: Re: How does the 3 act structure fit in a Non Linear story? I see that the 3 Act structure can be applied over almost any story, from Hamlet to Mulholland Drive, from The Matrix to Rocky. Story

The three-act or five-act structure can still exist even if the elements are not shown in order. It's the effect on the audience which is changed.

In the case of Memento, you see the end first, and then work backwards through all the successes and setbacks. The "end," the resolution, becomes an inciting event of sorts, because it is where the audience first enters the story. The inciting event in chronological time happens at the end of the film, which retroactively changes how the audience understands the series of events, so it acts as a climax.

In Pulp Fiction, the audience has to hold all the pieces of the narrative in their heads and slot items in chronological order as they appear in the film.

In both movies, once the entire film is done, the events have now all been told to the audience, and the audience can review those events in linear, chronological order, which creates the standard three-/five-act rise-and-fall plot. It's the experience of learning the events out of order, and the retroactive "oh, now that makes sense!" which makes these stories more interesting.

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: I wouldn't just use fire and ice. The classic Four Elements (earth, air, fire, water) have been used for mythological and magical structures for many stories. Look at the Avatar: The Last

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: What should I do if I know the antagonist but too many options for protagonist? I have decided on my antagonist for my first novel. They are pretty much being brought back to power by traitors

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: What is it called when the reader is the focal point? Here is an example of what I mean in present-tense (though narrative time is irrelevant): You walk into the empty room, you should be

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: Do new writers stand a chance at a career without ambitions to write series? Simply put, I've been noticing a general truth in bookstores: Nearly every new book on the shelf is part of a

: Re: How does the 3 act structure fit in a Non Linear story? I see that the 3 Act structure can be applied over almost any story, from Hamlet to Mulholland Drive, from The Matrix to Rocky. Story

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: I wouldn't just use fire and ice. The classic Four Elements (earth, air, fire, water) have been used for mythological and magical structures for many stories. Look at the Avatar: The Last

: What should I do if I know the antagonist but too many options for protagonist? I have decided on my antagonist for my first novel. They are pretty much being brought back to power by traitors

: What is it called when the reader is the focal point? Here is an example of what I mean in present-tense (though narrative time is irrelevant): You walk into the empty room, you should be

: Do new writers stand a chance at a career without ambitions to write series? Simply put, I've been noticing a general truth in bookstores: Nearly every new book on the shelf is part of a

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