If you’ve started outlining your novel or looking to narrative structures to hang your story on, you may have come across “turning points” before. Or, maybe you’ve heard other writers talking about how important they are in any work of fiction. But what do they really mean, and how do you know it when you encounter one?
Mapping out a series of compelling turning points is essential to crafting a powerful novel. We’ll guide you through everything you need to know about this unsung plotting device, including how to develop your own.
What is a turning point in a story?
A turning point is a moment in a narrative in which a new conflict, development, or revelation sends the trajectory of the plot in a new direction. Turning points can be passive, in which something happens outside the characters’ control, or active, in which your characters make an irreconcilable choice. Turning points are essential for holding the reader’s attention.
You can think of turning points a little like driving on a highway. For a while you go in a straight line, but every once in a while there’s an option to turn left or right. Each turn adds something new and unexpected to the journey.
Every story has multiple turning points, some more explosive and dramatic than others. We’ll look at those in more detail below.
How many turning points should there be in a novel?
The exact number of turning points will be different for every story, but most novels will have five major turning points and a handful of smaller, minor turning points. The major turning points occur at each “hinge” of the five-act structure, or balanced evenly throughout the three-act structure.
Different types of story structures will use different layouts of turning points as their framework. For example, the eight-point story arc has, as you might expect, eight turning points. The hero’s journey story structure, beloved of classic literature and epic coming-of-age films, has twelve.
We’ll look at the five most important turning points that every story should have—and if you want to dive deeper into the elements of a good story, check out our ultimate guide—further down below.
Types of narrative turning points
We’ve mentioned major and minor turning points a few times already, but what exactly is the difference? Let’s break it down.
Major turning point
Major turning points, sometimes called key turning points, are pivotal story-level events which determine the direction of the plot. Without them, the story simply doesn’t happen at all.
If a new character enters the narrative and shakes things up, that’s a key turning point that alters the trajectory of the story. If the protagonist loses their job without warning, that’s another key turning point that sends their life spinning in an unexpected direction.
Major turning points can be characterized like this: “The main character was going about his business, certain of what to expect, WHEN SUDDENLY—”. Every key turning point comes from a “when suddenly” everything was different.
Minor turning point
Minor turning points, sometimes called micro turning points, are subtler. They have more to do with character development and the development of interpersonal relationships than with the broader plot.
A minor turning point could be something like the hero starting to fall in love with the heroine, or to begin seeing an untrustworthy friend in a new light. Or, it might be a moment when your main character takes a risk and starts to discover their inner courage.
Real life is filled with minor turning points, and usually we don’t even notice them. In a story, these micro turning points build on each other to form a larger character arc. See if you can challenge yourself to include a minor turning point for one of your characters in every scene.
The most important turning points of every story
When planning out the story beats of your novel, these key turning points are the ones you should focus on exploring.
The inciting incident
The inciting incident is the first turning point in a story, and arguably the most important—it’s the reason the story begins! Up until this point, everything in your character’s life was fine. Maybe not perfect, but okay. WHEN SUDDENLY—!
It’s been said that there are two kinds of inciting incidents: a hero goes on a journey, and a stranger comes to town. In other words, either something happens to push the protagonist outside their comfort zone, or someone or something new shows up to eradicate that comfort zone completely.
This first plot point is important because it births every other turning point to come.
The escalation
Also called the first key plot point, this turning point raises the stakes and forces the protagonist to invest in their journey in a new way. In other words, the consequences of the inciting incident become personal.
If you imagine this five-point story arc as a mountain, this plot point happens about halfway to the top. It’s the point of no return where there’s no longer any option left but to keep going.
The midpoint
The midpoint, as you might have deduced, comes at the middle point in the story—the top of the mountain. This story point builds on the preceding turn and creates even more tension.
For the first half of the story, the main character will have been primarily reacting to the problems being thrown at them. The midpoint turn forces them to start acting and making real concrete choices.
The catastrophe
You’ll sometimes see this being called the pre-climax, false climax, or Dark Night of the Soul (I mean really, which one sounds cooler?). This turning point is a major setback for your characters. Just when they thought they were starting to get a handle on things, something happens to completely derail their plans.
The catastrophe can be external or internal. An external catastrophe will usually involve the bad guy making one last bid for power or revealing crucial information that upends everything the protagonist (and the reader) thought they knew. An internal catastrophe will be more of a crisis of self, morally, ethically, emotionally, or spiritually.
(Hint: you can even have both! Writing an external and internal catastrophe that are somehow linked is a great way to deepen your reader’s connection to your character while also moving the plot forward.)
The climax
And now we reach the final turning point: the climax. This is the culmination of every plot twist and turn that’s come before, and every choice your hero has made. This is the ride-or-die, fight-or-fall final battle (which, like the catastrophe, can happen externally, internally, or both).
This “turn” will determine the outcome of the story. Until now, the ending could go a number of ways. The climax will decide who emerges from the wreckage, and who gets their comeuppance. It’s the moment your readers have spend 300 pages waiting for.
What makes a good turning point?
So now you know how turning points impact the overall story, and why they’re so essential as part of the plotting process. Now, here are some elements to incorporate as you develop yours.
