The previous article in this Editor’s Guide to Save the Cat! Story Structure gave an overview of the fifteen beats that make up the Save the Cat Beat Sheet, following Jessica Brody’s Save the Cat! Writes a Novel (SCWN). The next nine articles, starting with this one, will examine these beats in more detail. The present article discusses the primary elements of the Setup, which includes the Opening Image and Theme Stated beats.
However, before getting started, I’ve provided a brief overview of how Act 1 should play out, just because I feel that the advice given in SCWN is a little too rigid and not quite as clear as it could be.
Overview of Act 1
If a story were to follow the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet to the letter, Act 1 would take up the first 20%, as illustrated in the chart below:
However, in practice, Act 1 might comprise 10% of a story, particularly if the author chooses to introduce the Catalyst as early as possible to hook readers. On the other end of the scale, as an extreme example, Act 1 of The Lion King ends at the film’s 48% mark.
Note: As shown in the above chart, I consider the Break Into 2 to be the last beat in Act 1, even though Brody considers it the first beat in Act 2. I’ll explain my reason for this in more depth in Part 4 of this series. But the short version is that the Break Into 2 moment typically occurs during the last scene of the Debate, and, to me, it doesn’t feel right to put an act break in the middle of a scene.
Act 1 contains six beats (according to me; five according to the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet) and can be divided into two parts. The first part—which is the topic of the current article—comprises the multi-scene Setup, along with the Opening Image and the Theme Stated.
The Catalyst (to be discussed in Part 3 of this series) either disrupts the status quo world (SQW) or removes the hero from it. This beat signals the split between the two parts of Act 1.
Then, the hero spends the second part of Act 1 in the multi-scene Debate beat (discussed in Part 4 of this series) debating how to proceed with their new and unexpected situation. This debate is concluded in the Break Into 2 (also discussed in Part 4), when the hero makes their final decision about how to deal with the change caused by the Catalyst.
Two Basic Types of First Acts
One issue I have with Save the Cat! Writes the Novel is that it doesn’t accurately portray the flexibility of Act 1. It seems to tell writers that there is only one way this act can unfold. But that just isn’t the case.
In a very general sense, there are two ways in which Act 1 can play out (there are others, but they are relatively rare, so I don’t discuss them here). Almost all heroes spend the Setup in their SQW, which is disrupted when the Catalyst occurs. But you have a choice regarding what happens to the hero during the Catalyst and, subsequently, the Debate. This choice leads to two different types of Act 1s.
I think it’s really important to recognize that you have this option because SCWN is misleading in this regard. The very first sentence under the heading “Break Into 2” very clearly states that the hero begins Act 2 by entering the upside-down world (UDW):
WHAT DOES IT DO? Brings the hero into the upside-down world of Act 2, where they will fix things the wrong way.
This makes it seem like only the type of Act 1 represented by the top row of the above chart is valid. However, not only is the second type a fairly common exception to the rule—it is extremely common. It's so common, in fact, that you can’t even call it an exception.
When I first started studying the Save the Cat! method, this caused me a lot of grief and confusion when I tried to identify the first act break in the novels and movies I was analyzing. I hope my explanation prevents you from having the same experience.
Just to restate the point, since I think this is so vital to understanding three-act story structure: the hero’s arrival in the upside-down world does not automatically signify that Act 2 has begun.
Ok, with that out of the way, let’s get to the actual purpose of this article and explore the Setup in detail. The remainder of this article:
Defines exactly what the Setup is, according to Jessica Brody’s SCWN.
Expands on the information provided in SCWN by outlining the ten most commonly included elements in a story’s Setup.
What is the Setup in the Save the Cat Method?
The Setup is the first multi-scene beat in the Save the Cat Beat Sheet. The Setup introduces readers to the hero and to the story world and its inhabitants (A Story characters). This is also where readers learn about the hero's flaws, the problems created by these flaws, and the hero's initial goal, which they believe will solve their problems.
How Long Should the Setup Be?
