Editing Research/Fiction Writing/Story Beats (section)

== Master beat taxonomy ==
The following taxonomy is useful across genres.
=== Macro beats: whole manuscript ===
* '''Opening state''' — what normal looks like before disruption.
* '''Central promise''' — what kind of story the reader is being offered.
* '''Inciting disruption''' — what destabilizes the protagonist.
* '''Commitment / threshold''' — why the protagonist cannot simply go back.
* '''First strategy''' — how the protagonist initially tries to solve the problem.
* '''Progressive complications''' — why that strategy fails or costs more.
* '''Midpoint reversal''' — new information, false victory, false defeat, or role shift.
* '''Escalation / bad guys close in''' — pressure from opposition and consequences.
* '''All-is-lost / ordeal''' — worst consequence of the old strategy or lie.
* '''Dark night / synthesis''' — protagonist recognizes what must change.
* '''Final plan / break into three''' — new strategy born from external and internal lessons.
* '''Climax''' — irreversible choice/action under maximum pressure.
* '''Resolution''' — consequences and value shift.
* '''Final image''' — transformed mirror of the opening.
=== Meso beats: chapter or sequence ===
* Chapter question
* Goal
* Obstacle
* Reversal
* Cost
* Decision
* Hook into next chapter
Each chapter should answer or sharpen a question, not merely continue atmosphere.
=== Micro beats: scene ===
* Inciting incident inside the scene
* Character goal
* Opposition
* Turning point or revelation
* Crisis choice
* Climax action/decision
* Resolution/consequence
* New hook