I need friends. For my story silly, ahahahahaha!

So with Voglers step 5 (from the previous post) addressed the 'first act' of the story is supposedly completed. You've probably heard of the three act structure before, and if you're like me you really had no idea what they were talking about. The first act it seems ends with the hero of any book, movie etc. accepting the call to enter the adventure that is at the real heart of your story.

Step 6 - Tests, Allies & Enemies

I only have hazy notions about where i'm going with these at the moment. For all the story ideas i've mentioned so far i've left a lot out, enough I would say that at this point I could probably write a fairly detailed outline mapping out a lot of what I want to do with the first act. Beyond that though all I can see is fog with a few shapes silhouetted.

Now I know that Vogler goes on to introduce archetypes later on in his book, which serve as character models. I'll wait to see what he says, hopefully that will help fill in the blanks.

Still might as well get a few ideas out there. If for a writer his stories are his children, then the next few lines are the equivalent of a writers sperm being sprayed on a wall. No, canvas. A writers sperm being sprayed on a canvas.

That was a metaphor.

Okay so once the fairies have won Emily's sympathies she is going to start asking for more details about the gnomes and how they live etc. At this point she will learn abut her cousin Martin. That's a name i've never been keen on so for now we'll call him Martin. It turns out her cousin Martin, who is of a similar age (whatever age that is? How old are these kids anyway?) is a friend to the gnomes.

Martin will be established as a character in the first act. I will set up a dynamic where along with the kind eccentric aunty and uncle she finds herself living with, there is also a bothersome aunty and uncle who keep wanting to interfere in Emily's life. They have a monster of a child and his name is Martin (for now).

After that I don't know. I have no story plan for how the battle will escalate, so I don't know what tests Emily will have to endure. I have no outline for any of the fairy or gnome characters, I don't even know how many of them there are. Act two is still quite a mystery at this point.