A great hook and an inciting incident are essential to creating a solid foundation for the first act of your story. But before you transition into the second act, you need a great First Plot Point to ensure all your pieces are in place for the journey ahead while giving your protagonist the right motivation and goals.
In this third entry on story structure, I’ll show you how to write a great first plot point. I’ll provide some helpful tips and story examples to help illustrate the key principles that will help you craft your best story.
Four Ways To Write A Great First Plot Point:
What Is The First Plot Point?
While the inciting incident changes the status quo and sets your entire plot in motion, your protagonist needs a moment to process the ramifications of what’s happened and what it means to them. Essentially, the inciting incident serves as a catalyst for your story’s first plot point, where the story’s problem, the stakes, and the opposing forces are all established and where your protagonist commits to the journey ahead.
These elements help set up your reader’s expectations for the story’s external conflict while hinting at the emotional arc your protagonist must undergo to transition from the lie they believe to the story’s thematic truth.
Problem + Goal
Use your first plot point to establish the problem your protagonist needs to solve. That problem should lead to an impossible choice to pursue a goal that will ultimately drive your narrative’s middle and third acts.
In Saving Private Ryan, the first plot point occurs when Captain John Miller is assigned the mission to find Private Ryan. The problem and the goal are immediately apparent. Miller must lead a group of select men into the heart of German occupied territory at the height of war to find one soldier so that he can go home to his mother. Miller’s choice to obey the order is in keeping with a man committed to following orders. But as things begin to unravel within his unit, we gain new insight into what is actually driving his motives.
Miller is a simple man with simple ideals. A man who is slowly losing his connection to who he once was with every man he kills. He wants nothing more than for this ugly chapter in his life to be over so that he can return home to his wife and the simple life, but he fears he won’t be the same man when he does. For him, this isn’t just another mission. It’s his mission. His chance to go home. And his opportunity to salvage whatever identity he has left. And since the rest of his men all want the same thing, they quickly fall back in line and submit to his leadership.
The audience clearly understands the problem and the goal and gains insight into why the protagonist’s mission is so vital.
Stakes + Consequences
The first plot point is also key to establishing what’s at stake. Give your audience a clear picture of what will happen if your protagonist fails to achieve their goal so that they can understand what’s motivating their choices.
In Die Hard 2, the first plot point occurs when terrorists, under the command of the maniacal Colonel Stuart, seize control of Dulles Airport and its control tower. For New York cop John McClane, the stakes couldn’t be higher as his wife’s life hangs in the balance onboard one of the planes forced to circle the skies above. McClane forces Stuart’s men into a firefight, but he soon learns the brutal consequences of his actions when Stuart presents him with an object lesson he’ll never forget.
McClane sees what will happen if he fails to achieve his goal. As the audience, we’re immediately invested in his success, and we can’t wait to see Colonel Stuart and his men get their comeuppance.
Obstacles + Antagonists
Your first plot point should also introduce obstacles and antagonists to ensure that the road to resolution is fraught with tests and challenges, ultimately leading your protagonist to abandon the lie he believes in favor of the truth he must accept.
In Jaws, the first plot point occurs when Chief Martin Brody decides to close the beaches after a rogue shark savagely attacks a young girl. Brody is duty-bound to protect Amity and its citizens, but his actions are soon challenged by the money-driven Mayor Larry Vaughn and his cronies.
We immediately see that Vaughn is a corrupt politician who is happy to cover up the facts of the attack so that Amity can still profit as a summer tourist destination. This puts Brody in a tough spot as he’s forced to comply with the mayor’s demands, even as the death toll continues to rise. Vaughn presents him with challenges and obstacles at every turn, causing Brody to take charge of the situation and assert his authority. Brody goes from a man who doesn’t want to make waves to assuming full responsibility despite his own phobias.
Commitment + Choice
Establish the story’s momentum using the first plot point to cement the protagonist’s commitment to their goal. As their choices become increasingly integral to the outcome of the external conflict, they become more integral to the outcome.
In The Matrix, the first plot point occurs when Morpheus presents Neo with the choice between red and blue pills. To take the red pill is to return to his everyday life, while the blue pill is Neo’s chance to uncover the real truth behind his existence. As Neo weighs his options, Morpheus is clear that there’s no going back once he decides.
Neo’s choice sets everything in motion, even as he struggles with the consequences of that choice. Doubt and misbelief continue to plague him as his level of commitment is repeatedly put to the test. As an audience, we know there is no going back for Neo, so we’re anxious to see him come to terms with his choice as his struggle ultimately sets him on the path to assuming the role of The One.
Summing it up
Knowing how to write a great first plot point starts with understanding how it ties directly with the hook and inciting incident to make up the whole of your first act. Establishing the story’s problems, goals, oppositional forces, and character choices are key to giving your audience a clear picture of where the story is going in terms of plot and character arc. Without these vital elements, your audience won’t know who or what to root for.
Use these tips and let me know if they work for you. Next month, we’ll explore the First Half of the Second Act, the next beat in the three-act story structure. Until then, keep striving toward your goals. And above all, keep writing!
Until next time,
