Chapter 47: The Highs

In this chapter, we’ll be defining three of the high points in your novel that will see your Sleuth deepening her commitment to the case, while getting closer to conquering her Chronic Issue.

First, let’s talk about acts. I like to set up a mystery with five acts: four that take up roughly a quarter of the book each, followed by a baby act—the Denoument—right at the end. Take a look at our sixteen beats, plotted on the chart below.

The end of each act should be a massive high point that makes a big difference to your story. If you figured out your Midpoint in the last chapter, you already know how Act II will end. In this chapter, we’ll be plotting the ends of Acts I, III, and IV. At each of these points, your Sleuth will find that in order to keep pursuing her Acute Issue—the case—she has to get closer to triumphing over her Chronic Issue as well.

To see how this works, we’re going to need Sleuth with a nice, fat Chronic Issue to address.