Your heroine has conquered her fears and perhaps the villain and celebrated her just Reward after the great Ordeal. So what’s next?
Well, she has to decide whether to remain in the new world or make the journey back home. The new world may be all glitter and magic, but most heroes don’t stay. Something or someone is calling them home again. So your heroine must take The Road Back.
This is another spot in the story where you need energy. Danger may still lurk in dark places. People back home may be on the verge of collapse or deadly harm. This is a time when your heroine rededicates herself to the adventure.
Just because she conquered the villain once doesn’t mean that villain is gone for good. There may be repercussions from the Ordeal. Forces can retaliate. Maybe she killed the bad guy but his brother comes looking for revenge. Or a property deal falls through because the heroine can’t come up with the down payment. Or doctors have the original virus under control but a new strain breaks out.
This is the climax of Act Two, a possibility for the greatest tension, which sets the scene for resolution in Act Three.
In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s friends have just received their rewards from the Wizard. The Scarecrow has a diploma (signifying great intellectual ability), the Tin Woodman has a heart, and the Cowardly Lion has a medal of valor for courage. Dorothy has been promised a ride home to Kansas in a hot-air balloon. The people of Oz gather round to wish the Wizard and Dorothy bon voyage, but just as the balloon starts to lift off, Toto escapes Dorothy’s arms and runs after a cat. Dorothy runs after Toto and, since the Wizard can’t stop the balloon, misses her chance to go home.
Her Road Back was not via the balloon, a mechanical device. She must keep searching for another way back.
What does your heroine face now? Will she face revenge? Are her family’s lives at stake? Will the journey home be easy or difficult? The story isn’t over yet, so remember to keep the level of tension high.
Well, she has to decide whether to remain in the new world or make the journey back home. The new world may be all glitter and magic, but most heroes don’t stay. Something or someone is calling them home again. So your heroine must take The Road Back.
This is another spot in the story where you need energy. Danger may still lurk in dark places. People back home may be on the verge of collapse or deadly harm. This is a time when your heroine rededicates herself to the adventure.
Just because she conquered the villain once doesn’t mean that villain is gone for good. There may be repercussions from the Ordeal. Forces can retaliate. Maybe she killed the bad guy but his brother comes looking for revenge. Or a property deal falls through because the heroine can’t come up with the down payment. Or doctors have the original virus under control but a new strain breaks out.
This is the climax of Act Two, a possibility for the greatest tension, which sets the scene for resolution in Act Three.
In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s friends have just received their rewards from the Wizard. The Scarecrow has a diploma (signifying great intellectual ability), the Tin Woodman has a heart, and the Cowardly Lion has a medal of valor for courage. Dorothy has been promised a ride home to Kansas in a hot-air balloon. The people of Oz gather round to wish the Wizard and Dorothy bon voyage, but just as the balloon starts to lift off, Toto escapes Dorothy’s arms and runs after a cat. Dorothy runs after Toto and, since the Wizard can’t stop the balloon, misses her chance to go home.
Her Road Back was not via the balloon, a mechanical device. She must keep searching for another way back.
What does your heroine face now? Will she face revenge? Are her family’s lives at stake? Will the journey home be easy or difficult? The story isn’t over yet, so remember to keep the level of tension high.
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