Welcome to lesson 7 in our Save The Cat beat sheet series on story structure: beat 8!

Beat 8 is called fun and games and it involves multiple scenes. It also runs through 1/3 of your novel. Yeah, it is big and important. It takes place throughout the 20-to-50% mark in your story. And just to refresh, this beat is also where your B story characters are introduced.

What are ‘Fun and Games?’

Remember how your hero is in their new world? Remember how that new world presented them with all kinds of new problems (or maybe just one, really big one)? And then, your hero made some new choices. Well, the fun and games beat is when we begin to see the fallout. When we check-in on those choices and show readers how the characters actions are panning out. Are they solving their problems? Show us how. Have they created even bigger problems? Show us what they are.

Fun and Games is smack in the heart of Act 2, deep into the story, where plot points are unfolding. Think of this long beat as a kind of catch-up. We are catching up with the characters in your story and watching them navigate this new world, watching their heartfelt decisions backfire. Maybe they trusted the wrong person and don’t know it yet. Show the audience. Drop those hints. Show readers the cracks.

Extra Help Because Act 2 is Long and Hard (that’s what she said)

I believe every writer should learn the techniques and structure of screenwriting. Save The Cat was originally a screenwriting method. Then, Jessica Brody expanded it to include novels. And it works! The beauty of these types of beats are that, even though they are numbered, they don’t actually have to be used in a particular order. In the beginning, it is easier to use this step-by-step method, but it’s not a rule. You tell your story in whichever way works for you. Remember, knowledge is power. Knowing the various structures and methods is what helps you discover what type of storyteller you are.

Writing every day helps to smooth out those rough patches so the overall process gets easier over time. Knowing the various patterns of story structure helps create a more natural story flow. So when we hit those inevitable walls in our manuscript, we can call on the beats of structure to remind us of what we are missing.

In life and in writing, knowledge is power.

There is an amazing account I follow on YouTube, called Film Courage. They are constantly posting interviews with knowledgeable professors and successful writers, providing helpful advice about working through the pain-staking issues that surround creatives. Below is a video by notable professor of Screenwriting, Eric Edson. If you are serious about becoming a better writer, you have to get serious about listening to the voices of those with more experience.

Personally, I have spent hours listening to and taking notes on Eric Edson’s lectures. I love his method and the way he communicates. This particular lecture is given to student writer in an MFA program. The MFA is equivalent to a PhD in writing.

Recall that in this fun and games beat your hero is trying to fix their problems, the wrong way. An this beat is where we explore that initial, break into 2 decision. Jessica Brody describes this beat as “your act one hero in their Act two world.” Even though I talk about problems galore in this beat, there are actually two paths this beat can take.

Your hero can kick some serious patootie and find success through their initial choice, or they can constantly fail. Characters can traverse the upward path, or the downward. That is up to you. They can even have a bit of both; some success followed by failure, or initial failures followed by successes (the recommended route is lots of ups and downs, with a general direction that goes up or down). But whichever route they take, this beat should lead to the story’s midpoint, where we see a serious change.

Fun and Games is also called The Promise of the Premise because it is where the author delivers on the premise of the novel (premise: your proposition, the central idea that drives the plot). The premise is the reason readers choose your book. Fun and Games should be enjoyable conflict. Even is it’s gritty. Think of your favorite novels. Didn’t you enjoy watching the detectives put the clues together, even when it lead them to the wrong conclusion? This beat offers fun for the reader, not necessarily the hero. Remember, your act 1 hero is in their act 2 world. They are navigating uncharted territories. It’s a ‘fish out of water’ experience and that should be fun to watch. If your character is having the worst day of their life, wouldn’t it be interesting and fun to watch them have to live it over and over again?

Quick examples of this essential beat:

Bruce Almighty: A normal guy struggling at work inherits all the powers of God. Bruce has a lot of fun with these powers. He is a fish-out-water, for sure. It is fun to watch him wreak havoc in his relationship, even though he’s trying to make it better. He also gets the anchorman job he coveted in the set-up. It’s a great, funny example of the fun and games beat. Negative things happen, Bruce has setbacks, but it is an excellent example of the overall upward path.

Legally Blonde: A sorority girl goes to Harvard Law school because she wants to win back her boyfriend that breaks-up with her in the set-up. At Harvard, she puts on a good front and makes the best of a tough situation. She is a fish-out-of-water and it is no fun for her. She is, generally, failing in this act 2 world. It is a negative, or downward path fun and games beat. Still, it’s a blast to watch.

Have fun writing and come back next week for beat 9: the Midpoint!