How to Write Rising Action That Drives Your Story Forward

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Are you wondering what exactly is the rising action of a story?

You may have heard of some of the literary terms of story structure.

While many people naturally understand the literary terms of the inciting incident, climax, or the resolution of the story, the “part in the middle,” or the rising action of the story, is less well-understood!

A lot of writers struggle with this particular section of a well-organized story. It can be tricky to identify the plot points that effectively heighten the stakes in your narrative while keeping it engaging and authentic.

I’ve struggled with this myself. When I wrote my short story, One Time Hero, one of my challenges was finding the balance between going deeper into the central character and his inner demons and raising the stakes and level of excitement – while also not changing the tone or pace I had already established.

Let’s explore some practical tips for achieving this balance!

In this article, we will discuss the rising action definition and give rising action examples from well-known movies and stories.

If you prefer to watch or listen instead of read, please watch my YouTube video on the topic of Rising Action!

What Is Rising Action in a Story?

Rising action in literature is one of the essential elements of a narrative.

It’s the part of the story where the stakes for your characters keep rising, and the reader (in the case of a book) or viewer (in the case of a film) can’t wait to find out what happens next!

The rising action can be thought of as the part of the story “in the middle”, after the introduction of the main characters and setting and before the climax occurs in the story. This part of the story is often where the main character faces challenges and must overcome obstacles to achieve their goal.

To have a successful rising action section, it is essential that the challenges faced by the protagonist are increasingly complex and that they raise the stakes of the story as the plot builds.

These challenges should be directly related to the inciting incident and the story’s central conflict and should move the plot forward.

You want your reader to be interested enough in your story’s characters and the plot to continue reading and become fully invested. A well-written rising action will keep the reader excited to see what happens next.

Without rising action, short stories and novels would be pretty dull. The conflict and suspense that comes with rising action keep readers hooked and wanting more.

Think of it this way: if the beginning of a story is like planting a seed, then rising action is when that seed starts to grow and take shape. It’s the part of the story where things start to get exciting, and all the pieces start to come together.

How to Write Rising Action

Let’s look at how to write the rising action section of your story!

1. Establish the Stakes

Before you throw obstacles at your protagonist, the reader needs to know what’s at risk. What does your character want? What happens if they fail?

• Stakes can be personal (a character trying to save their family).
• They can be external (a kingdom at risk of invasion).
• They can be emotional (the fear of losing someone they love).

Make sure the stakes are clear early on. The more the protagonist has to lose, the more readers will care about what happens next.

2. Introduce Obstacles

Conflict is what makes a story exciting. Without challenges, there’s nothing for the protagonist to struggle against.

Obstacles can come from two main sources:

• External conflicts: A villain, a natural disaster, a physical challenge.
• Internal conflicts: Fear, doubt, past trauma, insecurity.

Great stories often use both. Maybe your protagonist is on a dangerous journey (external), but they’re also struggling with self-doubt (internal). This combination makes them feel relatable.

3. Develop Subplots

A story isn’t just about the main plot. Subplots add depth, making the world feel bigger and more realistic.

A good subplot should do one of three things:

• Support the main plot (a detective’s love life gets in the way of their case).
• Contrast the main plot (a soldier fighting a war while trying to reconnect with their family).
• Foreshadow future events (a minor conflict that mirrors the larger climax).

Subplots keep readers engaged, give side characters meaningful arcs, and can create emotional weight that makes the climax hit harder.

4. Heighten Tension

Rising action isn’t just a series of random events. Every challenge should build toward something bigger.

Here’s how to make sure tension keeps increasing:

• Make each obstacle harder than the last.
• Reduce the character’s resources. Maybe they lose an ally, run out of supplies, or break a promise they swore to keep.
• Limit the time they have to act. A ticking clock always adds pressure.

By gradually making things worse, you keep readers on the edge of their seats.

5. Show Character Growth

Characters should change as they face challenges. They might grow stronger, but they could also become more broken or cynical.

Ask yourself:

• What skills or knowledge does my character gain?
• What weaknesses or fears do they overcome?
• What does this part of the story teach them?

Growth doesn’t always mean improvement. A character might become hardened, reckless, or desperate. Change—whether good or bad—is what makes a character arc satisfying.

6. Foreshadow the Climax

Foreshadowing makes a story feel intentional rather than random. It drops hints about what’s coming without spoiling the surprise.

Ways to foreshadow:

• Symbolism. A storm brewing in the background could hint at an emotional explosion later.
• Dialogue. A side character might warn the protagonist about something that will later come true.
• Small failures. If the climax involves a battle, show the protagonist struggling with their fighting skills earlier.

Foreshadowing makes the climax more satisfying because it feels earned. Readers will look back and think, Of course! The clues were there all along!

