Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Story Structure: A Complete Guide

Writers use many story structure types. In this post, we’ll go through all the stages and key turning points of Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Story Structure.

What Is the Six Stage Structure by Michael Hauge?

The Six-Stage Plot Structure is based on one of Hague’s well-known workshops called “The Hero’s Two Journeys.” For that workshop, Hauge collaborated with Christopher Vogler, who’s behind another well-known story structure, “The Writer’s Journey.”

In this workshop, Hauge usually emphasizes that the protagonist goes through two journeys at once: the Outer Journey and the Inner Journey. You can look at them this way:

• The Outer Journey is the plot, since it represents the sequence of external events or actions that the protagonist goes through to fulfill their goal.
• The Inner Journey, on the other hand, is the character arc, since it allows the audience to witness how the protagonist changes as a person. Perhaps from being a selfish person (their “Identity” or initial state), the protagonist becomes generous as the story goes along and lives as their true self (their “Essence”) in the end.

Hauge’s plot structure is ideal for people who hate excessive outlining. It consists of six stages, which are connected to five significant moments in the story—or its major turning points. These turning points force the protagonist to pause and reevaluate their situation or beliefs, leading to their personal growth.

This storytelling structure isn’t only popular in the screenwriting world. Its use of general percentages makes it a great tool for writing novels.

These percentages give you a practical and flexible way to understand story construction and how to keep its flow. They also serve as good benchmarks for the usual placement of key plot points, so you can have a good sense of pacing without suppressing your creativity.

Michael Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure

Now, let’s go through the different stages and the five turning points of Hauge’s Six-Stage Plot Structure.

Act 1

Similar to other plot structures, the first act of Hague’s approach starts with the writer showing the protagonist’s everyday life in their normal world. It gives the audience a good glimpse of who the protagonist (“Identity”) is before an event or situation messes with their normal life and gets the main story going.

Stage 1: Setup (0-10%)

The concept behind the “Setup” stage is quite simple. It’s all about introducing the protagonist (including their key relationships) in their normal outside world to your audience. It also establishes the main inner conflict or external conflict and what the main character will go through.

Another thing is that the hero exists completely inside their identity. Perhaps this identity comes from their religious beliefs, job, or how others see them.

Inner Journey

• The main character has a strong sense of their identity. This usually acts as a shield that protects them from feeling vulnerable or weak.
• The audience gets the impression that the main character is restricted by their current situation, which stops them from pursuing what they want. These emotional and mental limitations could be a childhood trauma, deep-seated insecurity, or false belief.

It’s important for your audience to get a good glimpse of who the protagonist is for different reasons. But one of the main reasons is to ensure they develop a deep connection with the character, so they become more invested in what happens to them throughout the story.

Turning Point 1: The Opportunity (10% Mark)

The first turning point refocuses the attention from the main character’s initial life to a new opportunity. This opportunity could be a goal or desire that sets the plot to a new direction and pushes the protagonist into a new life.

Let’s take the film “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” as an example. When Elliott found E.T. in his backyard, it gave him the opportunity to form a unique friendship and take on the responsibility of being its protector.

But remember—this opportunity isn’t the story’s ultimate goal. It only acts as the stepping stone towards it.

Stage 2: New Situation (10-25%)

Due to the opportunity in the previous stage, the protagonist crosses into a new and unfamiliar world. At first, they might resist this sudden change in their circumstance or environment. But they’ll slowly try to adjust and explore the rules and challenges waiting for them in this world. This is also the time when the initial desire from the opportunity starts to become a more tangible goal.

Inner Journey

• The main character gets to see what their life could be like if they’re their true self.
• They still feel more comfortable in their established “Identity” or comfort zone.
• Although they can see change happening, they aren’t prepared to fully go for it.

Turning Point 2: Change of Plans (25% Mark)

You can think of “Turning Point 2” as a course adjustment. The main character encounters a major event or realization that affects how they handle their emotions, giving them a clearer, new goal. It also makes them rethink their established sense of self, confront their limitations, and create new plans.

Other common features of the second turning point:

• If the protagonist fails, the negative consequences are often more obvious and more serious.
• The main character gets hold of valuable information that could change how they see things and what they plan to do next.
• The character’s initial desire becomes clearer and seems achievable.
• This moment could also help deepen the main character’s commitment to a higher-stake, new goal.

Act 2

Act 2 includes Stage III and Stage IV. During these stages, the audience sees how the protagonist deals with the changes in their everyday life. They might achieve some wins, but then their situation might become complicated, often resulting in major setbacks. This is also the part of the story where the central conflict intensifies.

Stage 3: Progress (25-50%)

The “Progress” stage plays an important role in driving the narrative forward and engaging the audience. At this stage, everything seems to be going well for the characters. There are still going to be challenges and conflicts, but in general, they’re able to avoid or solve them.

On top of that, the audience will see glimpses of the main character’s potential and authentic self (“Essence”). Or, in other times, the character is still tied to their old identity. A recovering addict might stay sober for weeks and experience moments of real happiness, yet the urge to turn to their old habits doesn’t completely disappear.

Inner Journey

• The main character is finding a balance between who they’ve always been and who they’re starting to become.
• They try different ways of behaving or thinking, but they haven’t completely committed to significant inner change.

Turning Point 3: The Point of No Return (50% Mark)

Like what the name suggests, “Turning Point 3” marks the moment the main character becomes fully committed to their visible goal. This means they can’t simply quit and go back to their old life without suffering major negative consequences (physically and mentally). Sometimes, this puts them into a more dangerous and riskier path.

This turning point signals the end of the “Progress” stage and the beginning of the story’s most exciting and dramatic point (the “Climax”). From here on out, the audience can expect the challenges to become more difficult, often pushing the main character beyond their limits.

