Choice of Structure: A Yellow Brick Road for Your Story or Adaptation
- Susanna Bezooyen
- Aug 11
- 4 min read
So, you’ve chosen your medium and genre. You know if you’re writing a sci-fi blockbuster, a half-hour sitcom, or a gritty stage play. Now comes the most critical decision in shaping your narrative: selecting your story structure.
Many writers confuse structure with formatting, but they are fundamentally different. Formatting is simply how the story looks on the page as your audience experiences the narrative—the layout, margins, and technical conventions of a script. It's the visual presentation.
Structure, on the other hand, is the very soul of your plot. It’s the art of assigning specific events to the various plot point positions. A well-designed structure is like a yellow brick road with one step leading to another. Line them up in such a way that, like dominos, one event logically and inevitably triggers the next creating forward momentum that channels the story's emotional energy, ensuring the audience is gripped from beginning to end.
The Universal Pillars of Storytelling
While countless structural systems exist, they are all built upon a shared foundation. My "6+2" system identifies six universal plot points that are in every successful story, plus two more that are almost universal. The terminology may vary between systems, but their function is the same, to create a structure that supports forward narrative momentum. Once you learn to spot them, you'll consistently see them in stories everywhere.
Let's break them down using a timeless classic, The Wizard of Oz:
The Opening (Image/Scene): This first impression establishes the tone, style, and the protagonist's world.
Example: We see Dorothy on a drab, monochrome Kansas farm. It’s a world devoid of colour and excitement, perfectly reflecting her feeling of being stuck.
The Catapult (or Inciting Incident): The event that shatters the protagonist's ordinary world and launches them into the story.
Example: The tornado acts as the final, dramatic catapult, tearing Dorothy's house from its foundation and hurling her from her world into Oz.
The Midpoint: A major turning point around the 50% mark that raises the stakes and often forces the hero to become more proactive.
Example: The Wizard of Oz refuses to help Dorothy and her friends until they bring him the Wicked Witch's broomstick. Their quest becomes infinitely more focused and dangerous.
The Crisis: This is the event where the antagonistic force lands its biggest blow, seemingly defeating the hero.
Example: The flying monkeys descend, capturing Dorothy and Toto and delivering them to the Wicked Witch's castle. The villain has won this battle.
The Pause (The Dark Night of the Soul): This is the "almost universal" point that immediately follows the Crisis. It’s a moment of quiet reflection where the hero processes their massive failure and all hope seems lost.
Example: Trapped in the Witch's tower, Dorothy watches the hourglass run out. Seeing Auntie Em in the crystal ball, she weeps, believing she is truly alone and will never get home. This is her lowest emotional point.
The New Idea: The second "almost universal" point. Emerging from the despair of The Pause, this is a long shot plan—a final, desperate gamble that is the hero's only path forward.
Example: Seeing Dorothy's plight, the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion formulate a plan to disguise themselves as Winkie guards. It's a risky, almost foolish idea, but it's their only shot at rescuing her.
The Climax: The final, decisive confrontation where the hero must use everything they've learned to resolve the central conflict.
Example: During the rescue, the Witch sets the Scarecrow on fire. Dorothy instinctively douses the flames—and the Witch—with water, destroying her foe not through force, but through her inherent desire to protect her friends.
The Closing Image: This final scene mirrors the Opening Image, showing how much the protagonist and their world have changed.
Example: Dorothy wakes up in Kansas, surrounded by her loving family. Though the world is still in black and white, her perspective has been forever colored by her journey. "There's no place like home," she says, finally understanding its true meaning.
From Blueprint to Building: The Power of Pre-Planning
The true power of the 6+2 system is that it’s not just an outline—it’s the foundation for a much larger template. Beginning with these basics gives you an immediate idea of how your story will look, and this foundation is easily malleable.
Before committing to a single path, I recommend creating at least four different structural versions of your story. What if the catapult was a different event? What if the midpoint twist was a betrayal instead of a new quest? Lay out these short versions and see which one you like best.
Once you’ve chosen the most promising version, expand it into a larger template, flushing it out with more detail. There are many structural systems to chose from such as Dan Harmon's 8 point 3-Act structure, or Christopher Vogler's Writer's Journey based on Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, or Blake Snyders 15-point Save the Cat system. Charolette Churchill has used interesting structure for her plays. Find shows that are similar to yours, study the structure and use it as a template if you like. Feel free to insert your four versions into larger structures and compare them. Which one works best?
This preliminary work is an invaluable investment. It allows you to examine your story from a broad, strategic view before spending weeks and months writing. Avoid randomly spending unnecessary amounts of time only to later discover deep structural problems in your story. This can be mitigated with some dedicated pre-planning. A solid structure is your best insurance for creating a story that makes sense, is entertaining, and emotionally impactful.
For more tips and useful information check out the above blog posts, or for personal assistance with your latest project reach Susanna at scriptsbysusanna@gmail.com.
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