Introduction

I know we talked about the rising action last week, which encompasses the midpoint, but the midpoint itself is so crucial that we couldn’t just give it a blurb in the previous article. James Scott Bell even wrote a short book, Writing Your Novel From the Middle, to show how crucial the midpoint is in a story. Often, cover designs revolve around midpoint scenes. One thing that is true, based on James Scott Bell’s advice, is that the midpoint often defines the story. While the climax remains what a lot of people remember, don’t discount the tool your midpoint can become.

The midpoint contains three key elements: a reflective moment where the character looks back to realize their past and how it will impact the story going forward, a transition for your character from “reactive” to “active,” and a ramping up of the stakes, tying in what you learned about the rising action section.

We’ll explore all of this today and help you build a strong midpoint for your story.

Background and Context

The midpoint is a critical turning point that occurs around the halfway mark of the narrative. Often, it represents a shift in the story’s direction, stakes, or character development. You want to focus on the midpoint because it’s one of the more important steps to prevent the slump in the rising action. A strong midpoint engages your readers and deepens the narrative complexity.

Midpoints have been a centerpiece in storytelling from ancient epics to modern cinema. Let’s explore how the midpoint impacts the story just a little more in depth.

• Reinvigorate the plot: By introducing new challenges or revelations, midpoints keep the story dynamic and prevent it from stagnating.
• Deepen character arcs: Characters often face pivotal moments that lead to significant growth or change.
• Heighten stakes: The midpoint can escalate the tension, making the eventual resolution more impactful.

Common Misconceptions About Story Middles

Why do we need to talk about midpoints and highlight the asset they are if the midpoint is so critical to the life of a story? In reality, there are still misconceptions about story middles. Some believe the middle of the story is merely a bridge between the beginning and the end. The midpoint actually shapes the narrative’s trajectory and helps the reader transition into the latter part of Act II. Another misconception is that the midpoint requires action-packed scenes. While this is often a reality of midpoints, there are plenty of successful midpoints that embrace subtle scenes, focusing on internal character development or thematic revelations. Don’t just take my word for it:

“At this point in the story, the character looks at himself. He takes stock of where he is in the conflict and–depending on the type of story–has either two basic thoughts. In a character-driven story, he looks at himself and wonders what kind of person he is… The second type of look is more for plot-driven fiction. It’s where the character looks at himself and considers the odds against him.” – James Scott Bell in Write Your Novel from the Middle

Midpoint Reversals

A midpoint reversal occurs in the middle of a story, providing a contrast to the climax. One great aspect of midpoint reversals is their universal application across genres. For example, in a Military Sci-Fi story, the midpoint reversal could be a false defeat where the lead unit is decimated by the enemy and left without resources, seemingly ending their journey. In Where the Crawdads Sing, you’ll find a raised stakes midpoint reversal as Kya’s relationship with Tate Walker is at its happiest. Kya, who has been living alone, is now forced to realize she has more to live for than just herself. This realization makes it clear that how she’s lived in the past won’t work anymore. Here are a few common types of midpoint reversals you might recognize or use:

Types of Midpoint Reversals

False Victory: This is when your characters seemingly achieve a large victory. They either obtain the object of desire or achieve a certain objective. The false victory puts the reader and characters at ease, thinking the hardest part of the story is over. In reality, this often sets up the true defeat in the climactic moment. This is common in disillusionment or destructive arcs and can be a powerful tool for setting up a triumphant comeback in a later book.

False Defeat: This is where the character seems to have received a decisive blow to their efforts. It’s not a true dark night of the soul, but the character questions whether they should continue. It raises the first signs of doubt that the protagonist might not have everything they need to defeat the enemy, obtain the object, or achieve the relationship they’ve always desired.

Major Revelation: A major revelation is a tool that can sometimes feel like a cheat to the reader but is extremely effective when done right. It involves giving your character a significant piece of information, essential item, or a new perspective that changes the entire direction of the story.

Raised Stakes: A raised stakes midpoint reversal occurs when the protagonist’s understanding of who their actions impact changes and expands. It can also involve a shift from a threat of losing money to a potential loss of life. Whatever you use in a raised stakes midpoint reversal, the goal is to keep the reader invested by giving the character more reasons to continue their journey.

