ACT I: Story Point #1 The hook

Sets up the entire story in the first few pages

Pose questions for the audience without giving answers

Make a promise to tell them what to expect and show why they should care.

The world the Protagonist lives in:

Macon, GA in the mid-80s

Who is the Protagonist

He is a gay child raised in a KKK community in Georgia.

The status quo of the Protagonist's life

Living in fear of his KKK dad finding out he is gay

The Protagonist's need for change

To keep in the closet until he is old enough to leave

The Protagonist's desire/goal

He wants to live a life without fear while helping others like him

What is the Antagonist standing in the Protagonist's way

His racist homophobic dad and his age because is too young to make any useful changes

The stakes if the status quo doesn't change

He is afraid is his dad find out he might be killed.

Why start now, what is special about today

Today is the day he comes to terms that he is gay and has a crush on a boy at school

What is his flaw

His flaw is fear and being introverted

Save the cat moment

He speaks up to stop a bully from hurting an openly gay student and gets beat up.

Story Point #2 The incident that sets the story in motion
Upsetting the status quo

Rumors of Sean being gay spreads.

Inciting incident - taking protagonist out of the comfort zone

Bully threatens to tell his dad

Trying to make things as they were (refusal to take the journey)

Trying to bargain with the bully and has to agree to a horrific arrangement

Giving the audience a sense of upcoming trouble - P2.5, O3.5, N3

Sean's dad has a rant about a business owner in town that was gay, they burn down his store and put him in the hospital
Bully takes photos of the Sean fulfilling the agreement made so bully wouldn't tell his dad

Story Point #3 Cutting off the Protagonist from returning to status quo Creating the point of no return

Dad receives photos and threatens Sean to not be home when he gets there, currently 80 miles from Macon in Atlanta.
Sean lives in a very racist homophobic area
Nowhere to run.

Challenged to change

This is the time when Sean must push past his fear and feeling to withdraw from the issues and face them head on

ACT II: Rising Conflict(Emotional Rollercoaster - ER - 1 thru 10 intensity - Positive emotion (P), Overall Intensity (O), Negative emotion (N) Story Point #4 Protagonist makes a plan - P5, O2, N1

Sean plans to run away, not knowing where but to avoid the Antagonist
Introduce obstacles starting small to major ones - Mom comes home and delays Sean from packing, Not enough room in the car to everything, Grandmother calls to tell him his father left from her house and not Atlanta - He is closer. The car won't start - low fuel (siphons gas from Mom's car)

Story Point #5 Mid-point/Mirror Moment - After several failed attempts, creates a radically different plan - Mid-point P2, O5.5, N5.5 - Mounting Forces P9.5, O8, N0MID-POINT

Increase the level of intensity to build to the climax, continually make each step either worse or better.
Has an epiphany and is forced to face his inner flaw.
He must overcome his weakness in order to move forward (his fear of being outed and having to admit to himself he is gay)
Radically changes plan and makes the first indication of actively working toward changing his flaw (the fear of being known). He tells his Mom he is gay - she is disappointed and fears her the wrath of her husband, he calls, Kyle, his crush from school and has to admit that he is gay and needs help. Friend angrily hangs up.

MOUNTING FORCES - the hopeful period following the mid-point

Grandmother offers to hide him at a hotel in Atlanta
Mother, normally passive, helps him to escape.
Dad arrives blocking the driveway, taking a baseball bat from the trunk. The bully from school is with him.
Approaching, Sean. His Mom stands in front of Sean and confronts her husband. He threatens her but she stands steady.
John, growing angrier, lifts bat to strike. Kyle rushes in and disarms John.
Fight ensues. Kyle knocks out bully.

Story Point #6 All Hope is Lost - Everything goes wrong and looks bleak for the Protagonist - P0, O10, N10

The team is broken up and the likelihood of success is dashed.
Mother is injured, Kyle is seriously hurt and Sean is threatened by death. Cringes in fear.

ACT III: ENTERING NEW WORLD, LEAVING STATUS QUOStory Point #7 Transformation - the Protagonist - P8, O2.5, N0

Sean wakes up in a hospital
Visited by Jennifer, a girl from school, Kyle and entire football team.
He realizes that his days of being afraid are over.
The new plan is to face his father once and for all.

Story Point #8 CLIMAX P5 O10 N5/RESOLUTION- P10, O1, N0CLIMAX:

Plan either succeeds or fails to satisfy the need for change in an unexpected way.
This is the culmination of everything to this point.
Sean and Kyle confront Sean's dad at a KKK meeting, Sean's dad and Kyle's dad are present.
Sean stands up for himself and proudly proclaims his sexual orientation.
His dad throws a punch, Sean deflects and knocks his dad out with one swing.
The KKK Grand Wizard makes a threat against Sean and homosexuality. The members approach the two. From the treeline, emerges the entire football team with Jennifer and the cheerleads. The KKK members back down.

RESOLUTION:

The Protagonist's growth is shown.
Break for the audience to catch their breath.
The group breaks up and Sean walks to Kyle's car, they are both holding hands.
We forward to modern day, Sean is the founder of an Anti-Bullying organization and he is speaking to High School students.

Jayson Stonne

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