I am at the point in my new spec that I just want to quit—the dreaded second act. I find this to be the worst part because it takes so much effort for me to connect the dots in order to tell the story I want. Even though I outline, and even though I'm a professional, this stage still sucks and proves to be a challenging hurdle for my story craft. So, what do I do when I get to this point? I have five trusty tips I always go back to that help me crack Act Two. So, I figured, why not share them with you today?Let's dive in. 1. Raise the StakesThis can feel like such an amorphous statement, but it's a crucial one. When I get into act two, the first thing I do is make the stakes higher. That involves a bit of the following: Introduce Complications: Act One set up your protagonist's goal. Act Two is about throwing obstacles in their way. The more difficult the challenges, the higher the stakes in the story.Increase the Pressure: Make your protagonist's problems time-sensitive, or build towards a looming deadline. This adds tension and urgency.Force Difficult Choices: Put your character in dilemmas where every option comes with a cost. This raises the stakes and reveals their true nature.The reason I do all of this is that it usually informs the kind of scenes I need to write. Are they big set pieces or just characters talking? Usually a...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Tuesday, 16 April