The Save the Cat! Beat Sheet recommends that the Setup comprises the first 10% of a novel. However, anywhere from 5–20% is perfectly fine. The main factors to consider when determining how long your Setup should be are (1) how closely your hero resembles an average person and (2) how closely the SQW resembles the real world. Generally speaking, the more ordinary the hero and SQW are, the shorter the Setup needs to be since less worldbuilding and backstory are required.
For example, Opal, the hero of Because of Winn-Dixie, is a regular girl living in a real-world setting. Therefore, Kate DiCamillo wastes no time bringing stray dog Winn-Dixie into Opal’s life. The Setup ends soon thereafter, at the 7% mark, when Opal officially adopts Winn-Dixie.
Conversely, stories that take place in the future or a fantasy world typically require a longer Setup, as the author needs to spend some time explaining how the story world operates. For instance, The Giver takes place in a future version of the world that enforces conformity so strictly that the SQW does not resemble the real world. As a result, the Setup extends beyond the novel’s 30% point while readers learn about, among other things:
the importance of language precision in the SQW.
the businesslike way in which family members share their feelings.
what it means to be “released” and why a person might be released.
the community's Birthmothers, who are the only ones permitted to give birth and whose children are assigned to suitable families.
What Is the Purpose of the Setup?
According to SCWN, the Setup “sets up your hero’s life and their status quo world before everything changes.” Throughout this section, Brody also explains that, in the Setup, you should:
“set up your hero.”
“introduce everyone who exists in your hero’s Act 1, status quo world.”
“show your hero’s flaws in all of their glory.”
She sums it up by saying that the Setup should “make the reader understand why [the hero] needs to go on a journey of transformation. Because clearly things aren’t working out in this status quo world of Act 1.”
Note: That last sentence isn’t always true. Some protagonists are perfectly happy in their SQW. In such stories, the hero’s journey isn’t about change but about putting things back the way they were before the Catalyst occurred. For example, if a murder disturbs a quiet, peaceful town, the hero may wish to catch the murderer in order to return peace to the neighbourhood.
Throughout this section of SCWN, Brody also poses several questions that authors can ask themselves when plotting a Setup:
What kind of person is the hero?
What are the hero’s character tics?
What does the hero want?
How are the hero’s flaws affecting their life at home, work, and play?
Who are the A Story characters?
What are the hero’s “things that need fixing”?
How can you hint at the fact that the hero’s life needs to change?
In the following section, I have taken the above advice and questions from SCWN and reformatted them into a list of ten essential elements that most Setups contain. My goal is to take the information given in SCWN and present it in an easier-to-digest and more comprehensive way.
What Happens in the Setup of a Novel?
The ten most common functions of the Setup (in no particular order) are to:
Set the novel’s tone.
Identify the hero’s immediate external goal.
Describe the hero’s SQW and clarify whether the hero is happy or unhappy in it.
Introduce all the important A Story characters who inhabit the SQW.
Spotlight the hero’s most noteworthy physical and personality traits.
Highlight any of the hero’s flaws and/or problems they will need to overcome as the story unfolds
Present a “stasis = death” moment to show the hero’s need for change.
Hint at the main lesson the hero needs to learn.
Foreshadow the problems (and their solutions) that will emerge as the story progresses.
Provide an inciting incident that eventually leads to the Catalyst.
This list is not set in stone by any means. Depending on your story, some of these elements might not be needed, or you may find that your Setup needs to accomplish things that are not on this list.
In any event, let’s take a look at each element in more detail.
Set the Tone
The Opening Image, as the first beat in a story, gives your readers their first impression not only of your hero and their SQW but also of the story’s tone. Whatever tone the first pages have, readers will expect it to be relatively consistent for the rest of the book.
To give an example, Douglas Adams’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy opens with some humorous narration, which portrays the story’s light-hearted tone through passages like
The only person for whom the house was in any way special was Arthur Dent, and that was only because it happened to be the one he lived in.
and
The thing that used to worry him most was the fact that people always used to ask him what he was looking so worried about.
