Lisa Cron’s Story Genius guides writers through the scene card process.

Her method differs from traditional outlining, where writers plot every external event that will occur in their story.

These scene cards focus on your protagonist’s internal evolution.

To craft a meaningful story, external plot scenes are developed to serve your protagonist’s internal journey. The internal and external plots work in tandem.

Last week’s blog post reviewed part one of Cron’s book. We developed our main character in preparation for writing scene cards. 

Getting clear on their goal and misbelief sets us up to craft a story arc that is character-driven with purpose.

Today, you’ll learn how to write scene cards that develop a cause-and-effect trajectory.

Scene cards are a scene-by-scene progression of the external plot driven by the internal struggle triggered in your protagonist.

Every scene within your story is influenced by what came before and influences what occurs next. This cause-and-effect trajectory ensures your story remains centred on the emotional progression of your main character. 

External events do not move your plot forward on their own. They only stick around if they serve your protagonist’s story.

Here’s a brief breakdown of each section in Lisa Cron’s scene card:

The Alpha Point: Shares the purpose of each scene and how it moves the story forward in the overall cause-and-effect trajectory.

Subplots: Generally, your alpha point may move one or more subplots forward. This space allows you to track the ripple effect of all events in your story.

The left side of the scene card represents the “cause” of your cause-and-effect trajectory.

Here you’ll express what happens at the beginning of the scene (external event) and why it matters based on your protagonist’s current goal.

The right side represents the “effect” of the above event.

You’ll share the internal and external consequences of what’s occurred. You’ll also discuss what realization this triggers in your protagonist.

Finally, the card ends with a space titled, “And so?” Your protagonist’s realization determines what they’ll do next, affecting upcoming scenes.

In this section, you’ll reveal what will happen due to their actions.

Using the above template, work through your very first scene card.

Ensure that you’re as specific as possible. Include both your protagonist’s internal struggle and the external events occurring as your story opens.

Here, you’re setting up all the threads that will weave into your character’s arc, revealing to readers why this obstacle is high stakes for your protagonist.

Don’t worry if you’re unsure of some areas right now. You’ll be constantly returning to your scene cards to add more as your story becomes clearer.

Take note of any questions and keep on going. 

Always ask yourself “why?”

Ensure that each new plot point has a logical place in your story.

Why does your protagonist care? Why would they take that action?

If you’re not sure, do more digging.

Lisa Cron doesn’t have us write all of our scene cards immediately. She states that you can even start writing your story without all the scene cards completed.

However, she recommends planning out the first 5 scenes beforehand, as these are crucial to setting up the story.

But, before we dive into any of those scene cards, you’re going to write that opening scene.

Not a summary of it, but the actual scene as you would for your novel. Incorporate all the details, dialogue, and everything you need.

Your goal in this opening scene is to plant the seeds that create your story’s internal and external arcs right from page one.

Cron states that this opening scene will likely be rewritten multiple times as you discover more about your story. For now, be as specific as you can.

For reference, take a look at the completed scene card from Cron’s book below.

Time to skip ahead to the end or close to the finale of your novel.

Cron reminds us that knowing the resolution of your novel in advance helps guide you. Determining what must happen between the opening scene and then is your road map.

This scene isn’t necessarily your final chapter. The “aha” moment is when your protagonist lets go of their misbelief and sees the world differently.

It could be before the final event, allowing them to overcome that last obstacle.

Or, it may be after the obstacle as they reflect upon what has occurred and realize that all didn’t go as planned.

When completing this scene card, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Did the protagonist earn this revelation?
2. Will the reader experience this revelation alongside the protagonist? Have you shown how they come to this conclusion?
3. Internally, what did they give up? What did they gain?
4. Did they achieve their external goal or discover something more important?

Cron suggests playing out both scenarios (achieving and not achieving their initial goal) before committing.

Which one feels right to who your protagonist will become?

Just like the opening scene, you’re gonna write the “aha” moment in all its glorious detail. 

Make sure to show your main character coming to this realization. Your readers want to witness their misbelief crumbling as you reveal how your protagonist has changed.

Show us the link between how what happens externally forces your protagonist to confront and finally overcome (or not) their misbelief. 

Show us how they now view the world and themselves.

How will their life change from this point on?

With the opening scene and “aha” moment in your back pocket, use the same process to craft the first 5 scene cards for your novel.

Write these in chronological order so you can zero in on the cause and effect.

You need to know how they’re influenced by the scene before and how they will set up the next scene.

These are crucial scenes.

They set your key events into motion and introduce your protagonist’s world view.

Spend time teasing them out before you move forward.

From there, you can delve into writing your novel, shifting between writing and revising scene cards as you dig deeper.

Here are some of Lisa Cron’s final pieces of advice. Use this knowledge to craft a plot that works for your main character.

1. Write a scene card for every scene, even if you think you know what happens: you’re more likely to remain focused on your main character’s internal journey. Often, we know what we want to happen externally. These cards ensure that our plot is character-driven.

2. For each card, ask yourself these questions: keep, cut or revise based on your answers.

• Does this scene serve the cause-and-effect trajectory?
• Does it follow naturally from the previous scene?
• Does it set up the next scene?

3. Write your scene cards in order: when you skip around, you’re likely to weaken the cause-and-effect pathway of your story arc. Make sure that past events always inform what happens next.

This scene card method will guide you through the entire process of building an internally driven story arc.

Your character’s transformation will remain at the center of your plot.

Start crafting compelling and meaningful scenes that emphasize your protagonist’s internal arc.

If you’ve got a wisp of a story idea, but are struggling with developing plot points, next week’s blog post will focus on the final section in Lisa Cron’s book.

You’ll find strategies for:

• Finding possible external and internal conflicts that will test your protagonist’s misbelief
• Making sure every “what” has a “why”
• Discovering subplots and secondary characters that serve your protagonist’s arc

Until then, enjoy teasing out your narrative with Cron’s story card method!

Have you used Lisa Cron’s Story Genius approach? Share your experience in the comments.

Talk soon!

Julia