7. Vary the Pace

A story that’s all action can be exhausting. A story that’s all slow moments can be boring. The key is balance.

• Use fast-paced scenes (chases, fights, arguments) to create excitement.
• Use slow moments (reflection, dialogue, world-building) to let readers catch their breath.

Slower moments also allow for character development. If every scene is action-packed, there’s no time for emotional depth.

8. Engage the Senses

Readers connect with a story when they can feel it. Don’t just tell them what’s happening—make them experience it.

Instead of:

• The forest was scary.

Try:

• The trees loomed like twisted shadows, their branches clawing at the sky. A cold wind whistled through the leaves, carrying the scent of damp earth and decay.

9. Strengthen Relationships

Rising action isn’t just about plot—it’s also about how characters interact. Challenges should test relationships and make them evolve.

Ask yourself:

• Does the main character grow closer to or drift apart from their allies?
• Do friendships get tested by conflict?
• Do enemies become reluctant allies?

Relationships create emotional stakes. A climactic battle is more powerful if the characters fighting side by side have history—whether it’s friendship, rivalry, or betrayal.

Remember, the rising action is all about building momentum. Each step should pull the reader further into the story, making them eager to see what happens next!

The Role of Rising Action

Rising action is a key element of story structure. It’s the part of the story where things start to get interesting, and the story conflict begins to take shape.

The rising action typically leads up to the point at which the climax occurs, which is the highest point of tension in the story. After the climax, things usually start to wrap up in the falling action and resolution.

Shown graphically, the overall story structure of a three-act story structure narrative looks something like this:

The story begins with the Introduction or Exposition, where we see our story is relatively flat. The world our characters live in feels “normal”.

Through conflict, we introduce change in the characters, location, or story, leading to higher and higher stakes for our characters. This is the Rising Action of the story. Typically, this section of the story is the longest part of the story.

The Rising Action culminates at the Turning Point, where the climax occurs, at which point the conflict is resolved.

Then it becomes a Falling Action, where the story starts to wind down, and consequences come into play.

And finally, it ends in a Resolution, where we see the new “normal,” and our characters get closure.

Freytag’s Rising Action

An early representation of this is called Freytag’s Pyramid, developed in the mid-19th century by German author Gustav Freytag.

The Freytag Pyramid has five main parts: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and dénouement.

This is the plot diagram that Freytag himself created. It is from the original translation of the 1863 version of Freytag’s Technique of the Drama.

The Exposition is the introduction of the story—the characters, setting, and fundamental conflict are established here.

Rising Action occurs when the story starts to pick up speed, and tension begins to build.

Climax is the point of most significant tension in the story—this is typically when the protagonist confronts the antagonist.

Falling Action is when things start to wrap up—the tension starts to dissipate, and we see events leading to the resolution of the conflict.

Dénouement is the resolution of the story—all loose ends are tied up, and we see the aftermath of the events that took place.

There are some notable differences here between this structure and the classical three-act structure, but for now, it’s enough to note that they both approach plot development in this overall triangular form.

The Importance of Rising Action

All stories, even those with unconventional narrative structures, use rising action in the plot.

Rising action in a story occurs when the main plot points help to raise the stakes and tension for the characters through a series of internal and external obstacles throughout their journey.

The “rising action” of a story is typically characterized by several more minor crises or conflicts that need to be resolved before the story can reach its climax.

These mini-conflicts help to increase tension and keep readers engaged as they wait to see how things will play out.

In a sense, rising action is like a series of dominoes falling—once one conflict is resolved, another pops up in its place.

Each crisis or conflict brings the characters one step closer to the turning point where the story’s climax occurs.

Every good story requires the characters to overcome challenges (either external to themselves or internal) that cause the tension to rise in some way.

As noted in this article from The Write Practice, typically, these challenges or events lead the characters to a point where they need to make difficult decisions and take decisive action, culminating in the climax of the story, where the rising action is at its highest.

Is Rising Action the Same as Conflict?

Rising action is related to conflict, but they are not the same.

Change is what drives conflict in a story because it is this change that upsets the character’s “normal world,” and they spend the rest of the story seeking a return to normal.

The rising action is directly correlated to the amount of internal and external change the character or their world undergoes.

Hence, conflict drives rising action.

Internal vs. External Conflict

Rising action events may include both internal conflict and external conflict.

Internal conflict refers to struggles that happen within a character.

This could involve changing or opposing thoughts, worldviews, beliefs, or desires.

Typically, internal conflict leads to character development, where the protagonist grows in some way or learns something important about themselves.

External conflict refers to any conflict that sets a character against something outside of themselves – something outside their control.

External conflict can take many forms – for example, another character, a creature or beast, a machine, an alien or supernatural force, or Mother Nature herself (man vs. nature conflict). There are as many options at your disposal as there are stories.

