Story structures
Start a manuscript from Three-Act, Save the Cat!, the Hero’s Journey and more, with chapters, acts and word targets set up.
Not sure how to shape a new book? Start a manuscript from a story structure and Mythforge sets it up for you: a word target for the whole manuscript, every chapter created and waiting (grouped into acts where the structure has them), and on each chapter a word target and a synopsis saying what that part of the story should do.
Nothing is fixed. The chapters, acts, synopses and targets are ordinary ones that you can rename, move, split or delete as the story finds its own shape.
Start from a structure
From a world's Manuscripts tab, choose + (New manuscript), then Structure. It says Blank until you choose one.
In a world with no manuscripts yet, Start from a story structure… sits under Start a manuscript. On a brand-new library, Start from a story structure… on the welcome screen creates your first world and goes straight on to the structures.
In the Story structure sheet:
- What are you writing? Pick a kind of story, such as Thriller, Romance, Epic fantasy or Short fiction, to see the structures that suit it under Suggested. Choose Show every structure to see them all in their usual order.
- Choose a structure. Each one says what it is, what it's good for, and whether it's set up as a novel, novella or short story.
- Word target. Every structure starts with a typical length for its form. Change it and each chapter's target changes with it, keeping its share of the whole. Leave it blank for no target.
- Chapters. Most structures start with more chapters than beats, and you can choose how many. There's always at least one chapter per beat; extra chapters go to the longest beats, which are split into parts (Fun and Games, part 2). A prologue or epilogue is never split.
- Check the Outline: every chapter with its act, its target and what happens in it.
Choose Use, give the manuscript a Title and choose Create. The structure also sets the manuscript's Form, which you can still change before creating it.
The structures
Each name links to its article in Writing advice, with every beat, where it falls and how to make the most of it.
| Structure | Shape | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Blank | No chapters, just an optional word target. | Discovery writers |
| Three-Act Structure | Setup, confrontation and resolution, turning at about a quarter and three-quarters of the way through, with a midpoint reversal. | Most commercial fiction, thrillers, fantasy |
| Five-Act Structure (Freytag) | Exposition, rising action, a climax in the middle, falling action and dénouement. | Literary fiction, tragedy, epic fantasy, horror |
| Save the Cat! | Blake Snyder's fifteen beats at set points, from the opening image to a final image that mirrors it. | Commercial fiction, thrillers, romance, YA |
| The Hero’s Journey | Christopher Vogler's twelve stages, from the ordinary world through the ordeal to the return with the elixir. | Epic fantasy, quests, science fiction |
| Seven-Point Story Structure | A hook, two plot turns, two pinch points and a midpoint, built backwards from the resolution. | Fantasy, science fiction, thrillers |
| Story Circle | Dan Harmon's eight steps: a character leaves their comfort zone, gets what they wanted, pays for it and comes home changed. | Science fiction, character stories, short pieces |
| Kishōtenketsu | Four parts (introduction, development, twist, reconciliation) that build through contrast rather than conflict. | Literary fiction, quiet stories, short fiction |
| Fichtean Curve | Straight into a crisis, then crisis after crisis rising to the climax, with the backstory woven in along the way. | Thrillers, mysteries, horror |
| Romance beats | Two leads in four phases: setup, falling in love, retreating from love and fighting for love, ending in a happily-ever-after epilogue. | Romance and romantic subplots |
| Mystery (whodunit) | A crime (as a prologue), an investigation full of suspects and red herrings, a wrong answer, and a fair reveal. | Mysteries, crime, detective fiction |
| Novella | A compact three-act shape for one storyline with few subplots, around 30,000 words. | Novellas |
| Short story | One chapter of five scenes: hook, complication, crisis, climax and resolution, around 5,000 words. | Short fiction |
Structures with acts create them for you, each in its own colour, so the chapters list and the planner show where each act begins. Rename or recolour them under Acts in the manuscript's details. See Acts.
Chapter word targets
Any chapter can have a word target, not just one made from a structure. Open the chapter and choose Edit, then fill in Word target (or clear it to remove the goal). The chapters list then shows how far along each chapter is, such as 2 scenes · 1,250 of 3,600 words.
The manuscript's own target and deadline are in its Goal: see Stats and goals.