{"id":568,"date":"2023-03-07T14:43:34","date_gmt":"2023-03-07T14:43:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/?p=568"},"modified":"2023-03-07T14:43:34","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07T14:43:34","slug":"the-positive-change-arc-second-pinch-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/?p=568","title":{"rendered":"The Positive Change Arc Second Pinch Point"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Your character has just passed the Midpoint of the story, and is now in the second half of the 2nd<\/sup> Act. They are halfway done with their journey, but, while all seems to be going well, the worst is yet to come. Today, we are talking about the precursor to these troubles\u2014the Second Pinch Point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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First, let\u2019s talk about what happens between the Midpoint and the Second Pinch Point. Two main things happen to your MC during this time\u2026 they continue to act\u2014as opposed to the reacting they had done before the Midpoint\u2014and they also experience a false sense of victory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This sense of victory will be both internal and external. Internally, it comes because of the MC\u2019s attempts to reconcile the Lie with the Truth after seeing the Truth\u2019s power at the Midpoint. But while they are no longer completely opposed to the Truth, they are no closer to letting go of their Lie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Externally, the false sense of victory comes from the knowledge the MC gained at the Midpoint. They now think that they know much more\u2014perhaps everything\u2014about the antagonist\u2019s plans, which gives them confidence. Coupled with their newfound ability to act instead of react, they think that they are closer than ever to winning the battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As stated last time, Will in \u201cBeyond the Mask\u201d has become the Highwayman, earning the admiration of many\u2014including Charlotte\u2014and the hatred of the Loyalists. Many other things happen during the period between the Midpoint and the 3rd<\/sup> Act but, as we\u2019ll later see, the Second Pinch Point cannot be pinpointed to just one of these events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In \u201cIn Time of Need,\u201d there isn\u2019t much between the Midpoint and the Second Pinch Point, so Tad\u2019s false sense of victory\u2014or rather, his false sense of control over his situation\u2014is diminished pretty quickly after he arrives at the tenement house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Whatever progress the MC seems to be making, it\u2019s going to be interrupted by the Second Pinch Point. The elements of the Second Pinch Point are quite similar to those of the First Pinch Point, but, under the circumstances, they will take on slightly different roles. However, just like the First Pinch Point, the Second Pinch Point is going to provide a \u201cpinch\u201d to remind the MC that the battle is far from over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. The antagonist<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    While the MC has been able to act against the antagonist instead of reacting to<\/em> him, the Second Pinch Point will serve as a reminder that the antagonist isn\u2019t going to be that easy to beat. He\u2019s still got some cards up his sleeve\u2014cards that the Second Pinch Point will only allude to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The MC will be reminded that the antagonist has the upper hand, and is willing to do what it takes to keep it that way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    In \u201cBeyond the Mask,\u201d there are a few different moments that show Charles Kemp\u2019s power over Will\u2014some of which, Will doesn\u2019t even realize yet. In one scene, we see Basil (Charles\u2019 right-hand man) sneak into Will\u2019s quarters and steal the documents upon which Will later stakes his life. In another scene, Charles argues with Charlotte, revealing more of his true nature even to her. It\u2019s becoming more and more apparent that, while Charles is infuriated by Will\u2019s deeds as the Highwayman, he\u2019s still very much in control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/div>\n\n\n\n

    In \u201cIn Time of Need,\u201d Tad returns to the tenement house only to find that Mr. Beasley has, indeed, locked his sister away. Before he can do anything else, Mr. Beasley himself arrives to confront Tad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    1. The stakes<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      The stakes are going to be emphasized again, causing the MC\u2019s false sense of security to waver. After all, if they\u2019re wrong, they lose what is most dear to them. The stakes will often be emphasized when the antagonist asserts his dominance, but it can also be shown through some kind of emotional scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      <\/div>\n\n\n\n

      In \u201cBeyond the Mask,\u201d the stakes are emphasized when Will and Charlotte reunite. While the general sentiment in the scene is victorious, there is an underlying dread. After all, Will is reminded just how much he will lose if he fails to take down Charles and redeem himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      <\/div>\n\n\n\n

      In \u201cIn Time of Need,\u201d the stakes are emphasized when Tad realizes that not only does Mr. Beasley have Ava captive, but that there\u2019s nothing he can do about it on his own (which leads us to the next point).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      1. The Truth<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        The Truth is going to be clearly shown, just as in the First Pinch Point. But by now, the MC knows that the Truth is at least partially effective. They\u2019ve seen it triumph during the Midpoint, and perhaps have made efforts to reconcile the Truth and the Lie during the rest of the 2nd<\/sup> Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        However, the Second Pinch Point is going to show them that it won\u2019t work\u2014it\u2019s either the Truth or nothing. You can\u2019t believe both the Truth and the Lie at the same time\u2026 if they want to believe the Truth, they must <\/em>cast off the Lie once and for all. But the MC, of course, will refuse to believe this fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        <\/div>\n\n\n\n

        In \u201cBeyond the Mask,\u201d the Second Pinch Point shows Will that, while Charlotte is overjoyed to see him, she isn\u2019t ready to fully trust him yet. However, instead of recognizing that he can never truly redeem himself to her or to God, he determines that he will<\/em> redeem himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        <\/div>\n\n\n\n

        In \u201cIn Time of Need,\u201d Tad does get helped by Bevan and the other children, but not by his own choice. In fact, earlier in the scene, he refused to let them help him. This scene goes to show that Tad, indeed, is powerless on his own\u2014and will lend to the Third Plot Point, where even human aid cannot help him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        Here are few more Second Pinch Points to consider:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        1. Judah confronts Massalah; Judah is told that his mother and sister are dead (\u201cBen-Hur\u201d)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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          1. Charles Muntz discovers that Carl has the bird; he chases Carl, Russell, and Dug (\u201cUp\u201d)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
              \n
            1. George continues his life in Bedford Falls, but despises it (\u201cIt\u2019s a Wonderful Life\u201d)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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              1. Joy tries to wake Riley up; Bing-Bong is captured; Joy and Sadness rescue him (\u201cInside Out\u201d)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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                Comment below the Second Pinch Point of your favorite book or movie!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                Your character has just passed the Midpoint of the story, and is now in the second half of the 2nd Act. They are halfway done with their journey, but, while all seems to be going well, the worst is yet to come. Today, we are talking about the precursor to these troubles\u2014the Second Pinch Point.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,21,4],"tags":[24,26,29,23,32,33,109,27],"class_list":["post-568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-plots-and-character-arcs","category-positive-change-arcs","category-writing-tips","tag-character-arcs","tag-characters","tag-christian-writing","tag-plots","tag-positive-change-arcs","tag-protagonist","tag-second-pinch-point","tag-writing-tips"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=568"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":571,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568\/revisions\/571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianwriter.blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}