the Cat! Trounce Sheet
• How to Plan Your Novel Using the Plot Embryo(coming soon)

For self-study, I encourage you to map out the 12 stages of the Hero's Journey in one of your favorite books or movies. Or for a book or movie that'southward about like the story you want to write. Doing this will help you see the stages of the Hero'southward Journey in action, giving you a ameliorate understanding of how you can use this structure in your own stories!

👉 Let's discuss in the comments:What are your thoughts on the Hero's Journey?Have y'all ever used the Hero's Journeying to plot out your novel? Did this commodity help you gain a improve understanding of story structure?

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Source: https://www.savannahgilbo.com/blog/plotting-hero%27s-journey

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