Meanwhile, in the horror/thriller Dead of Winter, Darcy Coates lets readers know they’re in for a fast, uncomfortable ride with the novel’s opening paragraphs:
Snow in my mouth. In my nose. Burning my eyes as winds buffet me about like a scrap of cloth tangled on the mountainside.
Kiernan screams for help. His voice is raw, cracking. He holds my hand with a grip so tight it huts. I suspect it would hurt more if I weren’t so numb.
Clarify the Hero’s Immediate Goal
As Brody states in SCWN, “Your hero has to be actively pursuing something when the book begins. Even if it’s not something they’ll pursue throughout the entire story.” This is because readers can lose interest very quickly if the hero isn’t shown striving for something in the opening pages.
Note: The wording “has to be” is a little too strong. As I’ll explain soon, even if your hero doesn’t have a goal on page 1, your Setup might be ok.
By no means does the hero’s goal need to be lofty or ambitious. For instance, the Setup of Matilda starts with Matilda asking her father if he’ll buy her a book. And that’s her goal—simply to own a book. And that’s enough because her father’s refusal gives Matilda reason to venture off to the library on her own, thus moving the plot forward.
Sometimes, the initial goal isn’t even linked to the main plot. For example, in Bridge to Terabithia, Jess’s initial goal is to win the races at school. However, after he loses the races, the plot takes a turn, and the races are not relevant to anything that happens thereafter. The initial goal simply provided a reason for Jess and Leslie to interact.
Other times, the hero’s initial goal is very closely tied to the main plot; the hero may start a story with a goal that remains their primary focus throughout all three acts. For example, in Cars, winning the Piston Cup is Lightning McQueen’s main goal from the opening seconds of the movie until Act 3 is nearly over.
Does the hero absolutely need to have a goal during the Setup?
The short answer is no. In some stories, the hero doesn’t form their first goal until after the Catalyst occurs.
A big reason for giving your hero a goal in the Setup is that it creates intrigue. When a person can see that someone (even if they’re imaginary) clearly wants something, it triggers a subconscious desire to see if they can get it. Therefore, introducing a goal in the early pages is an easy way to prevent readers from putting your book down before they’ve given it a chance.
However, if you have something else going on in your Setup that will keep readers interested until the Catalyst, then it’s not mandatory for your hero to have a goal.
In The Giver, for example, the closest thing Jonas has to a goal during the Setup is his anticipation for the upcoming Ceremony of Twelve. However, since there’s nothing he can do to prepare for the ceremony or make it come sooner, we can’t say that Jonas has a goal. Despite this, readers stick around through the Setup because Jonas’s SQW is so unique. The slow reveal of information about the story world and the unspoken question of whether Jonas will see that the world is fundamentally broken hold the reader’s attention despite the absence of a goal.
Describe the Status Quo World and How the Hero Perceives It
When you show your hero’s SQW to the reader, it’s not the world’s mere physical appearance that’s important. The important thing is that the reader gets the intended vibe from your description of the world.
Is the SQW a just and fair world, or is it a dysfunctional world in need of change? If it’s a good world, can the hero appreciate this, or is their viewpoint of the world skewed by their flaws? If it's a dysfunctional world, what specifically needs to change about it? And does the hero see this need for change, or do their flaws make them think the world is fine just the way it is?
Knowing the answers to these questions is important. If you can identify the transformations that your hero and/or the world need to undergo throughout the story, you can determine which of the following scenarios is the best one for your Setup.
Introduce Important A Story Characters
While setting up your story, don’t forget to use characters from your hero’s SQW (“A Story characters”) as extensions of the world. The hero’s friends, family members, classmates, rivals, and so on should exemplify specific aspects of the SQW. In doing so, they should confirm whether or not the SQW is where the protagonist needs to be in order to find happiness.
