Act 2 (Part 1 - Sagging Middle Syndrome)
Why am I going through the acts backward? Because I feel like it. That’s why.
Annnywaaaayy...
Act 2 is where we get to see the bulk of a character’s growth an change. Which makes sense, as it usually takes up about half the book.
Before I get to the actual beats of Act 2 (next post), something I want to point out which was very useful to me when I was learning how to avoid Sagging Middle Syndrome (aka the beginning and end of the story are fine but the middle suuucks or just gets kinda boring). This is, before the midpoint, your character is going to be more reactive. They’re going to have agency, but the story is heavily affecting each of their choices - they’re playing by the rules more or less. After the midpoint, your character is going to be more proactive. Their actions are heavily affecting the story now - they’re thinking outside the box, creating their own rules.
An example of this is the Hunger Games. The midpoint was when Katniss dropped the tracker jackers all over the Careers. It was her emotional turning point from purely defensive toward “oh maybe I can win this.” Before that, through, the rules were: hide, survive, don’t trust people, stay away from the careers or you’ll die. The choices Katniss made were within those rules. After that, through, she teams up with Rue, and goes to blow up the Career’s food to give herself and Rue a shot at winning. By this point, she’s changed the rules.
If you’re getting stuck, think about the rules. In the first half of Act 2, how does your character try to come up with solutions to the problems while playing by the rules? How does playing by the rules get them into trouble? If they test the boundaries a little bit, what happens to convince them to stay within the rules? (ex - at the beginning of act 2, Katniss ran toward the cornucopia to get supplies - somewhat breaking the rules - and nearly gets killed with a knife.)
After the midpoint, think about how your character can break the rules? What consequences does this have? Remember: the rules are there for a reason - your character will achieve more, but breaking the rules means they will also lose more (for example, Katniss loses her hearing in one ear. Rue gets killed).
