What is a narrative arc?
A good story keeps readers engaged
What is a writer’s goal? It is not just to put words on a page. Rather, our goal is to connect with our reader. We want to share our ideas and have them impact our reader—to literally change their life in some way. In order to achieve this goal, we must get the reader’s attention and keep it. We want our reader to keep reading. No matter what topic you write about, you must keep the reader engaged. Otherwise, what is the point?
Last week we looked at the timeline, an important tool for starting a book. (If you didn’t read last week’s newsletter, click here to read it—otherwise today’s advice won’t make sense.) A timeline is a chronological list of key events. But a list of events does not a story make. Those events have to be conveyed in a way that captures the reader’s interest and offers them inspiration, instruction or entertainment.
The human brain is hardwired to connect with and remember story. Consider: If someone rattles off a list of facts, or a list of objects, can you remember it?
Now, if someone tells you a story, is it easier to remember? And a good story takes you on an adventure. Things happen. The story has twists and turns, obstacles and excitement. It goes somewhere. The path may be steep and rocky, but the reader can still follow it.
In his book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, Donald Miller reminds us that “a story is a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it.”
(By the way, I highly recommend Don’s book if you want to know more about story. And the book itself is a story of transformation.)
In other words, a story needs a hero, a conflict, a quest. We need to find out if the hero actually gets what they want.
Writers, even if they are writing non-fiction, are storytellers. We use the basic elements of a narrative to hold the reader’s attention and entertain, persuade, or educate.
Last week we talked about a timeline, which will help you remember key events. But the next step in writing is putting the events from your timeline into a narrative arc.
A good story contains the following elements:
Exposition: the set up, characters, setting.
Inciting incident: something happens to the main character, and they must respond. It kicks off their adventure. They must make a choice and there is no turning back.
Rising action: the story builds. This part has twists and turns, turning points, struggles.
Crisis: the situation comes to a head, where again the main character must respond.
Climax: the main character makes a decision that changes everything. They reach the place where they must fight for what they want.
Falling action: after the climax, the story moves toward resolution.
Resolution: The main characters achieve their goal, or they don’t.
Denouement: the loose ends tie up.
If you sketch it out, it looks like this:
Think again of your timeline. Which of those events were conflicts or turning points? Which was an inciting incident—a point where you faced a choice from which you could not turn back? Which event was climactic, a point in which you either achieved your goal, or didn’t?
The ancient fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk has a clear narrative arc, as all good stories do. (You can read a free version here. This version has a few more twists and turns than others, in that Jack makes more than one visit to the giant’s castle)
How does Jack and the Beanstalk fit into a narrative arc? Sort of like this:
Exposition: Once upon a time, a boy named Jack lived with his mother. They were very poor.
Inciting incident: Down to their last resources, Jack’s mom tells him to sell their cow. He must take action, or face consequences.
Rising action (includes the following key turning points): Jack meets a man. He trades the cow for magic beans. His mother, bitterly disappointed, throws the beans out the window. A beanstalk grows overnight. Jack climbs it. Discovers a castle. Sees the giant and his riches. The giant’s wife helps Jack hide and offers him some food.
Crisis: the giant threatens to eat Jack. “Fee, fie, fo, fum! I smell the blood of an Englishman!”
Climax: Jack grabs the golden egg-laying hen and the golden harp and flees.
Falling action: the giant pursues Jack, following him down the beanstalk. But Jack is faster, and grabs an axe to fell the beanstalk. The giant falls to earth.
Resolution: The giant dies. Jack and his mom are no longer poor because of the hen and harp.
Denouement: They live happily ever after.
If you’ve created a timeline for your book, the next step is to figure out where the events on that timeline fit into the narrative arc. I did this for the Jack and the Beanstalk story. Take a look:
Even if you can’t see it yet, your story has a narrative arc. The first step in writing your story is to discover that narrative arc. If you are writing memoir, which is typically a story about a specific period of your life, that part of your life has a narrative arc. If it doesn’t, you probably shouldn’t be writing about it. If your book doesn’t seem to have a narrative arc, and instead is just a list of events, it’s not going to hold readers’ attention.
If you’re writing a novel, this basic structure of course applies. A good story begins with a hero who wants something. Something happens that launches his adventure, and now he’s on a quest to overcome challenges to get what he wants.
And even a non-fiction book follows this same pattern. In fact, each chapter in a non-fiction book should have an arc. Sometimes it’s as simple as stating the problem, offering steps, which lead to a solution, which resolves the problem. (And readies the reader for the next step, in the next chapter.)
If you’re writing non-fiction, the narrative arc has two layers. Because in most compelling non-fiction, the hero is the reader. The writer takes their reader on a journey where they face a problem or decision, and a progression of how to solve that problem.
But there’s a second arc overlaying the first. The author is also the hero—someone who is sharing wisdom gained in her own quest, her own adventure. Her story (even if it’s not a memoir) also has an inciting incident, rising action, climax, etc.
You might structure your book around your own story, steps you took to overcome an obstacle and achieve your quest. For example, if you are an entrepreneur writing about leadership principles, you might use your story as a framework to share with the reader the things you learned as you built a business.
If you want readers to read your book, you must take them on a journey. You must figure out what they want, then invite them to be part of story, one in which they can overcome resistance (which may come from within them) to get what they want. How? Begin with a narrative arc.
Not sure how to structure your story? I offer individualized coaching that can help. And I offer a free 30-minute consultation to help you determine the next step.