Some stories require very few A Story characters. For example, in Tangled, Mother Gothel and Pascal are the only A Story characters. Throughout the Setup, Rapunzel’s tower (SQW) is depicted as restrictive and lonely, and Mother Gothel’s treatment of Rapunzel only adds to this effect; it also adds “abusive” to the list of adjectives describing the SQW. Thus, Mother Gothel helps make it abundantly clear to viewers that Rapunzel must leave the tower to be happy. Pascal’s role is less notable since he can’t speak, but he kind of represents the viewer, as he can see that Rapunzel has to leave the tower and encourages her to do so.
Even if an A Story character doesn’t become relevant to the plot until Act 2, it’s best to introduce them in Act 1. If you wait to introduce them until the moment when they’re needed, that’s when you might get readers rolling their eyes and saying, “Oh, how convenient.”
For example, a critical moment in the plot of Free Guy comes in Act 2 when Guy breaks into a stash house to steal a video clip, which he would be unable to do without the help of Buddy the security guard. If, just before this scene, Guy randomly was like, “Fortunately I have a friend who’s a security guard,” Buddy’s role would feel contrived. However, since Buddy was introduced as Guy’s good friend in Act 1, it feels completely natural when Guy asks him for help.
Spotlight the Hero’s Most Noteworthy Physical and Personality Traits
This element is pretty straightforward. Early in your novel, you’ll want to let your readers know any important details about your hero’s appearance and personality.
You can begin doing this in the Opening Image beat if you like. For instance, the first sentence of Aimée Carter’s Royal Blood reads,
Breaking into the academic wing of St. Edith’s Academy for Girls isn’t the most reckless thing I’ve ever done, but it definitely comes close.
This opening line and the scene that follows highlight that our hero, Evan, is a rebel.
Of note, if your hero has a lot of negative traits, it’s good to either (a) give them a positive trait as well, (b) explain that they have a good reason for their deplorable actions, or (c) have them also perform an admirable action, like saving a cat.
Continuing with Royal Blood, between picking locks, destroying a teacher’s grade book, and starting a large fire, Evan expresses,
Mr. Clark isn’t a bad person.… We’re both victims of circumstance, and I already feel a hefty dose of guilt for what I’m about to do. If there was a better way to handle this, I would.
Evan’s admission of guilt and the fact that she has no choice but to behave recklessly make it easier for the reader to root for her. If it wasn’t for this, readers would see Evan as less of a lovable rebel and more as a complete jerkass.
Highlight the Hero’s Flaws and/or External Problems
While you’re acquainting your readers with your story’s hero, it’s critical to portray your hero’s biggest flaw(s) and/or problem(s).
The first chapter of SCWN very strongly emphasizes the importance of flaws and how they create external problems for the hero. However, that’s only because the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet is based on stories that give roughly the same level of focus to plot and character arc.
If your story favours plot over character arc, most of the advice given in SCWN about emphasizing your hero’s flaws will not apply to you. In a plot-heavy story, the hero is unlikely to have any substantial flaws to overcome—and if they do, fixing them is secondary to the external conflict. In such stories, the hero will have plenty of external problems to deal with but few or no internal struggles.
This is the case, for example, in Matilda. In the Setup, Matilda’s external problems (i.e., her neglectful parents and unnurtured gifts) are emphasized, but Matilda doesn’t have any internal flaws that cause her any unhappiness.
Conversely, if your story is heavily character-focused, you will certainly want to give your hero at least one major flaw to struggle with, but this flaw doesn’t necessarily have to cause any external problems.
In Because of Winn-Dixie, Opal’s primary flaw is that she isn’t willing to try to make friends with the children in the new town she’s moved to. This flaw creates unpleasantness on the inside (Opal is very lonely), but it doesn’t create any external problems. It’s not like Opal needs a friend to help her win a big talent show or anything like that.
But, having said that, if your story focuses quite heavily on both plot and character arc, as SCWN assumes it does, then you’re good to follow Brody’s advice. You can highlight your hero’s primary flaw and show how it is negatively affecting them both internally and externally.
