The eight-point story arc, a concept in Nigel Watts’ book “Write a Novel (And Get It Published),” introduces how a writer can bring a character from their everyday life to a new normal after having learned something.
The eight points in the arc
- Stasis: this is the characters’ everyday
- Trigger: something happens outside their control
- Quest: they now have a purpose to fulfill
- Surprise: things happen along the way
- Critical choice: characters will need to make difficult decisions
- Climax: surprises and choices lead the characters to a high point in tension
- Reversal: characters learn from the story and become heroes
- Resolution: characters find a new stasis and resolve all tensions
For more information on the eight-point arc, you can watch this video, or read this article.
In the infographic below, I’ve applied the 8 steps to a simple story of two adorable insects just trying to get by in the cruel world.
Science notes!
Izzie is a banded woolly bear (Pyrrharctia isabella), which turn into the Isabella tiger moths. Orek is a European rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes nasicornis). Both are herbivorous, with Izzie eating a wide range of plants and trees (unlike many caterpillars who are very picky eaters) and Orek eating mostly fruit and sap (unlike the youth of the rhino beetles which eat vociferous quantities of rotting wood). The adorable evil bird is an American bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus), which eat insects like Izzie and Orek. Not this time, bird, not this time.
I used insect information from several sources including the following:
EXSM 3989 - Digital Storytelling Class Blog 