Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet
The Blake Snyder Beat Sheet is the best plot structure template I’ve come across.
It breaks down the three-act structure into bite-size, manageable sections, each with a specific goal for your overall story.
See my review of the Save the Cat books by Blake Snyder (where the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet originated), and buy the book. It’s a great resource!
Below is an explanation of each beat. Please see how it works with graphic novels by visiting Graphic Novel Story Structure. Thanks!
THE BLAKE SNYDER BEAT SHEET (aka BS2)
Opening Image – A visual that represents the struggle & tone of the story. A snapshot of the main character’s problem, before the adventure begins.
Set-up – Expand on the “before” snapshot. Present the main character’s world as it is, and what is missing in their life.
Theme Stated (happens during the Set-up) – What your story is about; the message, the truth. Usually, it is spoken to the main character or in their presence, but they don’t understand the truth…not until they have some personal experience and context to support it.
Catalyst – The moment where life as it is changes. It is the telegram, the act of catching your loved-one cheating, allowing a monster onboard the ship, meeting the true love of your life, etc. The “before” world is no more, change is underway.
Debate – But change is scary and for a moment, or a brief number of moments, the main character doubts the journey they must take. Can I face this challenge? Do I have what it takes? Should I go at all? It is the last chance for the hero to chicken out.
Break Into Two (Choosing Act Two) – The main character makes a choice and the journey begins. We leave the “Thesis” world and enter the upside-down, opposite world of Act Two.
B Story – This is when there’s a discussion about the Theme – the nugget of truth. Usually, this discussion is between the main character and the love interest. So, the B Story is usually called the “love story”.
The Promise of the Premise – This is the fun part of the story. This is when Craig Thompson’s relationship with Raina blooms, when Indiana Jones tries to beat the Nazis to the Lost Ark, when the detective finds the most clues and dodges the most bullets. This is when the main character explores the new world and the audience is entertained by the premise they have been promised.
Midpoint – Dependent upon the story, this moment is when everything is “great” or everything is “awful”. The main character either gets everything they think they want (“great”) or doesn’t get what they think they want at all (“awful”). But not everything we think we want is what we actually need in the end.
Bad Guys Close In – Doubt, jealousy, fear, foes both physical and emotional regroup to defeat the main character’s goal, and the main character’s “great”/“awful” situation disintegrates.
All is Lost – The opposite moment from the Midpoint: “awful”/“great”. The moment that the main character realizes they’ve lost everything they gained, or everything they now have has no meaning. The initial goal now looks even more impossible than before. And here, something or someone dies. It can be physical or emotional, but the death of something old makes way for something new to be born.
Dark Night of the Soul – The main character hits bottom, and wallows in hopelessness. The Why hast thou forsaken me, Lord? moment. Mourning the loss of what has “died” – the dream, the goal, the mentor character, the love of your life, etc. But, you must fall completely before you can pick yourself back up and try again.
Break Into Three (Choosing Act Three) – Thanks to a fresh idea, new inspiration, or last-minute Thematic advice from the B Story (usually the love interest), the main character chooses to try again.
Finale – This time around, the main character incorporates the Theme – the nugget of truth that now makes sense to them – into their fight for the goal because they have experience from the A Story and context from the B Story. Act Three is about Synthesis!
Final Image – opposite of Opening Image, proving, visually, that a change has occurred within the character.
THE END
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Short Notes on Long Comics will show you how three-act story structure is used in 10 of the most popular graphic novels on the market. From their example, you can learn how to structure your own story and make your graphic novel the best it can be.
Thanks so much for explaining this! My sister has the book and references it frequently and won’t let me borrow it. Never have read it but knowing about this beat sheet I was confused when I wrote down the bones but didn’t exactly know what each “beat” was. Now I do.
Thanks for the comment, Kimberly. Glad I could be of help to you and ease the conflict between siblings!
But just so you know, this is a pared down description of the beats. The books go into greater detail and offer more guidance than I have here. I, too, reference both books all the time, so I fully endorse purchasing copies of your own.
Blake Snyder’s Books on Amazon
Thanks, I have had more than one copy of this book pass through my hands from those who just wanted to (ahem) “Borrow it, please?” I had forgotten where to find this.
I’m a novelist and I love Blake Snyder’s books. Before I ever read Save The Cat, though, I’d developed a similar tool of my own, for grappling with revisions of my novels. It’s expanded especially for use in novels (whose structure is more fluid than a screenplay) and it can be found in my book – Nail Your Novel: Why Writers Abandon Books and How You Can Draft, Fix and Finish with Confidence.
This is great! Thanks for providing it, as the book doesn’t seem to be available in my country. It really helps me as an amateur writer, as well as at school. Because I’ve managed to find this earlier on, when I move on to high school, I think the stories I write for my English lessons will be much more well structured and I’ll get higher marks, if God wills.
Excellent! Glad I could help. If you’ve had trouble getting the book in a bookstore, perhaps a retailer of used books through Amazon would be able to ship it to you.
Solid summary…Works like a charm.
Thanks, Mike!
As a student studying scriptwriting, thank you!
My pleasure. Thanks for reading, Ethel!
Thanks! I have two of Blake’s books, but having all of the terms defined in one place is really helpful. Thanks again.
Where I usually have problems is in the in between stuff. For example, what should be happening between THEME STATED and CATALYST, or between CATALYST and DEBATE.
And –what you call catalyst here is a) the inciting incident or b) the point of no return?
Thanks.
That is the tricky part. Plot can only fill so much of the script. In between is where you can focus on what your characters are thinking and feeling, and why they are doing what they are doing.
And, in answer to your question: a)
Hey Tim, is the catalyst also plot point one?
Hey David,
That depends on who you are reading. Some story theorists call the catalyst “plot point one”, while others call break into two “plot point one”. Frankly, a catalyst by definition is “a person or thing that precipitates an event or change” (dictionary.com), so every plot point can be considered a catalyst. However, Blake Snyder uses Catalyst to mean the first BIG event that spurs the character down a path toward transformation.
My friend suggested this book, but until I get it, I’m gonna see if I can work with these “bare bones.” Thanks for posting!
Thanks for the comment. I agree with your friend. I didn’t buy the book at first, either. But after visiting a Barnes and Noble three, four, five times to familiarize myself with the Beat Sheet and the other content, I realized I should just get it. If you find yourself returning over and over to this site, the book has a lot more information to share. As you said, mine is “bare bones”.
Well, I think they look promising.
Hey Tim, for quite some time I’ve valued your analysis on the BS2. Hope you don’t mind but I posted a link to this on Done Deal Pro to help another new writer well on his way to a 300 page, first draft. Of course I credited you for your thoughts. It can be found at http://messageboard.donedealpro.com/boards/showthread.php?t=72333&page=2. I say this with profound appreciation: Wish I’d have seen your analysis before I started writing… take care.
Thanks, MJ
You’re welcome! And thanks so much for the link, MJ.