My Novel Blueprint

Plot: Climax (Where is the story going?)

Plot: Climax (Where is the story going) ▼

Where is your story going? Describe the climax, the point at which everything changes and the tension of the primary conflict is finally resolved. Use the 'What If' brainstorming exercise to create a list of possibilities, remembering to consider the growth of / change in your main character(s) as a result of this event. The climax can be as hidden and seemingly tiny as that moment when your character finally makes that decision they've been dreading or avoiding for fifteen chapters, or it can be as huge and obvious as an exploding planet. Sometimes, the climax is a little hard to pin down. Was it the moment Ender won his game? Or was it the moment he realized the moving images on his screen were not a simulation, not the game he thought it was, and that he had just personally wiped out an entire alien race?

Daved is going to find out who the killer is and realize that they are not working alone. Sinclairs' darkest secret will be unveiled, the fact that he is Carolina's biological father. Carolina will be found alive.

Carolina could be shot by police.
Althea could be shot by police.
Stanley could turn on Althea to save his skin.
Daved could let Carolina go.
Daved could get shot, stabbed, close to being killed. But carries on to bring justice about.
Needs Justice!!!!!

Climax:
The point in the story where the tension, excitement, and the stakes are the highest. It is often the conclusion of the main conflict and sets up for a successful resolution or an unsatisfactory ending.

Characteristics of the climax:
1. Occurs near the end of the 3rd Act
2. Point of most tension
3. Stakes are at their highest
4. The protagonist makes a critical decision

Types Of Climaxes:

1. Surprise:

When a story reaches a resolution or ending that is unexpected by the reader. It typically comes after an intense build-up and results in a twist or surprise that leaves readers feeling shocked and amazed.

2. Tragic Climax:

A tragic climax is a story ending that leaves the main characters in a state of sorrow or despair. This type typically involves death, suffering, and moral ambiguity as readers and viewers grapple with the events they have just read.

3. Moral Climax:

A moral climax is a story ending that is used to reflect the moral values of the characters and the underlying themes of the story. This type of climax typically involves a significant decision or judgment by one or more characters that either upholds or challenges morality.

$. Suspense Climax:

A suspense climax is a story ending that builds up to a moment of intense dramatic tension. Suspense climaxes often involve a life-or-death struggle between characters or forces, as well as a high-stakes decision that must be made in order to resolve the conflict.

6> Ironic Climax:

An ironic climax is a story ending that presents a twist or surprise that is juxtaposed against the audience's expectations. For example, if the protagonist has been struggling to reach a certain goal throughout the course of the story, the moment when they achieve it may be undercut by an ironic outcome.

Right before the climatic moment is The Calm Before The Storm where the writer must establish 3 things:
1. The villain guarding the goal is really, really nasty
2. The cost of losing (the stakes) is extremely high
3. The task (that) must be completed to achieve victory.

Remember the goal of the climax is to have your hero obtain the Goal of the quest. a (long and arduous search for something)
Maybe rescue someone, obtain a treasure or weapon, or do some sort of task. Is a lengthy scene.

3 Key elements:

1. Focus on the Protagonist's desire (for their want and need) Also their fear:
a, What do they have to lose? Possibly his own life and the life of the hostage Althea has taken in hopes of negotiating and executing a getaway plan.
b. Why is success so important to them? {b][c:red} The hostage's life depends on him
1. Each step forward or backward must come with hope, disappointment, terror anticipation, belief, despair, etc.
2. Use 2 beats of quiet contemplation or conversation
Ad in a few moments for characters to catch their breath and connect during the chaos.
3. Don't Give Hero What They Want
Withhold the goal
Have the goal taken away - Destroy it, kill off the character. Have the antagonist hide it or protect it some other way. Hostage working with Althea. They see that Daved not giving in so together to find a way out and disappear temporarily.
Or - let the hero have it and be totally disappointed in it - a win-but-lose ending.

The hero must have a need. Maybe in the form of:
validation
acceptance {c:red| Daved needs the acceptance of his co-workers and others around him. Bringing Althea in will accomplish that. Because of his heritage he has been downplayed as nothing his whole life. He also needs to feel justice.
peace with oneself
spiritual harmony
reconciliation
forgiveness
acceptance of death
emotional/spiritual rebirth
etc.


Plot: Climax (Where is the story going?)
The primary conflict of this story is Someone is killing people, and Daved has to find out who so he can stop them before someone else loses their life.}/b}

Daved knows who is the killer but has not been able to prove it yet. He needs that one piece of evidence. The witness. The witness has been in hiding out of fear of being killed.
Althea's brother Stanley has been working with her.
Her brother Michael has been killed, or it seems he has died of a heart attack.



Primary Conflict ——The key phrase here is: "tension of the primary conflict."

Someone is killing people and has to be stopped
Daved is still unsure how his wife died
Police not cooperating with Daved to provide information
One PI works with Daved on the side together they get his wife exhumed. ME verifies a small needle hole in her neck.
Guess that she was killed somewhere other than the boat and K+ was used but cannot prove that K+ was the murder agent because the body automatically releases its own K+ upon death.
Daved gets inside The Seagate House and begins searching for clues. He finds the room where Caroline must have stayed. Within the shag throw rug by the bed, he unraveled the matching $1000 diamond earring to the set he gave her that the Mercle Island ME claimed to have been lost in the explosion.
In Althea’s room, he uncovers an envelope with 4 compromising photos of Althea’s husband and Caroline. - He never suspected.


(KEEP IN MIND TOO: Another form of circumstantial evidence is indirect witness testimony. Unlike direct witness testimony where someone actually saw the crime take place, in this situation a person saw or heard something related to the crime and testifies to that. For example, they may have seen the defendant fleeing the crime scene.)