Save the Cat! Writes a Novel

by Jessica Brody

A hero is proactive and important and worthy of having an entire novel revolve around them.

But most of all, we create heroes (male and female!) who are destined to be the center of a plot.

A problem (or flaw that needs fixing) A want (or goal that the hero is pursuing) A need (or life lesson to be learned)

They must have at least one major problem—or better yet, lots of them!

And that brings us to a great tip for writing flawed heroes: Don’t let the problem stay contained to just one area of your hero’s life. Let the problem(s) manifest and spread and infect! Your hero’s problem(s) should be affecting their entire world: their work, their home life, and their relationships.

Because if your hero’s life isn’t flawed, what’s the point of the novel? Why do we care? We turn to story to watch characters fix their problems, better their lives, improve upon their flaws. Great novels take deeply imperfect characters and make them a little less imperfect.

your hero also has to want something (badly) and be proactively trying to get it. Your hero knows they’ve got problems.

what does your hero think will fix those problems, or what does your hero think will better their life? (Take note of the emphasis on the word “think”—we’ll be coming back to that later.)

What does my character want in life?

enough. The most effective character goals or wants are concrete and tangible.

it shouldn’t be easy for your hero to get what they want. It should be hard. They should have to work for it.

Now, it’s important to note two things about wants (or goals). First, they can change as the novel goes on. And they often do.

And the second important thing to note is that not all characters actually get what they want.

Because in the end, the want is only half the story. Heroes aren’t complete until they also have a need.

plotting a compelling and engaging novel and crafting a story-worthy hero is a lot like playing psychologist. It’s your job to not only diagnose the real problem in your hero’s life, but cure it as well.

We call that real problem the shard of glass. It’s a psychological wound that has been festering beneath the surface of your hero for a long time. The skin has grown over it, leaving behind an unsightly scar that causes your hero to act the way they act and make the mistakes that they do (flaws!). You, as the author and creator of this world, have to decide how that shard of glass got there. Why is your hero so flawed? What happened to them to make them the way they are? And most important, what will really fix your hero’s life? What does your hero actually need?

Your hero’s want or goal is an integral part of what’s called the A Story. The A Story is the external story. It’s the stuff that happens on the surface.

On the other hand, the B Story is the internal story. It’s the story that’s intricately linked to what your hero needs to learn in order to change their life, complete their transformation, and enter the hall of fame of story-worthiness. The B Story/internal story/need is what your novel is really about.

The true soul of a novel lies in the hero’s need, which can also be called the internal goal, the life lesson, or the spiritual lesson.

The life lesson is the inner journey that your hero didn’t even know they were on, that will eventually lead them to the answer they never expected.

Forgiveness: of self or of others Love: includes self-love, family love, romantic love Acceptance: of self, of circumstances, of reality Faith: in oneself, in others, in the world, in God Fear: overcoming it, conquering it, finding courage Trust: in oneself, in others, in the unknown Survival: including the will to live Selflessness: including sacrifice, altruism, heroism, and overcoming greed Responsibility: including duty, standing up for a cause, accepting one’s destiny Redemption: including atonement, accepting blame, remorse, and salvation

If you’re writing a story with multiple main characters and/or multiple points of view and you’re still having problems figuring out who the hero is, or whose arc is the biggest, try asking yourself, Which of my main characters is most like my reader?

EXERCISE: IS MY HERO STORY-WORTHY? Who is the hero of your story? What is their big problem or flaw (bonus points if they have more than one!). Remember, flaws start internally (from that metaphorical shard of glass) and manifest into external problems in your hero’s life. How is this problem or flaw affecting your hero’s life/world? What is causing this problem or flaw? What is the shard of glass? (Time to psychoanalyze, Dr. Author!) At the start of the novel, what does your hero want? What is their goal? (What do they think will fix their life?) How has your hero been actively pursuing this goal? Why haven’t they achieved this goal yet? (This roadblock can be internal, external, or both!) What does your hero actually need? What is their life lesson? (What will really fix their life?) CHECK YOURSELF! ❏ Does your chosen hero change more than any other character in the novel? ❏ Is your hero’s problem or flaw specific? ❏ Does the hero’s problem or flaw create a desperate need for change? ❏ Is your hero’s goal tangible and concrete? (Will we, as readers, know when or if they achieve it?) ❏ Is there something standing in the way of your hero achieving that goal? (If not, the goal is too easy!) ❏ Is your hero’s need (or life lesson) universal? Would a random person on the street understand it?

A statement made by a character (typically not the hero) that hints at what the hero’s arc will

An exploration of the hero’s status quo life and all its flaws,

show the hero’s reluctance to change (aka learn the theme)

while also hinting at the stakes at risk should the hero not change.

inciting incident

big enough to prevent the hero from being able to return to their status quo

hero debates what they will do next.

“Should I go?”).

accept the call to action, leave their comfort zone, try something new,

new character or characters who will ultimately serve to help the hero learn the theme.

see the hero in their new world.

Succeeding or floundering.

Fun and Games culminates in either a false victory

Something should happen here to raise the stakes and push the hero toward real change.

If the Midpoint was a false victory, this section will be a downward path where things get progressively worse for the hero. If the Midpoint was a false defeat, this section will be an upward path where things seem to get progressively better for the hero.

deep-rooted flaws (or internal bad guys) are closing in.

ALL IS LOST (75%):

pushes the hero to rock bottom.

The hero should be worse off than at the start of the novel.

fix all of the problems created in Act 2, but more important, fix themselves. The arc is nearly complete.

hero proves they have truly learned the theme and enacts the plan they came up with in the Break Into 3.

flaws are conquered,

“after” snapshot of who the hero is after going through this epic and satisfying transformation.

thesis world, or the “status quo” world. It is designed to show the reader of your novel what your hero’s life and world look like before everything starts to change.

Opening Image is an image.

It should be a visual representation of your hero’s flawed life.

something active.