Chapter Six
The Hero’s Journey
Implementing the Classic Storytelling Model
All stories—whether you’re entertaining your friends at the watercooler with a story about the bachelorette party you attended in Las Vegas or amusing your child with a bedtime fairy tale—are made up of three parts: beginning, middle and end. The three-act structure is the classic storytelling model: from “Once upon a time” to “happily ever after,” and all the good stuff in between.
Once you understand and begin implementing the basic three acts, you can then refine the structure further. One way to do this is by following the hero’s journey, in which the main character undergoes a meaningful transformation over the course of the narrative. But before we dive into this approach, let’s explore the three-act structure at its most basic level.
EXPLORING THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE
Breaking down a story into three acts is the first step in plotting. Beginning, middle, end: These are terms we’ve heard and used all our lives, but defining them in regard to storytelling is not as simple as you might think.
- The Beginning: The beginning of your story is the point at which everything is about to change. It’s the first step of the journey, the first fork in the road, the first turn in the right (or wrong) direction. The beginning is “Once upon a time, there was protagonist X—and then Y happened, changing everything for X.”
- The Middle: In the middle, X must overcome the obstacles, master the skills, and learn the lessons needed to brave the ultimate test: Y Squared, the climax of the story (which will come at the end). The middle is the meat of the story, in which all the twists and turns and detours on the journey home to the end challenge X to be his best—or worst—self.
- The End: If X survives the middle, he’s ready for the end. It’s as if your protagonist has trained for the Olympics, and now all the obstacles he has overcome and skills he has mastered and lessons he has learned have armed him for the final contest, which is the mother of all trials and tribulations: Y Squared. Y Squared is X’s worst nightmare—and to survive, X needs to become his best self, once and for all.
Let’s take a look at how that breakdown works in two archetypal stories that are very different from one another—in length, genre, origin, audience, and so on—and yet structurally have much in common.
Cinderella
This classic fairy tale remains one of the most popular stories of all time. It gives us a likable heroine in Cinderella, a determined and cruel villain in the wicked stepmother, and perfectly mirrored secondary characters in the two ugly stepsisters.
Act One (Beginning): Cinderella’s wicked stepmother won’t let her go to the ball.
Act Two (Middle): The Fairy Godmother helps Cinderella get to the ball in style, where she meets Prince Charming, falls in love, and loses the glass slipper.
Act Three (End): Cinderella is forced back into a life of servitude. Prince Charming shows up with the glass slipper and slips it on Cinderella’s foot for a perfect fit. They get married and live happily ever after.
Star Wars
Star Wars is an epic tale of grand scope, but at its heart it’s a coming-of-age story about a young man looking for adventure—and finding himself.
Act One (Beginning): When Princess Leia is captured, she sends out a plea for help. After his aunt and uncle are murdered, Luke Skywalker answers Leia’s call—and joins Obi-Wan to rescue the princess and destroy the Death Star.
Act Two (Middle): Luke becomes a Jedi knight under Obi-Wan’s tutelage. Together they enlist the help of Han Solo and Chewbacca to rescue Princess Leia.
Act Three (End): The rebel forces plan their attack on the Death Star. During the conflict, Luke must trust the Force in order to destroy the Death Star.
REFINING THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE
Once you’ve determined the basic beginning, middle, and end of your story, you can build your plot by breaking each of those three acts into smaller units. One way to refine the three-act structure is by incorporating the hero’s journey. This is a character-driven approach that describes the transformation the protagonist must experience over the course of the story. If you prefer reading and writing character-driven stories, the hero’s journey approach may resonate with you. Or, if your story is plot driven and you know your characters could use some development, looking at your story as a hero’s journey may help you create more well-rounded characters.
Famed mythologist Joseph Campbell introduced the journey of the archetypal hero in his seminal work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Campbell defines the hero’s journey as a story in which the protagonist embarks on an adventure and faces trials and revelations that demand everything of him. He rises to the challenge and is transformed in the process.
THE HERO’S JOURNEY, STEP BY STEP
The hero’s journey comprises three acts, and each act is made up of the steps the hero must undertake on a journey that will change him irrevocably and make him whole.
The steps of the hero’s journey represent the stages of the hero’s transformation. Let’s examine this transformation step by step. (Note: There are various terminologies for the steps of the hero’s journey. Here, I use a simple, updated transformational terminology for modern stories.)
Act One (Beginning)
The Status Quo: When we meet our hero, we see him in his everyday world, before he undertakes the journey that will change his life.
The Catalyst: This is the event that calls for our hero to act, leave his everyday world behind, and embark upon a journey into the unknown.
Denial: Typically our hero balks at this call to adventure and rejects the opportunity outright—often out of fear or hesitation or pride.
Encounter with the Guru: Every hero needs a mentor, someone whose knowledge and wisdom are vital to the hero’s transformation. This sage adviser can help him navigate the twists and turns of life and, most important, the hazardous journey ahead.
Acceptance and Action: This is the event that prompts the hero to change his mind and accept the new reality of his life. He decides to act, which means leaving his everyday world behind and crossing the physical and psychological threshold into a new world.