Conflict
Remember how all turning points come from the when suddenly—? Most of the time, this is because a wrench has been thrown into the works. Now, your characters need to adapt.
Conflict happens when one character is at odds with another character (that’s interpersonal conflict), the world around them (natural or social conflict), or some value or belief within themselves (internal conflict). A good turning point will instigate one of these types of conflict and force the character to react in some way.
Revelation
The revelation, or realization, is a moment in which the character is given new information that makes them recalibrate what they thought they knew. Mystery novels in particular are filled with revelations—sometimes even ones that are contradictory. Every time the sleuth uncovers new leads or buried secrets, the story reaches a micro turning point.
But, you can (and should) have revelatory turning points in any genre. In a romance, for example, a turning point can happen when the heroine thinks (gasp!) that the hero is in love with someone else. But then another turning point happens just one scene later when she learns that he was really just helping his neighbor move her heavy furniture, and the heroine was wrong in her assumptions.
Character development
Something you should be asking for each turn in your story is, how does this turning point affect these characters? If your characters aren’t positively or negatively impacted in some way, it probably doesn’t need to be in the story.
A turning point will either be a result of your character’s arc, or it will push them to grow in new ways (thereby forming the arc). This could include things like a character taking new risks or a leap of faith, beginning to overcome internalized stigma, or a slight erosion of morality.
In a relationship (be it romantic, platonic, or familial), this turning point might mean these people are growing closer together, or starting to grow apart. In any incarnation, this kind of story turn will leave your character or characters slightly different than they were.
Examples of great turning points in literature
To help you understand turning points and how they fit into the whole story, here are a few classic examples from writers that have done it well.
Turning points in Romeo and Juliet
This timeless tale of love and sacrifice starts with the most classic turning point of all: the hero falls in love (Rosaline who?). This is the inciting incident, quickly followed by another, smaller turn: Romeo learns that his new paramour is a member of a rival family (scandal!).
This leads them to the first key plot point: the teenage couple, driven by desperate romanticism and high-octane hormones, decide to tie the knot in secret.
You can see that there are already three essential turning points in the setup to this story. The marriage is the “point of no return” (divorce not being quite this status quo in Elizabethan England). From here, more things happen to move the story along and keep the characters on their toes.
Romeo receives a challenge to a duel. (turning point). His BFF goes to fight in his place (turning point) and dies (major turn). Romeo, apparently unable to make any level-headed choices, then kills his friend’s murderer (turning point) and is banished for it (you know the drill).
And so on and so forth towards the climax and ultimate falling action, culminating in the rival families brokering peace over the dead bodies of their children. We never said it was a happy story. But you can see how the whole story hangs on a series of turning points, each building on the last and leading into the next.
Turning points in The Maltese Falcon
You’d expect nothing less than a meticulously crafted pattern of turning points from Dashiell Hammett’s mystery masterpiece. The novel opens with the first turning point: a suspiciously attractive woman shows up in the hero’s office, desperate for help (and we all know that classic heroes can’t resist a woman in need of a white knight). Very soon, the hero’s business partner ends up dead.
You may notice a parallel between these first two turning points and the first two major plot points in Romeo and Juliet. The first one is a “call to action” which, while interesting, could be ignored if the hero was determined not to leave their previously established comfort zone. The second turning point ropes them into the plot so that they have no choice but to move forward.
The Maltese Falcon picks up momentum with more turning points and revelations, including one more death which hero Sam Spade is inevitably blamed for (a little like Romeo being banished for his rival’s death).
More players enter the mix, everybody betrays everybody else, there’s a falcon worth a cool few million bucks, lies, cheats, opportunities, and moral decay ensue. And it all comes from a series of interconnected turning points.
Regardless of the genre you’re writing in, dissecting mystery novels and understanding how they’re put together is a really great way to level up your plotting game. It’s these twists and turns that keep the reader flipping pages.
Turning points in Pride and Prejudice
Even though Jane Austen’s classic Regency romance is neither mystery nor thriller, it does contain elements of both; this may be why the novel is so enduring after so many, many generations of rom-coms.
The first key turning point occurs when two (two!) handsome bachelors move into the estate next door, sending the entire Bennet family into a tizzy. Further investigation reveals that one is a lovable fop, and the other is kind of a jerk. Or is he?
Further into the narrative, more turning points are added through the inclusion of two more key players: ironically, another lovable fop and another jerk. The road to true love is never straight and narrow. Various miscommunications and shenanigans ensue until the turning point of highest tension, in which the flirtatious younger Bennet sister absconds with Jerk #2 in a life of mortal sin. Dishonor on her family, dishonor on her cow, etc., etc.
The final important turning point happens when the hero makes a deal with Jerk #2 (this being Darcy and Wickham, respectively) to save the family name. This turning point wraps up the main conflict in a rather neat happy ending, bringing all the different story threads together.
Engage your audience with turning points
Turning points are an essential part of most stories, with each building on the one before to create a complete saga. It’s important to remember that these turns affect not just plot, but character as well. Every time the scene changes, you have an opportunity to bring your characters to life just a little bit more.
Some of these turns might be planted in as part of your revision process, rather than during your first draft. The trick is to make it look as natural and cohesive, laying them subtly and cleverly across the course of the story. This way, you’ll keep your readers riveted to every page.
