Complications, Roadblocks, and Reversals
In a story, a reader wants to see the Protagonist overcome obstacles along the way. Here are three ways for you to approach writing those hurdles.
Imagine: Here is your Protagonist at the Beginning. And way over there, 100 script pages or so away is where your Protagonist will hit the Ending. In between is this thing I call the Plotline, and I want you to envision it just like it sounds, a straight line from Beginning to Ending.
Moreover, we WANT to see our story’s Protagonist struggle to overcome obstacles along the way. It makes for a more interesting read, the plot filled with twists and turns.
So, a writer should embrace obstacles as a necessary, even helpful asset in the story-crafting process. And as opposed to thinking about them in a generic way, here are three levels of complexity and difficulty:
Complications: A complication is an event or circumstance which slows the Protagonist’s progress toward their goal.
Roadblocks: A roadblock is an event or circumstance which stops the Protagonist’s progress toward their goal.
Reversals: A reversal is an event or circumstance which reverses the Protagonist’s progress toward their goal.
What these three represent are degrees of difficulty for the Protagonist character:
