Introduction
Welcome back. In our last lesson, you successfully drafted the opening of your story, establishing the "normal" world for Vera and Alex before introducing the inciting incident—the moment the theoretical idea of an open relationship collides with the reality of Leo. An impossible choice now hangs in the air, creating the initial tension that will drive your narrative forward.
This lesson tackles the next crucial phase of your story's architecture. The learning outcome is to draft the rising action of the plot outline, applying a sequence of techniques to escalate tension and friction. The rising action is the heart of your story's second act. It's a carefully constructed sequence of events that takes the initial conflict and methodically intensifies it, pushing your characters through a series of challenges that deepen their internal and external struggles. This is where you'll build the pressure on Vera, Alex, and Leo, leading them inexorably toward the story's climax.
Part 1: The Engine of Escalation: Try/Fail Cycles
The rising action is not a random collection of events; it's a purposeful escalation. A powerful way to structure this is through Try/Fail Cycles. A character has a goal, they try to achieve it, and they either fail, or they succeed in a way that creates a new, bigger problem. This structure ensures that your plot constantly builds momentum and raises the stakes.
Your background in statistics and research has given you a deep appreciation for cause-and-effect and dynamic systems. You can think of try/fail cycles as the narrative engine that transforms potential energy (the initial conflict) into kinetic energy (rising tension).
To understand this structure, let's look at a resource that breaks it down clearly.
Add Tension and Build Suspense with Try/Fail Cycles
The article 'Add Tension and Build Suspense with Try/Fail Cycles' from Newbie to Novelist provides an excellent framework for structuring your rising action.
Please read the following sections: Start with 'What is a try/fail cycle?' to understand the core concept. Read 'How many try/fail cycles should I include?' for insight into the typical three-part escalation structure. Pay close attention to the section 'When should I include a try/fail cycle?'. The concepts of 'Yes, but…' and 'No, and…' are the most critical tools here. They provide a formula for ensuring that every scene ends with more tension than it started with.
For your story, this could look like:
- Try: Alex attempts to set a clear boundary to feel safe.
- Outcome ("No, and..."): The boundary is perceived by Vera as a lack of trust, so not only is Alex's insecurity not resolved, but now a new conflict (Vera feeling controlled) has been introduced.
- Try: Vera tries to reassure Alex by sharing details about her date with Leo.
- Outcome ("Yes, but..."): Alex feels included and his anxiety lessens for a moment, but a specific detail she shares triggers a new, deeper insecurity he hadn't even considered before.
This "Yes, but..." / "No, and..." structure is the key to creating a believable and constantly escalating path of friction.
Part 2: Layering Internal and External Conflict
As the external plot escalates through try/fail cycles, the internal conflicts of your characters must deepen in parallel. The rising action is where we see the full extent of Alex's turmoil, Vera's divided loyalties, and Leo's navigation of this complex dynamic. Every external event should trigger an internal reaction.
A powerful method for showing this is to focus on your characters' conflicting emotions.
How to Add Tension to EVERY PAGE of Your Book (Fiction Writing Advice)
Let's watch a video from writer Brandon McNulty that demonstrates how to create tension on any page by focusing on internal conflict.
Watch the first two sections of 'How to Add Tension to EVERY PAGE of Your Book': The Core Concept (00:35 - 01:45): This introduces the idea that tension comes from a character experiencing conflicting emotions simultaneously (e.g., hope and dread, love and resentment). The Rewrite Example (01:45 - 03:37): Notice how the external actions of the scene don't change, but adding the character's internal conflicting emotions completely transforms the level of tension.
For Alex, every scene in the rising action should be a battlefield of conflicting emotions:
- Love vs. Fear: He loves Vera and wants her to be happy, but he fears losing her.
- Pride vs. Insecurity: He is proud of his progressive values, but he feels deeply insecure about being "replaced" or "not enough."
- Trust vs. Suspicion: He wants to trust Vera completely, but his mind creates suspicious scenarios.
These internal conflicts can then be externalized through dialogue. This isn't about shouting matches, but about conversations where characters' core values are challenged.
How to Write NONVIOLENT Conflict (Writing Advice)
Let's watch another short clip that explains how nonviolent conflict is driven by challenges to a character's values.
Watch the first two tips in 'How to Write NONVIOLENT Conflict': Challenge Character Values (01:26 - 01:58): This explains that conflict arises when a character's core values are threatened. Use Dialogue to Create Conflict (05:33 - 06:59): This section shows how dialogue becomes a weapon when characters use it to attack and defend their values (e.g., justice, respect, honesty).
Imagine a scene where Vera's value of autonomy clashes with Alex's value of security. Their conversation, even if calm, will be electric with tension because these fundamental values are in opposition.
Part 3: Sequencing Your Techniques for Maximum Impact
You have already selected a powerful combination of techniques to drive your plot. The rising action is where you deploy them in a sequence. Each "try" in a try/fail cycle can be motivated by one of your chosen techniques.
Recall the core techniques you selected in Module 10:
- Primary Story Arc Drivers: A technique from SCAMPER, one from Thought Experiments, and one from LAPS SEE.
- Husband's Internal Conflict: A layered System Limiter and a Decision Paradox.
Your task now is to arrange these into a chain of escalating events. Think of it as choreographing a dance of rising tension.
Example Sequence:
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Beat 1 (Driven by a Paradox): Alex is trapped in the Hedgehog's Paradox—he wants closeness with Vera to feel secure, but every time he gets closer by asking questions, the details hurt him.
- Try: He asks for intimate details about Vera's date with Leo, hoping transparency will make him feel included.
- Outcome ("No, and..."): The details are more painful than he imagined, and his hurt reaction makes Vera feel guilty and less willing to share in the future. The distance increases.
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Beat 2 (Driven by a System Limiter): This triggers a Fix that Backfires.
- Try: To "fix" the problem of her guilt and his pain, Vera decides to be less transparent, sharing only vague summaries of her time with Leo.
- Outcome ("No, and..."): Her vagueness fuels Alex's imagination, and he assumes the worst. The lack of information is even more agonizing than the full truth was. The "fix" has made the problem worse.
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Beat 3 (Driven by SCAMPER): Frustrated, Alex tries to Combine his need for security with Vera's relationship with Leo.
- Try: He suggests a rule: "You can see Leo, but I want to meet him and become friends with him first." He believes combining the two relationships into a friendly trio will neutralize the threat.
- Outcome ("Yes, but..."): Vera agrees, and the meeting happens. But seeing Leo's easy chemistry with Vera in person only amplifies Alex's insecurity, and it puts Leo in the awkward position of having to win Alex's "approval." The tension is now a three-way dynamic.
Each beat builds on the last, systematically increasing the pressure and complexity of the situation, making the final climax both inevitable and necessary.
Your Task: Draft the Rising Action Outline (35 minutes)
Return to the plot outline you've been developing. In the previous lesson, you wrote the prose for the Setup and Inciting Incident. Now, you will create a structured outline for the Rising Action. You are not writing full prose here; you are building the skeleton.
Create 3 to 5 distinct plot beats that connect the Inciting Incident to the Climax. For each beat, define the following in point-form:
- The Beat's Core Event: A one-sentence summary of the scene. (e.g., "Alex and Vera argue about her coming home late from a date with Leo.")
- Character Goal (The "Try"): What does one character try to achieve in this scene? (e.g., "Alex tries to re-establish a sense of control by enforcing a curfew.")
- Driving Technique: Which specific technique from your toolkit (e.g., Fixes that Backfire, Hedgehog's Paradox, SCAMPER-Reverse) is at the heart of this beat?
- Outcome & Escalation ("Yes, but..." / "No, and..."): Describe the outcome. Does the character succeed but create a new problem, or fail and make the current one worse? How does this raise the stakes for the next scene?
- Key Conflicting Emotions: What conflicting emotions are at play for your main characters in this scene? (e.g., "Alex: Love vs. Possessiveness; Vera: Guilt vs. Resentment.")
This structured approach will allow you to map the escalation of tension logically, ensuring that each step in the rising action serves a clear purpose in moving the story toward its powerful resolution.
Conclusion
In this lesson, you've moved from initiating a conflict to building a system of escalating tension. The rising action is the load-bearing section of your story, and by structuring it with intention, you ensure the reader remains engaged while the psychological journey of your characters deepens.
Key Takeaways:
- The Rising Action is a sequence of events designed to methodically escalate conflict and tension.
- Try/Fail Cycles, framed as "Yes, but..." and "No, and..." outcomes, are the engine that drives this escalation.
- Effective rising action layers external plot events with the characters' deepening internal conflicts, which can be powerfully expressed through conflicting emotions.
- Your existing toolkit of techniques (SCAMPER, Paradoxes, etc.) provides the substance for each "try" within a cycle.
Preview of the Next Lesson
You have now outlined the path of escalating friction that will push your characters to their breaking point. In the next lesson, we will arrive at that very point. The learning outcome will be: Draft the climax of the plot outline, where the central conflict reaches its peak and the decision for consent is made. All the tension you've built will finally be released in the story's most critical and transformative moment.