Self-Editing Tips: The Three Act Structure

As we’re working through our Nonfiction Picture Book Self-Editing Checklist to edit the nonfiction picture book we just wrote, let’s take a minute and double check the structure of our manuscript.

Did you incorporate the Three-Act Structure into your manuscript so that the story is paced effectively?

If you’re not quite sure what I’m talking about, check out this post on my blog here.

Here are some key points to consider:

1) Does your manuscript have 3 significant changes that separate the beginning from the middle from the end and also show the turning point of the whole story? If not, how can you incorporate these changes to make your plot structure even stronger?

2) Does each significant change get bigger and bigger so that the tension is building? If not, how can you up the ante each time and give your MC a bigger mountain to climb on his quest?