The Real Inciting Incident: Why It’s More Than Just Big Events

Are you struggling to differentiate the inciting incident from your character’s "normal world" in your story? Many writers confuse the two, leading to confusion in their plot structure and weak storytelling.

In this episode, we break down the difference between your character's everyday actions and the pivotal moment that launches them into the adventure—the inciting incident. Using popular movies like Armageddon, Star Wars, and Jaws, we’ll show you how to identify the real turning point that transforms your protagonist’s journey. 

Learn how to pinpoint the exact moment that propels your character into action, making your story unforgettable.



This episode has been pulled from one of the live coaching sessions that you'll have exclusive access to by purchasing any one of the online writing courses offered by The Storyteller's Mission. Check them out!


Seven Deadly Plot Points FREE TRAINING VIDEO!


The Storyteller's Mission Podcast is now on YouTube. You can watch your favorite podcast as well as listen. Subscribe to our channel and never miss a new episode or announcement.

Transcript

[00:00:00] One of the things that I've noticed is that there's significant confusion, at the very beginning of a story as to what constitutes action that the character is already wrapped up in. And the inciting incident.

[00:00:26] I'm talking about how at the very beginning of your story, your character is already in the midst of action.

[00:00:33] And that's how I'm phrasing it. They're already going about their business. They already have something they're after. They already have something they want. They already have life going on. Because we all do. Right? We all do. nobody is just sitting around waiting for their story to start. We've already got stuff that we're doing.

[00:00:51] So I remember one of my students had this story where the character was Sitting on the edge of this wall, waiting for something to happen that was going to launch the character on the journey. And I was like, well, but what is she already after? Well, she's just bored. You know, she doesn't know what to No, no.

[00:01:11] She already has to have something. Now, that thing can be radically upset. That thing can change dramatically. That thing can be discarded completely. But your character already has a life. And that's how I like to phrase it. They already have a life. They already have things that they're engaged in. They already have stuff that they're pursuing.

[00:01:33] And it doesn't even have to be huge. It can be that the character is just trying to get through their days and they go to work and they come home and they turn on the TV and they make dinner but that's still an action. That's what they're doing. It's what they're doing. It's better if they have something already that they're pursuing, like they already want the promotion or even if it's not even a promotion, even if they're trying to get the report done for the upcoming quarterly meeting at work.

[00:02:04] That's something they're engaged in. That's an activity that's already occupying their time. Or if it's not something at work, 

[00:02:13] they're trying to do stuff They're already actively doing stuff and the key is for you to know that that is not the inciting incident That's not the inciting incident. even when it's this big thing that happens in the story, like for example, Armageddon, what do you think the inciting incident is in Armageddon?

[00:02:34] Armageddon is about an asteroid that's headed straight to earth and it's going to be a, end of world type scenario. And so the people on earth, of course, you're going to try and stop it. Armageddon, it's about to happen. But a lot of people think that the inciting incident is this asteroid headed to earth.

[00:02:56] But it's not. if you haven't seen it, it's starring Bruce Willis and Bruce Willis is an ocean miner. They go deep in the ocean and they're mining down there and they're drilling for oil, I think.

[00:03:10] I can't remember exactly, but they try to drill and it's very dangerous work And he's the head guy on one of these drillers. he's the top guy in the world I guess and his team They're very good at their jobs, but it's a very dangerous line of work but the reason that the asteroid coming to Earth is not the inciting incident is because this is the key. The inciting incident is the thing that draws your protagonist into the story. So no matter what the big event is out here. Even if it's that aliens suddenly show up on Earth, that is not the inciting incident.

[00:03:49] It's whatever it is that triggers your protagonist to be drawn up in that scenario. So in Armageddon, what draws Bruce Willis and his band of merry drillers, into the is that NASA approaches them and says, we have an idea. We need to land a team on this asteroid. The only way we can possibly survive this is if we drill deep into the asteroid and plant explosives and blow it up from the inside.

[00:04:23] And to do that, we need your team. We need the best of the best to be able to get on this asteroid and Drill into it and blow it up and they're not even I mean these guys obviously are not Astronauts they're drillers, but that's the thing that sucks them into the adventure Is nasa showing up and saying here it is and that is the call to action.

[00:04:48] So i'm going to use some of these terms the ones that I find helpful. And I do think the call to action is helpful because it helps you remember that it's about your main character. It's about the thing that is inviting them to join the adventure. The call to action,are they going to answer the call to adventure?

[00:05:09] Because the truth is, if Bruce Willis and his team said, nah, we're not interested, story over. And the asteroid would still come, but it wouldn't matter because it wouldn't be about our main character. So I want to talk to you about this because it just continues to be a struggle. You have to be able to identify the difference between the action that's already happening in the story And the moment that your character is called to action, which is the inciting incident.

[00:05:43] So I like the name inciting incident. I do use that terminology because it's the thing that incites Your character to join their adventure. It's the inciting incident the thing that Launches your character's journey. So i've made a list of a bunch of examples here Has anybody here seen the movie about schmidt?