Act Two (Middle)
Trials and Tribulations, Friends and Foes: In this new world, our hero encounters the people who will aid him along his journey—and those who will thwart him. The tests that challenge him will help him determine friend from foe.
The Edge of the Abyss: Now our hero is poised at the edge of the second threshold, but before he crosses it, he must regroup, rest, and plan his next course of action.
The Plunge: The hero takes the plunge into the abyss, facing his greatest fear in a confrontation with death—literal or metaphorical.
The Payoff: Having survived the abyss, the hero earns his prize.
Act Three (End)
The Way Through: At this point in the story, the hero is on the road back to prepare for the biggest test of all. He may be running from the forces unleashed in Act Two—which is why the way through is often a chase scene.
The True Test: This is the final test, the one in which the hero must prove that he has truly learned his lesson.
Return to the New Normal: Our hero comes home, transformed by his journey, with his reward—physical and metaphorical—in hand.
Let’s refine the three acts of Star Wars using this approach. Notice how the stages of the hero’s journey are slightly out of order in Star Wars. This demonstrates that the steps of the journey do not necessarily have to appear in the exact order outlined above, nor do they all have to appear in your story. The hero’s journey is meant to be used as a guide, not a straightjacket.
Act One (Beginning)
The Status Quo: Luke Skywalker is bored at home on the farm with his aunt and uncle.
The Catalyst: Luke finds a message from the kidnapped Princess Leia.
Encounter with the Guru: Luke meets Ben, a.k.a. Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Denial: Obi-Wan offers to train Luke as a Jedi knight, but Luke refuses.
Acceptance and Action: Stormtroopers kill Luke’s family, and he begins his training as a Jedi knight.
Act Two (Middle)
Trials and Tribulations, Friends and Foes: Luke travels with Obi-Wan, C-3PO, and R2-D2 to the cantina and meets Han Solo and Chewbacca.
The Edge of the Abyss: Luke and the team board the Death Star to save the princess.
The Plunge: Luke encounters a series of ordeals, including the monster in the sewage, the collapsing trash room, attacking stormtroopers, and so on.
The Payoff: Luke saves the princess.
Act Three (End)
The Way Through: Luke and company evade Darth Vader and go home to prepare for the attack on the Death Star.
The True Test: Luke uses the Force to destroy the Death Star.
Return to the New Normal: Luke comes home to a hero’s welcome.
The hero’s journey approach to the three-act structure is a classic storytelling model that outlines the hero’s transformation (or dramatic arc) in the same way that humans have been telling these stories for millennia. Outline your hero’s transformation according to the hero’s journey and your story will resonate with readers, just like the myths of old.
Using the Hero’s Journey in Your Own Work
To identify the steps of the hero’s journey in your story, ask the following questions, stage by stage.
Act One (Beginning)
- The Status Quo: What constitutes your hero’s ordinary world? All work and no play? Single and looking for love in all the wrong places? Stuck in the suburbs dreaming of Paris?
- The Catalyst: What happens to wake up your character? Does he get fired? Flunk an exam? Find out his wife is having an affair? Get kidnapped? Get dumped? Murder his boss? Meet a cute girl? Get a new job offer out of town?
- Denial: Does your heroine act on this catalyst right away? Or balk? What excuses does she come up with to ignore what’s happening? Why does she fail to act?
- Encounter with the Guru: Who’s your hero’s mentor, adviser, or confidante? His mother? His boss? Sibling? Best friend? Pastor? Neighbor? Co-worker? How does this person guide your hero?
- Acceptance and Action: What happens to change your heroine’s mind? Why does she accept what’s happening and decide to act now? What does she do? Where does she go? What new world must she enter?
Act Two (Middle)
- Trials and Tribulations, Friends and Foes: Who does your hero meet on his journey, in this new world? Who are his friends? His foes? How do they help—or hinder—him? What new skills must he master? What lessons must he learn? What obstacles must he overcome?
- The Edge of the Abyss: What’s the big challenge that faces your heroine now? How will she prepare for it—mentally, physically, and spiritually? What are her plans?
- The Plunge: What plunge does your hero take? Does he risk declaring his love? Storming the castle? Righting a wrong? What fears must he overcome? How does he confront death—literally or metaphorically?
- The Payoff: How is your heroine’s brave plunge rewarded? Fame? Fortune? Sex? Love? Commitment? What’s her Holy Grail?
Act Three (End)
- The Way Through: Who’s chasing your hero now? Are your hero’s enemies or demons hot on his heels? How will your hero prepare for the next test, the biggest one of all?
- The True Test: What is the test that will prove once and for all that your heroine has truly learned her lesson? How will she pass this test? Why will she pass?
- Return to the New Normal: What is the symbol of your hero’s victory? A diamond ring? A crown? A Swiss bank account? Now that your hero is home safe and sound, his transformation complete, how will he celebrate that transformation? A wedding? A reunion? A graduation? Keys to the city? An island getaway in the Caribbean?