When should inciting incident occur

Here's my personal list: Set the tone of your story i. Introduce your Protagonist or show us a glimpse of your Antagonist or even a victim of the Antagonist. Show us your Protagonist's Ordinary World. Show us your Protagonist's fatal flaw and while you're at it, a few character flaws as well. The above list is by no means exhaustive. So, now knowing that this is the usual standard of structure, this is what you should shoot for on your first draft.

On your rewrite, you'll need to do some serious thinking and consideration about your story, genre, and your Hero and his or her Ordinary World. The great thing about having the inciting incident occur on one of the above pages and no later than page 12 is that during your rewrite, you should be able to tweak the inciting incident to occur even sooner "IF" the story warrants it. How would a story warrant moving the inciting incident up a few pages?

It depends. A thriller might warrant moving the disturbance up. So might a horror but again, it depends on your story. Hell, for that matter, even a drama could get a healthy shot of adrenaline by sticking the inciting incident on page 1 IF the story warrants it. There is no hard and fast rule but before breaking the rules, be sure to know the rules first. We all know what will happen if we go rob a bank, right? The police will be after us Same thing goes for the rule of the inciting incident.

Know that with today's audiences, it should occur no later than page Make that your basic rule before you go breaking it and when and if you do break it, you'd better have a good reason i. One of the first things a producer usually does is either ask the reader when the inciting incident occurs or if they decide to read it themselves, they turn ahead through the pages to see what gets things moving and if you don't have some inciting incident to get your Protagonist of his or her ass by page 12 -- and absolutely no later than page 15 -- don't expect a call back about your script.

Is it formula? It's form. It hits us upside the head just a little harder these days when you give us the inciting incident within the first 12 minutes of your story. The mass audience of today isn't really interested in sitting around waiting for a half hour for something to get your protagonist's ass in gear. Remember, these are the people sitting in the audience sending text messages and even making phone calls. You really think these are the kinda people that wanna wait a half hour or gasp -- never -- for your incitiing incident?

This reason must be sufficient to the character in question and also sufficient to the story in question. In the Matrix, the Inciting Incident for Neo comes from learning that he is in a simulation. He is offered a choice between learning about that world or going blissful ignorance. In Romeo and Juliet, the star-crossed lovers meet and fall in love at a party, setting them on a course that leads to tragedy.

Katniss, an independent girl with skills and a drive to protect others, sees her sister drawn to be Tribute in the Hunger Games. Each of these inciting incident examples reveals something about the protagonist and the world they live in.

How do they accomplish this? They do so by deftly ticking off all four boxes without ticking off the reader. The key here is to do it well by including the necessary elements to do just that. With the inciting incident and really the setup of your story , you are making a promise to the reader about what will happen in your story.

Your inciting incident has to be related to the main plot of your story. A common mistake authors make with this is using a big, tense moment as the inciting incident in order to draw intrigue, but then in the next chapter, introducing the real main plot elements.

Go back and tie it into the main plot. The main plot is her journey to survive the Hunger Games. The inciting incident is when she volunteers as tribute to replace her sister in the games. Had the inciting incident not happened volunteering , the main plot would not exist Katniss surviving the games. An example of how this could not go well is if the author decided to use a raid or a brawl of some sort as the inciting incident, and then making Katniss be chosen for the games.

One of the best ways to get the hang of what an inciting incident really is, is to read and learn from some examples. For Neo, the choice represents an important internal motivation for his character. The events leading up to this choice have already illustrated his deep-seated need to thwart authority and solve puzzles, the choice represents a chance to make what he was already doing matter more. We see his personal stake at play and this also creates a story question for the audience, what is the Matrix and how does Neo matter?

It sets a tone about choice and about the power of illusion which is spelled out by betrayals and misdirects later. It very much delivers on a WOW!

As Neo wakes up in the real world. The rest of the plot follows from the decision and Neo very literally is no longer in Kansas. A metaphor so apt to the application it is the actual reference used in the film. And triple check. It also takes place almost immediately, rather than after a few chapters of exposition.

So if you want your readers to be immersed in plot very quickly, consider taking a page out of C. The other kids make way, immediately allowing me a straight path to the stage.

I reach her just as she is about to mount the steps. With one sweep of my arm, I push her behind me. While many inciting incidents are life-changing in a positive or exciting way, they can also be the opposite. Indeed, negative incidents are often more dramatic and reader-enticing.

See also: characters getting sick, dying, or simply disappearing, as in our next example. However, this heightening of stakes gets the ball rolling on plot, making readers eager to know what will happen next.

Amy was not there. Amy was gone. However, there can be no doubt that everything until this point has been backstory and buildup; after all, the central plot cannot begin without the titular character. This means that, when they finally meet at last, curiosity about Gatsby has reached fever pitch — and once he arrives on the scene, the reader is inexorably intrigued. Not only does it launch the plot, but it also represents a jumping-off point for the main character arc and development.

In the scene leading up to the incident, try shortening your sentences and using more active verbs to create a sense of urgency. You can also dramatize the scenery itself — as in Harry Potter when Hagrid bursts through the door, thunder rolling behind him. Even so, we have a clear sense of multi-generational malevolence haunting Castle Rock from the inciting incident on. The inciting incident has to take place in the first act. This is non-negotiable: it is the catalyst that sets the rest of your story in motion.

If it does not occur in the first act, your story might be structurally confusing. It might meander aimlessly. If you find that what you think of as the inciting moment falls later in the story, examine your first act i.

If you do find one, you need to stop and consider which story you want to tell and which inciting incident you want to work from. Is there none? You need to rework the first act of your novel so you establish key points of cause and effect sooner.

An inciting incident can happen almost anywhere in the first act. For the most part, sooner is better than later. An early instance gets the attention of your readers and creates a narrative drive that makes them want to read more. To review, here are three points to keep in mind about the inciting incident:. Maybe your main character makes a grisly discovery, or has a love-at-first-sight encounter.

What might happen as a result of this incident? Ask step-by-step story questions to methodically chart a course for your book now. Jordan is a writer, editor, community manager and product developer. I am also writing in the fantasy genre so I feel as if I can take my time.

Do you think genre makes a difference to the inciting incident? Thank you so much for this helpful piece. Prologues are often great for world-building and showing in miniature what the key themes, geographies or other elements of your world are. Starting with a character action that elicits strong questions in the reader is often a good idea. For example, in Ursula K. Thank you for encouraging me to keep using prologues!

They are very useful to add a cliffhanger which will be answered later on in the story. Yes, it has already been so exciting.