For example, in Cars, Lightning McQueen’s biggest flaw is that he prefers to do everything on his own. This causes an external problem: since he refuses to go for a pit stop (which would entail accepting help from others), he blows a tire on the final lap of the big race that opens the film, costing him the Piston Cup. Later in the Setup, during the trip to California for a tie-breaker race, Lightning feels sad (an internal problem) when he’s reminded that he has no friends to invite to the race.
Present the Stasis = Death Moment
When you show your hero’s flaws and the resulting problems in the Setup, readers will sense a need for change. As Brody mentions, the reader should “sense that if something doesn’t change soon…the hero is pretty much doomed.” This is often accomplished by what Brody refers to as the “stasis = death moment.” In this moment, the hero expresses, either through introspection or dialogue, that they can’t keep living the way they’re living now.
However, the word “death” is a little drastic in most cases. There doesn’t need to be a sense of urgency for a stasis = death moment to work. It’s perfectly acceptable for your hero to simply long for change without being desperate for it. Maybe their average life is ok as it is, but they wonder if there’s something more for them elsewhere.
This kind of stasis = death moment occurs when Dorothy sings “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in The Wizard of Oz. Another example can be found in Beatrice’s introspection in Divergent, through which she tells the reader about her secret, unfounded fascination with a faction that is not her own:
My father calls the Dauntless “hellions.” They are pierced, tattooed, and black-clothed. Their primary purpose is to guard the fence that surrounds our city. From what, I don’t know.
They should perplex me. I should wonder what courage—which is the virtue they most value—has to do with a metal ring through your nostril. Instead my eyes cling to them wherever they go.
Other times, there is no stasis = death moment at all. Particularly, this happens when the hero thinks their life is going perfectly well at the beginning of the story (as described in Scenarios 1 and 4 under “Describe the Status Quo World and How the Hero Perceives It” above).
For example, throughout the Setup in The Giver, Jonas is unaware that there is anything wrong with his SQW. Thus, it would be unnatural for him to have a stasis = death moment. Instead of giving Jonas this moment, Lois Lowry crafts the SQW such that the context tells the reader that Jonas must leave to find true happiness, even if Jonas himself doesn’t understand this until much later.
Hint at the Lesson the Hero Must Learn
The nature of the SQW and the hero’s attitude toward it often indicate what the theme of a story will be. However, you can enhance this effect of the Setup by giving a character a line of dialogue hinting at the theme that the hero will learn by the end of the story. According to Brody, “by having a character subtly state the theme of the novel, you are giving the reader a subconscious hint as to what your story is really going to be about.” This subtle hint is the Theme Stated beat.
For example, after the initial race scene in Cars, Strip Weathers, a veteran race car, tells Lightning McQueen,
This ain’t a one-man deal, kid. You need to wise up and get a good crew chief and a good team. You ain’t gonna win unless you got good folks behind you.”
However, McQueen doesn’t pay much attention—and he certainly doesn’t understand the subtext that what he really needs is good folks behind him off the track in his personal life. This highlights an important component of the Theme Stated beat: if someone states the theme to your hero in the Setup, it’s important that they disagree with or ignore whoever states it.
A word of warning: an unskillfully written Theme Stated can come across as preachy. The Theme Stated beat is most effective when it is subtle. Brody expresses the importance of subtlety more clearly in Save the Cat! Writes a Young Adult Novel:
The theme should not be stated in an obvious, over-the-top way.… If you can subtly state your hero’s ultimate lesson in such a way that your reader doesn’t even realize they’ve read it, that’s a winning Theme Stated.
Of the fifteen beats that make up the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet, the Theme Stated is easily the least important in terms of story structure. Nevertheless, I recommend trying to find a way to slip this beat into an early scene if you can. Doing so creates a pleasant full-circle feeling for readers when the hero eventually learns the theme during the Finale. Readers might not realize why, but the moment when the hero puts the theme into practice in Act 3 will hit harder if it was hinted at in the Setup.
