Dan Harmon’s Story Circle

It comes as a surprise to some people that a lot of #authors are visual learners. And even if you aren’t a visual learner, sometimes getting away from ✨ yet more words ✨ and into a more simplistic medium can really help you home in on the most important elements of your story.

Enter The Story Circle. It was designed by Dan Harmon, creator of TV shows Community and Rick and Morty, and like #savethecat, it was originally created for screenplays but works beautifully for novels as well (because they’re both still secretly 3 act structure but 🤐). It’s become popular among #writers *because* it is simplistic, which makes it easy to understand and apply.

Imagine a pie (shout out to my #RevPit peoples!) cut into 8 equal slices, and each slice represents a section of your novel. Starting at the top and moving clockwise, The Story Circle follows the main character through 8 steps of their story:

1. The MC is in their comfort zone

2. But there’s something they want

3. So they enter an unfamiliar situation

4. They have to adapt quickly

5. Through their actions, they get what they want.

6. But they pay a heavy price for it

7. They return “home”

8. But they’ve changed

If you’re struggling with your story structure or figuring out the most important points of your plot, give The Story Circle a try. Tomorrow, I’ll share an empty visual template for you to use!

5 Notes Story Circle:

1. Story Structure template created by Dan Harmon, creator of the television shows Rick & Morty and Community.

2. Has become popular due to its simplistic form.

3. Follows a character arc in 8 steps.

4. 1. MC in their comfort zone ➡️ 2. Wants something ➡️ 3. So they enter an unfamiliar situation ➡️ 4. Adapts to situation ➡️

5. 5. Gets what they want ➡️ 6. Pays a price for what they want ➡️ 7. And returns home ➡️ 8. Having changed.

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If you’re working on your own story, and you’re still working on 3 Act Structure and you’re struggling to break down your story into story beats, download my free resource Harness Your Inner Editor, Drafting 2.0, which includes a 3 Act Structure worksheet.

If you’re ready for the NEXT STEPS in your revisions, or if you want to get your manuscript into shape quickly, you can check out my brand new resource, Top Down Revising: A Quick Start

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As always, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter, Instagram, or via the contact sheet link above on the website if you have any questions about 3 Act Structure or any other writing topics. I love to chat with writers!