[00:06:07] Okay. It's one of my favorites. You might write that down. It's excellent uh, so in about schmidt the movie starts where schmidt Is retiring. That is already happening. That's not the inciting incident. That's just already his world. He's sitting in his office. He's waiting for the clock to tick down to zero.

[00:06:31] That's his last day at work. Now he's in a car in the rain with his wife going to his retirement party. His best friend gives a speech that is really heartbreaking about how basically we spend our lives for this company and then they just replace us. But if you have good friends, if you have the kind of marriage, the kind of relationship that Warren has with his wife, then that's the real asset test of a life well lived.

[00:07:01] And then Warren Schmidt quickly gets up and goes to the bar by himself to have a drink at his own retirement party because he doesn't feel that his life matters. So, the question becomes, what is the inciting incident? Because it isn't retirement. That's already happening in the story. What is the thing, if you've seen it, what is the thing that launches Warren on his adventure, that changes him, that forces him to change?

[00:07:28] Can anybody remember? What is the new thing?

[00:07:32] What is the inciting incident? Well, it's when he's flipping through channels and he sees this ad for an Angela Lansbury world vision type thing. And he adopts a child. he decides to sponsor a child like a world vision child. That is what launches him on his journey.

[00:07:52] That becomes the catalyst for his change. And so at that point, from that moment in the story. It launches him on this new journey of transformation as he starts writing letters to Ndugu.

[00:08:09] It's a very funny device in a lot of ways, but it's also very heartbreaking. So yeah, this is a confusing one. If you don't understand story structure, it could be confusing. Because some people would say, oh, the inciting answer, he's, he's retiring. No, that's already happening.

[00:08:26] Oh, well, the, the daughter's getting married. Nope. That's already happening. That's his normal Already happening in the midst of action. That's his stuff. That's already happening in his story But the thing that's new the thing that's new the thing that actually triggers his adventure Is when he responds to the angela lansbury ad and decides to sponsor

[00:08:53] Now it's his adventure. So it's crazy because it's actually very subtle. In fact, here's the truth. In About Schmidt, we don't even actually see him make the call to sign up. We see him watching, flipping the channel. He flips away and then he flips back. And then we see him reaching for the phone. And that's it.

[00:09:18] It's a small teeny moment, but that is the moment. Okay, has anybody here seen Lars and the Real Girl? this is also one of my favorites. It'll be offensive to some of you, I'm sure, but it's actually a really beautiful story.

[00:09:33] But it's about this guy who ends up getting a sex doll. Now, he's very pure with the sex doll. He's having a hallucination. He's having, not a hallucination.He's having a mental breakdown, basically, and he thinks the doll is real, and he thinks he's in a real relationship with her. and by the way, the church acts exactly like the church should 

[00:09:56] It's one of the best modern stories where the church is not evil, they're actually loving and good. So anyway, you've got Lars and at the very beginning of the story, Lars is in crisis already. Now we don't get exactly why for a little bit, but it turns out it's because his sister in law is pregnant and she's getting close to having the baby and it's triggering his trauma, but that's not The thing, the pregnancy isn't the thing that is the inciting incident.

[00:10:30] That's just already happening in the story. The other thing that's already happening in the story is that he's met Margo. Who is the love interest, the real girl. She's the real girl that he actually should be with. He already has met her. She's already interested in him. They are already co workers. So Margo being there isn't the inciting incident.

[00:10:54] That's already part of the action. The inciting incident, the thing that launches Lars on his journey towards transformation is when he learns from a coworker about these sex dolls and then he orders one himself. And again, the reason people miss that is because we don't actually see it. We don't actually see that inciting incident.

[00:11:18] All we see is the coworker talking about these sex dolls And we see the moment where maybe that idea strikes him, but we never actually see him do it. And then the next thing you know, this box arrives. But that's the thing that launches him on his journey because he needs to heal from his past trauma and it's Bianca Who ends up launching him on that journey so that he can finally be ready for the real girl He has to heal from his past trauma so that he can actually love and be loved.

[00:11:52] It's a beautiful story I highly recommend it But again, another one where people miss what the actual inciting incident is, partly because it happens off screen. We don't see it happen. And yet, that's definitely the inciting action. Okay, what about Jaws? What's the inciting incident in Jaws?

[00:12:16] Now remember, there's something that's already happening in the world, and then there's the thing. That gets your character, that, that sucks them into the story, that's the inciting incident. So what's already happening in the story?

[00:12:32] The girl that's at the party who goes out swimming and she gets killed, that is not the inciting incident. That's already happening in the story. The inciting incident is simply when he is made aware of it and they find the girl's remains on the shore And now it's his responsibility to do something about this man eating shark.

[00:12:57] But if, but he could say, Nah, I'm not gonna do anything, in which case the story would be over. right? It's the thing that draws him up into the adventure. Alright? So, Star Wars. This is one where people are so confused about what the actual inciting incident is in Star Wars. What do you think the inciting incident is in Star Wars?

[00:13:24] Well, first of all, who's the main character of Star Wars?

[00:13:28] So Luke Skywalker is our main character. Good. So what is the thing that draws Luke into a story that launches him? Not just that launches him on the adventure that transforms and changes him. Think about it like that. It's not just that where his world collides with something else, it's the thing that.

