Story structures
Freytag's pyramid
Also called Dramatic arc
Five parts of a drama (exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution) drawn as a rise to a peak and a fall.
- Time20 to 40 minutes
- People1 to 8 people
- Steps4
What it's for
Freytag drew drama as a pyramid: tension rises to a climax in the middle, then falls to a resolution. It's a useful picture for any story that builds to a single big moment, such as a launch, a crisis that was handled, or a decision.
Modern stories often put the climax later than the middle. Treat the shape as a guide, not a rule.
How to run it
Set the scene5 min
Who, where, and what's normal?
Build the tension10 min
The complications that push towards the peak.
Find the climax5 min
The single moment everything turns on.
Bring it down8 min
What follows from the climax, and how does it settle?
Tips
- If you can't name the climax in one sentence, the story isn't ready.
- Keep the falling action short in a talk. The audience is ready to finish.
Where it comes from
Set out by the German novelist and playwright Gustav Freytag in Die Technik des Dramas (1863), based on his study of classical Greek and Shakespearean drama.
Pairs well with
Three-act structure
Set-up, confrontation and resolution, with two turning points that move the story from one act to the next.
Man in a hole
Someone gets into trouble and gets out of it, ending better off: the story shape people never seem to tire of.
Story spine
Eight sentence starters, from "Once upon a time" to "And ever since then", that give any story a beginning, a turn and an end.