With these tools, you should be able to help your pacing of the story by adding that little spark that keeps the reader going. Now, let’s explore the essential elements of your midpoint that you can tie into any of the above midpoint reversals.

The Mirror Moment

The mirror moment is when the protagonist faces their true self. In the midpoint, your character has a moment where they take an honest appraisal of where they are, where they’ve been, and where they want to be. Your character won’t always fully recognize it as such a moment. Sometimes, to them and the reader, it just comes off as some internalization. This moment is crucial because it justifies the protagonist going from reaction to action in the next section of the story.

Elements of Effective Mirror Moments:

1. Internal Realizations: The internal realization is a classic aspect of the mirror moment. You can probably imagine a scene where a protagonist is talking to themselves in a mirror or silently analyzing themselves. The character sees the damage they’ve caused by living in their story lie and considers what will happen if they don’t change. This sometimes comes across quite literally as, “I need to stop reacting and instead always be a step ahead.” For example, Joe Bishop in Expeditionary Forces uses this realization multiple times throughout the series, making it more true to life. While you can’t use it for every book in a series, in a standalone novel, it can be a powerful motivator for the character.
   • Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” speech shows his thoughts on life, death, and himself.
   • Andy Weir brings the internal realization to light in The Martian when Mark Watney realizes he must “Science the shit out of this” to survive mars.
2. Question of Capacity: The question of capacity asks if the protagonist’s capabilities, resources, and mental fortitude are enough to reach the end of the story. How the protagonist views this moment depends on the character you’ve built so far. Some may still struggle to see their talents as the best option for solving the story problem, even if it’s obvious to the reader. Another protagonist might see the problems ahead and think, “Okay, I need to gain a few more skills to be as ready as I can be to face this story problem.”
   • In The Odyssey, Odysseus constantly doubts his ability to overcome obstacles and return home.
   • In Order of the Phoenix, Harry doubts his leadership of Dumbledore’s Army against Voldemort.
3. Confronting Fears/Flaws: The mirror moment is when your character confronts their most basic fears or flaws. If they’re afraid of people depending on them, they’ll have a moment where they keep someone or something safe from the enemy. This is the first clue that they can actually break free from their lie, but they don’t always process it that way. Humans, though there are exceptions, are more likely to minimize their achievements as luck, chance, or anything that takes it out of their control. For fears, many will dismiss it as just being distracted instead of focusing on their fear. Use moments like this in your mirror moment to show the reader that your protagonist is beginning to change.
   • Elizabeth Bennet overcomes her biases against Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, ultimately accepting her love for him.
   • Katniss Everdeen confronts her fear of losing her loves ones and her role as a symbol of rebellion in The Hunger Games.
4. Moment of Truth: The moment of truth can tie closely to the previous section, but it is different in that there is an undeniable truth discovered or presented to the protagonist. The protagonist is forced to face the second half of the story with the truth and can’t go back to their world of safe ignorance.
   • The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows Scrooge the truth about his life and its consequences in Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.
   • The Fault in Our Stars highlights the significance of truth through Hazel’s perspective on her short but meaningful relationship with Augustus.

From Reaction to Action

A common shift found at the midpoint is for the protagonist to grow from reaction to action. This can play out through more than one layer of the story, and should help with the pacing as your character sluffs off some of their passive traits. Now, don’t mistake acting overall as this transition. Your character could have been fighting the bad guys ever since they got thrust into the new world without it being the action we’re speaking about here. All actions after the midpoint should attempt to resolve the story problem, regardless of success or failure. Before the midpoint, the narrative might set up a few things, but essentially, a new world overwhelms the character, who is simply trying to make sense of it all.

A Shift in the Protagonist’s Role and Mindset

As mentioned before, the protagonist experiences a shift from action to reaction, and this can come as a role or mindset. The character’s role evolves from a passive survivor to an active problem-solver. Stephen King’s The Stand offers a great example. Stu initially just tries to survive the aftermath of the superflu. However, as the story progresses, he evolves into a proactive leader for the community of survivors. The role of the leader shifting Stu’s mindset is also clear as it changes how he looks at and responds to situations. The shift doesn’t just happen, and there are a few common components you can find in this shift.