Good Examples of Rising Action

Let’s look at three rising action examples from stories that are both books and films.

We will go through all of the aspects of their story structure, with the most emphasis on the function of rising action in the story.

Harry Potter

Introduction: We’re introduced to Harry Potter, Dumbledore, the Dursleys, and Harry’s sad life with his relatives in modern-day England, living in a closet and being emotionally abused. This is Harry’s normal.

Rising Action: Harry meets Hermoine, Ron, and Hagrid, among others, and travels to Hogwarts, a magical and completely different world than he’s used to. He learns about Voldemort. A troll is set loose in the dungeons, and Snape seems to be out to get Harry for some reason.

Climax: The bad guy isn’t Snape but is revealed to be Quirrel! All the conflict and mystery have led to this point. Ron’s talents with chess and Hermoine’s intelligence, combined with Harry’s flying skills, lead to Harry confronting the villain and having to choose – side with evil and possibly get his parents back, or side with good and lose that chance forever. Harry chooses to fight evil.

Falling action: Harry discovers that he has woken up in the hospital wing. And though the major conflict is addressed during the climax, Dumbledore wraps up the loose ends, tells Harry what happened after, and discusses the consequences of Harry’s actions. And, of course, Gryffindor wins everything.

Resolution: Harry’s friendships are renewed, and he’s content with his new normal. He heads back home, looking forward to next year, knowing he’ll return to Hogwarts. Though there are still some unanswered questions and challenges ahead, enough has been resolved to satisfy the reader and look forward to the next chapter in the series.

To Kill a Mockingbird

Introduction: We meet the Finch family – Scout, Jem, and Atticus, living in the town of Maycomb, Alabama. Their normal is the backdrop of segregation and open racism of the deep south in 1930s America.

Rising Action: Atticus, a respected lawyer, agrees to defend Tom, a black man charged with raping a white woman – placing him in direct conflict with the rest of the town.

Climax: The big courtroom scene. Though we know Tom is innocent, racism wins out over justice, and Tom is found guilty, shattering Scout’s hope that the truth will prevail.

Falling action: Tom gets shot in jail, the villainous Ewell tries to take revenge on Atticus by trying to kill Scout and Jem, and the children are saved by Boo Radley, their racist neighbor and former boogeyman.

Resolution: Through Scout’s eyes, we conclude that everyone, even racist boogeymen, has both good and evil within them, and injustice is ingrained in the system. But it also reinforces that there are good people willing to stand up for what is right, even if it costs them everything. It’s not a happy ending by any means, but everything in the story is resolved and all questions are answered. This leaves Jem and Scout to live in their new normal.

Romeo and Juliet

Introduction: The story starts when we are introduced to Romeo and Juliet and their respective family dynamics. The inciting incident occurs when Romeo and Juliet meet and fall in love, even though they come from rival families. This sets the stage for the conflict that will drive the rest of the story.

Rising Action: The rising action in Romeo and Juliet is the gradual build-up of tension and conflict between the two lovers and their families. As their relationship deepens (partly during the masquerade ball), so does the hostility between their respective families, the Montagues, and the Capulets.

Climax: This eventually leads to a tragic series of events, beginning with the death of Romeo’s friend Mercutio at the hands of Tybalt, a Capulet. As the plot progresses, the conflict escalates as Romeo kills Tybalt (Juliet’s cousin) in a fit of rage. As a result, Romeo is banished from Verona.

Falling Action: When she is asked to marry Count Paris, Juliet fakes her own death in a desperate attempt to be reunited with Romeo.

Resolution: When Romeo believes that Juliet is truly dead, he takes his own life. Juliet finds Romeo’s corpse beside her and kills herself, thus bringing the tragic story to its conclusion.

An Aspect of Great Storytelling

In a story, the rising action is the series of events that leads up to the climax.

The rising action typically begins after the story’s exposition (introducing the setting, characters, and conflict). It may span several scenes or chapters. During the rising action, the story’s main conflict is introduced and developed, and the protagonist begins to take action in an attempt to resolve it.

As the rising action builds, the stakes are raised until finally, in the climax, the protagonist must face the consequences of their actions. The rising action is often considered the most exciting part of a story as it contains the most suspense and tension.

Rising action in literature is essential to the plot structure of a well-crafted story, so if you’re working on a new project, be sure to give it some thought.

What conflict will your characters face?

What obstacles will they have to overcome?

How will the story build up to the climax?

Answering these questions will help you create an intense rising action that will keep your reader’s interest from beginning to end!

Looking for more storytelling tips and tricks? Check out these other helpful articles:

How to Make Readers Fall In Love With Your Characters

How to Find Your Voice as a Writer [5 Simple Steps]

Examples of Themes in Books and Literature: Definition & Types

World Building for Fiction Authors: How to Create a Believable World

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