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Save the Cat! Building Act One




If you haven't checked out my last two blog posts and aren't familiar with the Save the Cat method, I highly recommend you begin there. If you've been following this writing journey with me, welcome back! As always, there is a link at the bottom of this blog to my Amazon Storefront if you would like to purchase Save the Cat! Writes a Young Adult Novel.


Before we jump in, I want to do a quick recap of A and B stories, as that will play a key role in what we discuss.


A Story: The plot and the flashy stuff that's happening on the surface and on the outside.


B Story: The internal story and what is happening to your hero on the inside while the flashy stuff is occurring.


According to Brody, "These two stories weave and blend and twirl in a beautiful romantic dance called 'structure'... without the carefully chosen elements of your plot, your hero would never transform. And without a hero who needs to transform, there would be no reason for your plot" (Brody, 30).


Basically, the A and B stories are like peanut butter and jelly. They're both fine on their own, but when they come together, they become a masterpiece of deliciousness and a party in your mouth.


Today, we are going to focus primarily on the A story.


Most stories have a three act structure. Act One involves the setup of the story, Act Two fleshes out the confrontation within the story, and Act Three captures the resolution of the story.


There are many different story structures out there (seriously, like there are a gajillion versions out on the interweb), but most of them follow the three act structure.


One of these versions is the Save the Cat! method. Please don't follow this religiously. We are writers, so it's important we bend the rules in creative ways; however, we can't bend the rules if we don't know what they are. For the purpose of this blog series, we are learning the basics of the Save the Cat! structure.


The Save the Cat! Beat Sheet is a roadmap that "tells you where the turning points are, where the ups and downs in the road are, where to stop to rest and where to rev the engine" (Brody, 30). AKA, the A story. The beat sheet also acts as "your guide to crafting a character transformation that resonates" (Brody, 30). What does that sound like? Your B story!


The Save the Cat! beat sheet is "broken down into three 'acts' (or parts), which are further divided into fifteen total 'beat' (or plot points)" (Brody, 31).


This blog will focus on Act One of the beat sheet: Establishing the thesis world or status quo.


Act One's purpose is to "give your hero a place to begin...and to give your readers a solid understanding of who your hero is and what their life is like before the epic transformation that awaits them" (Brody, 36).


This happens through the following 5 guideposts of Act One:


  1. Opening Image

  2. Theme Stated

  3. Setup

  4. Catalyst

  5. Debate


The Opening Image is a single-scene beat (one chapter) that captures the essence of the world in which a story begins with a quick snapshot (Brody, 38). This chapter grips the reader's attention and compels them to read further. Since the A story must be tied to the B story, make sure to "capture your hero's flawed existence in one snapshot" (Brody, 37).


Be sure to drop the reader right in the middle of an active scene. Don't just explain the world and characteristics of your hero. Show these characteristics.


The opening chapter in Beggar's Byway begins with Caete (the hero) dangling from her trapeze obsessively practicing a dangerous act for a circus performance the upcoming evening while her pet albino tiger gnaws on the leg of its handler in the circus ring down below. Caete is unable to help the animal handler, and tries to tame the tiger from the air.


What do you think? Does this capture your attention and compel you to read more?


Take a look at your opening scene.


Does it hook the reader's attention from the first sentence? Is your character doing something that showcases the world they are in? Can your reader understand in a quick snapshot something specific about your character, their desires, and their flaws?


If not, have no fear. That is where editing comes in. I have tweaked my opening scene of The Astertalla Chronicles probably a hundred times to capture the essence of the story, world, and characters within it.


Next, we'll take a look at the second beat: Theme Stated.


This is a single-scene beat wwthat "briefly hints at the transformative journey that your hero will take and the flaw(s) they will eventually conquer" (Brody, 39). It is recommended to use a secondary character, though not a requirement. Remember: it's okay to bend the rules, just make sure you understand why the rules are there.


Please don't channel your inner Hallmark screenwriter and make the theme super apparent and spoken by the grandparent figure while making sugar cookies. I have nothing against Hallmark movies (in fact, I absolutely love them from Thanksgiving to Christmas). Just make sure to share the theme in subtle ways that a reader won't pick up on in the moment, but they will remember after they finish the book. Be sure to show how the hero responds to the theme since this will act as a milemarker for their B Story after a reader finishes the book and looks back at how it started. (Brody, 42).