Components of the Transformation

New understanding of the conflict: This part of the transformation is a tool to show your reader how much the character has already grown since they appeared on page one. While the character may not have all the skills/tools for the climax, they are at a much better point than they once were. You can show this by showing their understanding of the conflict growing as compared to the opening of the story. This might come across as the understanding going from an individual level of understanding to how the conflict will impact their community, country, or world. Your character’s level of understanding will depend on your story conflict and themes.

Change in Approach: I’ve heard this referred to as the protagonist trying to do the right thing in the wrong way. They have enough knowledge to act, but not enough to do it correctly. Because if they already have it all figured out, you’re at the climax. The change in approach is another important tool to show your character growth and not just tell your reader that the character is better than they once were. The character’s change in approach is inevitable as they shift from reaction to action. Making it believable and showing what they base their decisions on should be built for the reader to see from the beginning of the book. When done properly, readers will feel like “Of course they would try to do it like that,” even though it clearly won’t work, but it’s what the character understands.

Shift in motivation: Sometimes your character will find a shift in motivation. They may have always had the knowledge needed to act, but weren’t properly motivated. Motivation is a unique thing in that each person can experience a similar situation and come out of the event motivated differently. A person who survives a battle may find themself motivated to continue the fight as more “enemies” are in encampments elsewhere. Meanwhile, that same survivor could have reverted to a hermit lifestyle as they decide that the cost of interacting with people is too high. How your character’s motivation shifts depends on your story, its goal, and your character. Any kind of shift can be powerful if you align it with your story.

Development of agency: The last form of shift we’ll talk about today is the development of agency. This is a focused midpoint where the character literally makes choices they were once avoiding. They may not always be the right choices, but they are choices. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone shows this through the first half of the story by having Harry thrown into the wizarding world. Harry essentially checks all the boxes he’s told to fill. When he discovers the Mirror of Erised and learns about the sorcerer’s stone, he shifts into proactive steps to gain more information and drive the plot forward. The concept of developed agency is a great tool for fish out of water stories where the characters align with the story’s needs.

Writing Exercise: The Mirror Moment

Introduction

In this exercise, you’ll practice crafting a powerful midpoint mirror moment for a character. This is when your protagonist looks deeply at themselves and makes the critical shift from reaction to action.

Setup (2 minutes)

Choose one of these character scenarios or create your own:

• A detective who’s been following protocol but getting nowhere on a case
• A divorced parent struggling to connect with their teenage child
• A new employee facing unexpected workplace challenges
• A fantasy hero who’s survived challenges but hasn’t truly embraced their quest

Step 1: Character Background (3 minutes)

Quickly note:

• What has your character been reacting to in the first half of the story?
• What is their core fear or false belief (their “lie”)?
• What have they been avoiding confronting?

Step 2: The Mirror Moment (5 minutes)

Write the actual mirror moment scene. Include:

• A specific setting where your character has a moment of reflection
• Their honest assessment of their situation and capabilities
• The realization that changes their perspective
• The emotional impact of this realization

Focus on internal thoughts and feelings rather than external action. This is the moment where the character truly sees themselves.

Step 3: Transformation Plan (4 minutes)

Write brief notes on how this mirror moment will change your character:

• What specific actions will they now take instead of reacting?
• How will their approach to the story problem change?
• What new motivation drives them forward?
• What skills or resources will they now actively use that they weren’t before?

Conclusion

The midpoint stands as a crucial narrative pillar that transforms both your story and protagonist. By crafting a powerful mirror moment, facilitating the shift from reaction to action, and implementing an effective reversal, you create a midpoint that propels your narrative forward with renewed energy.

Remember that whether through false victories, revelations, or raised stakes, your midpoint should challenge your character to grow beyond their limitations while deepening the reader’s investment in the journey. Take time to analyze the midpoints in your favorite novels and films, and you’ll discover how this pivotal moment often contains the very essence of what makes those stories resonate long after the final page is turned.

Additional Resources

• Craft books focusing on story structure:
  • James Scott Bell’s “Write Your Novel From the Middle”
  • Lisa Cron’s “Story Genius”
  • Michael Hauge’s “Writing Screenplays That Sell”

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