Beat Sheet – For Novels

The Blake Snyder Beat Sheet is a tool frequently used by screenwriters to plot out films.
Although the structure is designed for film, it’s a strong story structure that gives a little more
guidance than a simple three act novel structure.
When using the beat sheet, it’s key to remember that a novel has a more flexible form
than a film (in most cases). You have to ask your story what beats it wants to have, and which
beats it doesn’t. Although this structure is helpful, your story may not have all these beats, or
they might be out of order. If your story doesn’t fit the structure perfectly, follow it rather than
this guideline. Different beats will present themselves in different ways depending on the story,
so always think of the beats in the terms of your specific novel.
For each beat, I’ll give you a suggested word count, for an 80 000 word novel. Novel
length varies drastically, but I’ve chosen the 80k mark because it’s accepted in almost any genre
or category. These word counts are very loose estimates, and don’t worry about sticking to them
too closely. I’ve only added the word counts to give an idea of how the beats are paced out.

1. Opening Image – first page

 Your first paragraphs or page
 You pull the reader in, this is your first glimpse of the world
 Open up questions
2. Theme Stated – occurs somewhere during set-up beat
 Theme is overtly stated in the narrative
 Often, a side character will speak the theme directly to the main character
 This is said in the form of what the character needs, side character tells the
protagonist exactly how they need to grow
 The protagonist will resist this statement, the don’t know they need to grow
 This is usually done subconsciously by the author
3. Set-Up – 0 - 7 000
 We meet the central characters
 We also see what’s missing in the protagonist, how do they need to grow?
 We learn the facets of the protagonist and what they’re all about
 We are introduced to the world
 We are likely given necessary backstory
4. Catalyst – at 10 000
 There is an interruption in the set up
 The inciting incident/precipitating event
 This catches the main character by surprise
 There is an opportunity to address a problem
 The story is set in motion
5. Debate – 13 000 - 20 000
 The main character needs to react to the opportunity presented by the catalyst
 There is a pause in the action as the protagonist contemplates whether or not to
answer the call to action, or what to do
 The pace slows down
  This is a period of reflection, do we go forward? How do we go forward? Must
take in the shock of the catalyst
 The pros and cons are being weighed
6. Break Into Two – at 20 000
 We break into act two
 This occurs on a decisive action from the main character
 This does not occur by chance, a choice is made
 There may be a visual shift in the world, or we will enter a new world
7. B Story – at 25 000
 The B story is introduced
 This is the introduction of a subplot
 This may come in the form of the introduction of a secondary character, often a
love interest
 This character becomes an agent that pushes the main character towards the
thematic question posed early on
8. Fun and Games – 25 000 - 40 000
 This is where we see the promise of the premise play out
 During this extended beat, the protagonist grapples with the concept and main
conflict
 That is, we see what the main story is all about
 This will be one of the longest beats in the story
9. Midpoint – at 40 000
 There is a shift for the protagonist
 There might be a sense of either false victory or false defeat
 There is a brief moment of thinking the goal is achieved, or all is lost
 This triggers an escalation of stakes, when we realize the battle is not over
10. Bad Guys Close In – 45 000 - 55 000
 The forces of antagonism grow and become even clearer or stronger
 There is a growing escalation of conflicts
11. All Is Lost – at 55 000
 In fiction, often called the breaking point
 It seems that there is nothing that can be done, the fight seems lost
 The protagonist loses all hope
 The lowest point for the protagonist
12. Dark Night of The Soul – 60 000 - 65 000
 A mirror of the debate, the pace slows down for a bit
 There is a chance for everyone to sit in this awful state and figure out what can be
done
 The protagonist receives words of wisdom
 A new plan is formed, the battle is not lost
13. Break Into Three – at 65 000
 We break into act three
 This occurs when the protagonist makes a choice
 This does not occur by chance or luck
14. Finale – 65 000 – 80 000
  The story’s climax
 The main character becomes who they need to become, the thematic question
posed early on is answered as their growth is finally apparent
 A critical choice is made
 There is a feeling of resolution
15. Final Image – at 80 000
 This may mirror the opening
 We depart from the story
 This is the final impression the story leaves on a reader

If you’re using the 15 beat structure to plot out your novel, he’s a chart you can use to organize
some of your thought!
BEAT STRUCTURE YOUR BOOK
1. Opening Image – first page
 Your first paragraphs or page
 You pull the reader in, this is
your first glimpse of the world
 Open up questions
2. Theme Stated – occurs somewhere
during set-up beat
 Theme is overtly stated in the
narrative
 Often, a side character will
speak the theme directly to the
main character
 This is said in the form of what
the character needs, side
character tells the protagonist
exactly how they need to grow
 The protagonist will resist this
statement, the don’t know they
need to grow
 This is usually done
subconsciously by the author
3. Set-Up – 0 - 7 000
 We meet the central characters
 We also see what’s missing in
the protagonist, how do they
need to grow?
 We learn the facets of the
protagonist and what they’re
all about
 We are introduced to the world
  We are likely given necessary
backstory
4. Catalyst – at 10 000
 There is an interruption in the
set up
 The inciting
incident/precipitating event
 This catches the main
character by surprise
 There is an opportunity to
address a problem
 The story is set in motion
5. Debate – 13 000 - 20 000
 The main character needs to
react to the opportunity
presented by the catalyst
 There is a pause in the action
as the protagonist
contemplates whether or not to
answer the call to action, or
what to do
 The pace slows down
 This is a period of reflection,
do we go forward? How do we
go forward? Must take in the
shock of the catalyst
 The pros and cons are being
weighed
6. Break Into Two – at 20 000
 We break into act two
 This occurs on a decisive
action from the main character
 This does not occur by chance,
a choice is made
 There may be a visual shift in
the world, or we will enter a
new world
7. B Story – at 25 000
 The B story is introduced
 This is the introduction of a
subplot
 This may come in the form of
the introduction of a secondary
character, often a love interest
  This character becomes an
agent that pushes the main
character towards the thematic
question posed early on
8. Fun and Games – 25 000 - 40 000
 This is where we see the
promise of the premise play
out
 During this extended beat, the
protagonist grapples with the
concept and main conflict
 That is, we see what the main
story is all about
 This will be one of the longest
beats in the story
9. Midpoint – at 40 000
 There is a shift for the
protagonist
 There might be a sense of
either false victory or false
defeat
 There is a brief moment of
thinking the goal is achieved,
or all is lost
 This triggers an escalation of
stakes, when we realize the
battle is not over
10. Bad Guys Close In – 45 000 - 55 000
 The forces of antagonism grow
and become even clearer or
stronger
 There is a growing escalation
of conflicts
11. All Is Lost – at 55 000
 In fiction, often called the
breaking point
 It seems that there is nothing
that can be done, the fight
seems lost
 The protagonist loses all hope
 The lowest point for the
protagonist
12. Dark Night of The Soul – 60 000 -
65 000
  A mirror of the debate, the
pace slows down for a bit
 There is a chance for everyone
to sit in this awful state and
figure out what can be done
 The protagonist receives words
of wisdom
 A new plan is formed, the
battle is not lost
13. Break Into Three – at 65 000
 We break into act three
 This occurs when the
protagonist makes a choice
 This does not occur by chance
or luck
14. Finale – 65 000 – 80 000
 The story’s climax
 The main character becomes
who they need to become, the
thematic question posed early
on is answered as their growth
is finally apparent
 A critical choice is made
 There is a feeling of resolution
15. Final Image – at 80 000
 This may mirror the opening
 We depart from the story
 This is the final impression the
story leaves on a reader