[00:13:52] Launches him on his personal journey of transformation and change.

[00:13:59] Alright, so how Star Wars opens is Darth Vader boards a diplomatic ship where Princess Leia is.

[00:14:10] But that's already happening. So a lot of people would say, well, that's the inciting incident. But it's not. That's just already happening in the world and Princess Leia records a little message. You remember the little message she records? She puts it in the droid. You know, hey, send this, you know, she tries to get the droids off the ship.

[00:14:26] Next thing you know, those droids Are then sold to Luke's uncle, but that's also not the inciting incident because nothing about that in and of itself launches Luke onto his journey. So that's just part of the story. That's just part of the world that's already happened. That's part of the action that's already happening.

[00:14:48] What is the thing that then changes everything?

[00:14:52] before we get there, did you know that there are seven crucial plot points that every story must hit in order to satisfy the audience? And if you miss even one of those crucial plot points, you risk losing your audience's attention forever. This is why I've created a free training video for you, where I break down exactly what these seven deadly plot points are.

[00:15:17] No matter what genre you're working in, these are the essential plot moments that you need to hit in order to deliver a powerful, compelling, page turning story. So, be sure to check out my free training video on the Seven deadly plot points.

[00:15:32] It's going to transform your writing. Just click on the link provided in the notes or head over to thestorytellersmission. com and you can start watching this free training video right away.

[00:15:42] What do you think the inciting incident is in Star Wars? He's trying to deal with the droid and he triggers this secret message of Leia and now That's the thing that launches him into The adventure because it's about joining the rebellion.

[00:16:01] It's about you know him becoming more than just this teenage angsty character He wants to be a hero. He wants to join the rebellion and rebel against the empire. And it's the moment when R2 D2's message from Leia is triggered, that it changes his entire world. That is the call to action for him. That is the inciting incident.

[00:16:27] See how confusing this can be. I mean, this is a classic film and a lot of people have missed. I mean, people that are writing articles that are. Supposedly experts on this are misidentifying what the inciting incident is in Star Wars. Okay, which also probably makes me seem very arrogant because I know I'm correct, but I am because it's always about what draws your protagonist into the story.

[00:16:56] Let's do another one. 

[00:16:57] I'm deliberately choosing ones that, Make it less clear. That might be confusing. Uh, and, and where people were wrong in their answers that they're giving online where people are wrong. So Jason Bourne, has anybody seen the Jason Bourne series? Okay, so in the Jason Bourne series, how does the series start? Do you remember He's got amnesia.

[00:17:24] So a lot of people online are saying that's the inciting incident, but they're wrong They're wrong. Why are they wrong?

[00:17:33] Because that's just the normal situation he's already in.He's just gonna go, keep going along having amnesia. Doesn't change anything. But the moment that changes.

[00:17:44] is when he's in the bank, and something happens, and suddenly it triggers his subconscious spy powers, and now they're after him, and he has to get out of there. Now, they're seeking him, now they're chasing him, now some people are after him, and now he has to go on the adventure to try to solve, who am I?

[00:18:08] What in the heck is going on, right? That's the thing that launches him on his journey. But up until then, it was just the normal. This is his normal status quo. Now he is trying to navigate that because all characters are already in the midst of action. But it's not until that happens that it really launches him on the big adventure.

[00:18:31] Okay? 

[00:18:32] Alright, so again, the inciting incident isn't what starts the story. It is not what starts the story. Your story is already in action at the beginning. It is the thing that brings your protagonist into the story. It is the thing that invites your protagonist into an adventure.

[00:18:57] To go on an adventure that's going to transform them. It's personal. So it can't just be this big thing out here like, oh, asteroids are falling on Earth. Okay, but how is that personal? So the inciting incident is the personal thing.

[00:19:14] And so many times what I see is that writers Aren't able to differentiate even in their own story.

[00:19:21] They're not able to identify the inciting incident They're not able to separate it from the prior action that's happening that the establishment of their normal world So it's their normal world that they have to already be in your character already has to be engaged in some sort of activity They should already have a goal.

[00:19:43] They should already have something they're doing something. They're pursuing something they want The inciting incident comes along and boom, changes everything

[00:19:52] . You see how important it is to be able to differentiate these things Because if you don't if you can't understand the difference between those two things you just won't have a very good chance of plotting out your own story.

[00:20:05] You need to understand what the actual inciting incident is. The inciting incident is. probably the most important moment in your entire story. Because without it, there is no story. It's the thing that gives your main character their goal that they're gonna pursue for the entire rest of the adventure.

[00:20:25] It's the thing that gives them their invitation to join some sort of adventure, to come out and let's go on an adventure. It is an opportunity that otherwise they would never have. It is the thing that is the catalyst to everything else that happens. It is the most important moment in your story. And you need to know the difference between your inciting incident and the stuff that is just already happening in your character's world.

[00:20:58] So,

[00:20:59] that is what you Leads to your homework, I suppose, which would be just to simply try to identify that for the story that you're working on. What is the normal world, and then what is the actual inciting incident that sweeps your main character into the adventure?