Foreshadow the Problems (and Their Solutions) That Will Emerge in Act 2
As indicated by the previous point, the Theme Stated foreshadows the Finale by hinting at how the protagonist will act based on their acceptance of the theme. For example, in the Finale of Cars, Lightning McQueen puts “good folks” ahead of his desire for personal glory.
But you don’t have to stop with theme when it comes to foreshadowing during the Setup. You can also use the Setup to foreshadow plot-related events—namely, you can set up conflicts and/or the solutions to the conflicts that will arise throughout Act 2.
Quite a lot of this kind of foreshadowing is done in Back to the Future. To give an example, at a family dinner in the Setup, we learn that Marty’s mother met Marty’s father when Marty’s grandpa hit him with a car. This sets up a massive problem that occurs in Act 2: after Marty goes back in time, he pushes the teenage version of his dad out of the way of the car, messing up his parents’ first meeting, consequently putting Marty’s existence at risk.
During the same family dinner in Act 1, the solution to the above problem is set up, as Marty’s mother says that the moment she fell in love with Marty’s father was when he kissed her at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance. In Act 2, Marty recalls this conversation and realizes his parents can still fall in love, get married, and have children—thus restoring his existence—by getting them to go to the dance together.
Provide an Inciting Incident That Leads to the Catalyst
The terms “Inciting Incident” and “Catalyst” are often used interchangeably. Unfortunately, there is no consensus on whether these two elements are the same thing or not. Moreover, those who believe they are different do not always define them the same way. So, all I can do here is tell you how I conceptualize them, and you can do what you will with that information.
I consider the Inciting Incident the first warning of trouble (if the SQW is a nice place) or the first glimmer of hope (if the SQW is an unpleasant place) that the hero’s world could change sometime soon. Or, it could be a seemingly inconsequential action that snowballs into a catastrophe later on.
Meanwhile, the Catalyst is the event that actually causes the change hinted at by the Inciting Incident; it is the giant, catastrophic snowball.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone presents a good example of the difference between an Inciting Incident and a Catalyst. The Inciting Incident occurs when the first letter from Hogwarts arrives in the post. At this point, the smell of change is in the air, but there’s no guarantee that Harry’s world will change (as readers, we know it will, but the characters don’t). If it were a guarantee, Uncle Vernon would not spend the rest of the Setup trying to prevent Harry from learning he’s a wizard.
The instant that Hagrid tells Harry he’s a wizard—which is the Catalyst—Uncle Vernon gives up because the SQW has now been irreversibly changed. Harry can’t un-learn that he’s a wizard.
The Inciting Incident is a great tool for keeping readers engaged while you’re still setting things up. Waiting until the 10% mark or later to introduce the first properly interesting event of your plot (the Catalyst) could cause readers to stop reading before they even get there. You can prevent this by hinting at the Catalyst at, say, the 5% mark. This will create tension and build intrigue that will hold readers over until the Catalyst while you continue developing your hero and the SQW in the Setup.
You can even start a story after the Inciting Incident has already happened. In Back to the Future, the Catalyst beat begins when a group of Libyans arrive at the mall parking lot in a van and shoot at Marty and Doc. The reason the Libyans attack is because Doc had stolen some plutonium from them to power his time machine. Therefore, Doc’s theft is the story’s Inciting Incident, but this is explained through a line of dialogue rather than being shown in the film.
Closing Remarks
There you have it: ten components that you can integrate into your Setup. Remember, you don’t have to include all of these elements in your Setup, and there are others that you might include that haven’t been listed here.
The main thing is that, by the end of the Setup, readers should understand whether it’s the hero or the SQW (or both) that needs to change. Readers should also have an idea of the nature of the change required (e.g., the hero needs to learn the value of friendship, the hero needs to leave their abusive spouse), as this indicates the story’s theme.
Once you’ve taken care of this, it’s time to introduce an event that disrupts the SQW and forces the hero to take their first steps toward enacting the change that is needed. In other words, it’s time for the Catalyst, which is the topic of the next article in this series.
Comments