Write Your Novel Step by Step (113)

Man Made follows a mysterious force as it sweeps around the globe erasing anything man made - from buildings, vehicles, and technology to medicines, clothing, and dental work.

Governments stagger under the panic, religions are at a loss for an explanation, scientists strive for any means to stop or divert the phenomenon, and the world’s population from families to individuals struggle to prepare for The Event, which will drive humanity back beyond the stone age.

The Event is coming.

Are you prepared?

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~ Step 113 ~

Characters - Act One Ending

It takes a while to fully introduce a cast of characters in all the ways we've explored. So, there are some characters, roles and relationships that will come forth near the end of the first act.

The last part of the first act generally completes the introduction of your cast of major characters. Now, this is not always true. In some genres, such as mysteries, characters might be introduced throughout the story. But even then, there is usually some hint that such a character exists, by virtue of his influence behind the scenes. Still and all, you'll likely have a few characters you haven’t yet addressed and want to introduce by the end of the first act.

Once a character has been introduced, readers want to know more about them. It is not enough to simply introduce characters, roles, and relationships, but you also need to revisit them and add a few more details to what you have already divulged.

This mimics the way we learn about people in real life: a first impression followed by a series of refinements that impression.

To address this, review the introductions you made in the beginning and middle of the first act, and consider how they might be enhanced in the process of making any new introductions you have not yet included.

For this step, describe the introductions of characters, roles, and relationships you wish to occur in the last third of the first act, and describe additional details about your previously introduced characters, seasoned to taste.