Stage 4: Complications and Higher Stakes (50-75%)

This stage is full of difficulties and conflicts. The main character is struggling with an inner conflict, which becomes worse as their new situation throws more challenges their way.

There might be times that they doubt themselves or want to give up because their outer journey and inner journey become significantly more difficult. This might force them to try absolutely everything they’ve got left.

Inner Journey

• The main character knows exactly what they want to achieve and who they aim to become. Despite this, hidden fears prevent them from fully embracing their authentic self and slow down their progress.
• They might seek comfort from their old, limiting ways because of intense external pressure.
• The continuous increased pressure usually forces the main character to deal with their fears and limitations head-on. This pushes them closer to their authentic self.

Turning Point 4: The Major Setback (75% Mark)

This is the time the protagonist hits rock bottom, usually just when everything is going great. Feeling totally defeated and desperate, they re-evaluate their strategy and come up with a different approach to fulfill their goal. The whole experience could even show who they really are while they deal with the weight of this major setback.

Act 3

The third act includes Stage V (“Final Push”) and Stage VI. These final stages of the story focus on the protagonist’s last attempts to address the main conflict and the lasting impact of everything that happened.

Stage 5: Final Push (75-99%)

The “Final Push” is exactly what its name says—the protagonist’s last, all-out effort to get out of their terrible situation (the “Major Setback”). This is the best time to use everything they’ve picked up, such as knowledge and skills, and their emotional growth to accomplish this.

In Michael Hauge’s six-stage plot structure, this stage gets everything ready for the climax. It’s meant to increase the tension to effectively grip the audience, making them emotionally invested in the character and outcome of the story. If your story emphasizes character development, this is the best time to show how they’ve grown on the inside.

Inner Journey

• The main characters stop living in fear and start to live courageously. This often requires them to dig deep to search for the strength they need to push beyond their perceived limits.
• With the risks greater than before, the main character is willing to gamble everything in this final push.
• The character chooses to stick to their goal and live truthfully, even if it means facing their biggest fears, doubts, and other serious consequences.
• Going back to their authentic self becomes the best choice because the main character believes their old self isn’t helping them anymore.

Turning Point 5: Climax (90-99% Mark)

At this point, all the actions and decisions of the main character can negatively or positively affect the outcome of the story. It’s where the main character will either achieve their goals, fall short, or make a different decision (even if it costs them).

The climax is essentially where the story’s conflict peaks and gets resolved. It’s the final showdown or confrontation. But it’s also important to note that it might not be the end of the main character’s inner journey.

Stage 6: Aftermath (99-100%)

In the “Aftermath” stage, the audience finally sees how the events in the story have permanently changed the life of the main character. It also shows how far the main character has come since the start of their inner journey and outer journey.

Depending on the type of story you’ve written, this final stage settles any remaining unresolved details of the story’s plot. Or, it might give hints about what might happen to the characters in the future.

Inner Journey

• Through a series of self-reflections, the main character develops a deeper understanding of themselves, other people, and their outer world.
• Part of the main character’s inner growth is accepting their new environment, way of living, and who they are now because of their journey.
• What happened in the story (the conflicts, challenges, and how they were solved) gives the main character a renewed sense of purpose.

Michael Hauge’s Structure Application: Movie Example

Let’s consider this plot structure by examining the thriller movie The Call, starring Halle Berry.

Stage 1: Setup

In the start of the movie, we get a glimpse of Jordan Turner, an experienced 911 operator, getting a call from a teenage girl named Leah Templeton. This incident ended in tragedy, with Leah getting killed after being kidnapped. This tragedy deeply affected Jordan, causing her to take on a new role as a trainer at the 911 center.

Turning Point 1: The Opportunity

Jordan gets a second chance to redeem herself when she receives a call from 15-year-old Casey Welson, a kidnap victim who’s hiding in the trunk of her abductor’s car.

Stage 2: New Situation

Jordan makes Casey stay on the line, so she could calm her down and give her instructions. Despite her past trauma, she slowly overcomes her anxiety and doubts and uses her experience and skills to keep Casey alive.

Turning Point 2: Change of Plans

The kidnapper (played by Michael Eklund) discovers Casey’s burner phone. This makes the situation more complicated and even more tense, forcing Jordan to switch up her strategy.

Stage 3: Progress

Jordan and everyone working on the case have moments where they get hold of valuable information and seem to be closing in on the kidnapper and Casey’s location. But there are also times when they hit dead ends.

Turning Point 3: The Point of No Return

After realizing Casey’s and Leah’s kidnapper is the same person, the case becomes deeply personal for Jordan. This makes her even more determined to take greater risks to save Casey.

Stage 4: Complications and Higher Stakes

Jordan finally decides to take matters into her own hands by leaving the 911 center and looking for Casey herself.

Turning Point 4: The Major Setback

Jordan finally finds the bloodied Casey strapped down in a dentist chair. She tries to attack Michael Foster (the kidnapper), but he’s too strong for her. At this point, all hope of saving Casey seems to be gone.

Stage 5: Final Push (The Climax)

Jordan and Casey worked together to fight Michael Foster. Jordan digs deep to find the courage and strength, fueled by her past guilt and present determination, to beat Foster and get out of his underground bunker.

Stage 6: Aftermath

The aftermath of the story is a happy one. Foster is trapped in his underground bunker, with no one knowing he’s there. Casey’s safe. As for Jordan, she looks like she’s finally at peace and perhaps has a renewed purpose.

Final Thoughts: Hauge’s Six Stage Plot Structure for Character Development

This is it for Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Plot Structure. It’s a simple, unique, and effective storytelling approach. It’s not only great for novel writing and screenwriting, but it’s also an incredible tool for developing powerful marketing and brand messages. I hope you find it helpful as well.