As the name implies, the Midpoint marks the halfway point of the story and is its most significant beat. This is when the protagonist moves from being reactive to being proactive and thus is the moment that decides the ultimate fate of the story.

In my current project, Hope encounters a moment of truth at the midpoint when she has to stop passively caring for the dragon and begin being more bold with his nurturing, has to stop simply surviving and begin actively improving her life, has to stop living day-by-day and begin living for the future. This is a significant emotional moment for Hope that changes her as a person and sets her on the path to her, and the dragons, future.

Moreover, as a part of my continuous learning efforts, I learned about research into how brain changes induced by adversity can lead a person to prioritizing immediate relief over planning for a future they don’t think will be any different than the present. I realized this is why things happen that cause Hope to say, “I should have planned for this.” These events would obviously happen, but she had ignored them. Her dislike, and even fear, of change is tied to this behavior as well. The midpoint of the story is a challenge to Hope’s tendency to only think about surviving the present and not to prepare for the future. The midpoint sends Hope and the story down a new path.