In Beggar's Byway, the theme is stated when Caete is trying to convice her trapeze partner to get up early and practice with her. He says, "You really need to live a little." Caete responds with, "I'll do that when I'm old and gray. For now, we need to practice." Little does Miss Overachiever and Workaholic Perfectionist know that she will have to embark on the journey of a lifetime over the course of the book.


The third beat in Act One is the Setup.


The Setup occurs over multiple scenes and expands upon the initial snapshot you gave in your Opening Image. Be sure to reveal your A Story characters (the characters that play a major role in your hero's world). You'll also want to show your character's A Story goal and how they are working to attain that. What are the barriers against your character achieving that goal? What are the consequences if they don't achieve that goal?


What about your character's shard of glass? How is it revealing itself within the Setup? Is there a moment where your hero 'saves a cat' or establishes empathy with the reader?


"These things are not just thrown into the Setup willy-nilly. They serve a very important purpose. They become checkpoints along the journey...if enough items on this list are not resolved [by the end of the book], we're not doing enough to transform our hero and their world" (Brody, 44).


My favorite tip Brody gives in this beat is to establish a character's life at home, work, and play through partial or full scenes (Brody, 45).


  • Home=the hero's homelife, where and how they live, what their family dynamic is like

  • Work=what the hero is forced to do everyday

  • Play=what the hero does for fun, how they unwind, who they hang out with, and what their social life is like

The Setup in Beggar's Byway introduces many of the circus performers, reveals the personalities of Caete and her twin brother Jae, hints at the growing danger in the villages they are traveling through, and shows how a past mistake is torturing Caete.


While Caete doesn't literally save a cat, she does try to save the animal handler with his leg getting gnawed on by her cat (erm ... tiger).


Two more beats to go in Act One!


The Catalyst is beat four and could also be called an inciting incident.


A Catalyst is an event or occurrence that happens that is completely unexpected that changes the course of your hero's life forever.


This single-scene beat must be strong enough that it would be impossible for a character to "go back to the way things were before and pretend it never happened" (Brody, 47).


This is a major element of the A Story, so make sure the Catalyst occurs outside of the character and not just within the character's mind (Brody, 49).


The Catalyst in Beggar's Byway occurs when Caete is performing the toughest performance of her life, attempts a quadruple somersault in the air, misses the jump, and unknowningly uses magic to bring her to safety. The fact that Caete has magic and reveals it to an entire audience sparks a long and dangerous journey to master her magic that she didn't even know she had in a world that fears magic. There is no possible way she could just ignore it and try to live a normal life.


Lastly, The Debate is the final multi-scene beat in Act One where a character reacts to the Catalyst, processes it, and debates what to do next (Brody, 49).


This is very important to the storytelling process because "people rarely change overnight or make big, life-changing decisions without at least taking a moment to reflect on the situation" (Brody, 50).


Sometimes, the Debate includes "a preparation for what happens next, in which the hero mentally, physically, or emotionally prepares for the next beat" (Brody, 50). You can even take your character back to their home, work, and play to show how the Catalyst has changed their status quo and the impossibility of returning to a normal life.


In Beggar's Byway, Caete and her brother Jae process her magic briefly before they stumble upon an elf dressed in black, Devlin, who noticed her magic in the circus and alters the course of their world even more by inviting them on a quest to deliver a letter to the human king for their long-lost aunt. They then have to process not only Caete's magic, but also the fact that their aunt is alive and needs their help. With caution, they decide to agree to Devlin's request due to his promise to train Caete in her magic along the way. Their desperation to get Caete's magic under control trumps their wariness of Devlin and his strange request.


There you have it, folks. Act One is complete!


Stay tuned for my next blog post on Act Two, and thanks for going on this writing adventure with me.



Reference:

Brody, Jessica, and Blake Snyder. Save the Cat! Writes a Young Adult Novel: The Ultimate Guide to Writing a YA Bestseller. Ten Speed Press, 2023.

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