If you write romance or have hung around romance writers, you may have heard of the Grand Gesture, (arguably) the most important part of any romance story. We have all read or seen this moment in Act III, where one of the leads takes a huge action, puts everything on the line, and confesses (directly or indirectly) their love for the other person. Of course, in romance, this person then accepts and reciprocates (directly or indirectly) that confession. But the Grand Gesture isn't limited to the romance genre. It's actually not limited to a romantic relationship. Or even a positive relationship.
In reality, the Grand Gesture is an important beat for any story that has a predominant relationship plotline. Yes, it's important in The Proposal, but it's also important in The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Dune, Guardians of the Galaxy, and The Umbrella Academy.
And you know what?
Most successful stories feature a relationship plotline as one of its dominating plotlines.
Which means, most successful stories have a Grand Gesture.
You just haven't realized it yet.
So whether you are writing romance, fantasy, historical fiction, or a thriller, let's dive into this critical story beat and what it's really about, so you'll better write your own.
What is the Grand Gesture?
In storytelling, the Grand Gesture is the climactic moment of a relationship plotline. It's the final turning point that completes a relationship arc.
As an example, in The Proposal, after Margaret flies home to pack her things for deportation, Andrew rushes after her and confesses he's crazy about her in front of all their coworkers. They kiss, and are engaged (for real), so she can stay.
Notice that Andrew lays it all on the table by abandoning everything else to confess his feelings in front of everyone he works with. And Margaret's response to this seals the deal that they're a couple, ending (at least in terms of the story) their relationship journey (because the conflict has been resolved).
Like many relationship terms, the Grand Gesture comes from the romance genre, but as I mentioned above, it's important to any dominating relationship plot--whether that relationship is positive or negative, changes or remains steadfast, or is about lovers or enemies (or anything in between). It just shows up a little differently depending on the story, so let’s dig a little deeper and uncover its “bones.” Then, you can flesh one out for your own plotline.
Relationship Turning Points (A Brief Overview)
Just as we have plot turns for external plotlines, we have relationship turns for relationship plotlines.
A typical plot turn works by changing the direction of the story. The character was going one direction and then wham! a new event or new information appears in the story, and the character is now going a different direction (however small or large that shift may be).
For example, Harry is struggling living with the Dursleys and is trying to get a mysterious letter. Then, Hagrid shows up and shares new information ("Yer a wizard, 'Arry"). Wham! That changes the direction of the story. Harry can leave the Dursleys and go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His life is now on a new course (and so is the plot).
You can learn more about plot turns (also known as "turning points" and "plot points") here.
Similarly, a relationship turn will change the direction of the relationship (however small or large that shift may be). In 1984, Julia slips a love note to Winston, and suddenly their relationship shifts. He hated her before, but now he wants to meet up with her as a potential lover.
Well-written turning points can't be undone, at least not easily. Once Winston reads the letter, his relationship with Julia will never be the same. She has told him she loves him. You can't go back to how things were before that moment, not really anyway. He could try, but whenever he sees her, he'll think of the note. (You know what that's like--we've all been there.)
A relationship turn will almost always include a moment of vulnerability--one character will be vulnerable in front of the other. When Julia sneaks the note, she is opening herself up to being accepted, rejected, or neglected (which is basically a lesser form of rejection). She's being vulnerable.
How the other character responds usually completes the turn. Winston accepts her offer, and their relationship moves from distant coworkers to potential lovers. They draw closer.
Notice the same thing happens in our Proposal example. Andrew taking a big action and confessing his feelings, leaves him vulnerable. Margaret then gets to decide whether to accept, reject, or neglect him. When she accepts, it completes the turn; they are officially engaged.
Big relationship turns will often shift the label you use to describe the relationship. For example, the characters may move from allies to friends. Or from friends to enemies. Or from enemies to lovers. (With that said, labels can be helpful but also limiting--don't stress if the shift doesn't fit a specific label. A key point here, is that the turn will either draw these characters closer, or push them further apart.)
A relationship turn can show up as all sorts of things: a first kiss, a betrayal, sharing a secret, telling a lie, giving a gift, punching the other in the gut.
A full breakdown of relationship turns is beyond the scope of this article and is something that's better left for a future book (that I hope to write someday) or a writing course, but this should give you a basic understanding.
The Grand Gesture is the climactic turn, so it's going to be the biggest, most defining moment in the relationship, which means it will have these same principles, but to a greater degree.
The Turn of the Grand Gesture
Just like the turns prior to it, the Grand Gesture will also include a moment of vulnerability, but this will be a level of vulnerability we haven't seen before (it will carry a lot more risk (usually)). Character A will stand (figuratively) naked in front of Character B, and Character B will choose to accept, reject, or neglect A. Character A will often be at the mercy of Character B. (And just for clarity, "Character A" and "Character B" can be either person in the relationship.)
If you are writing a positive relationship arc, Character B will accept Character A.
If you are writing a negative relationship arc, Character B will reject or neglect Character A.
Let's look at some more examples so you better see what I'm talking about. . . .
Positive Relationship Arcs: Acceptance
Positive relationship arcs end with the characters drawing closer together. This is done by Character B accepting Character A's major moment of vulnerability.
In The Lord of the Rings, the main relationship plotline is between Frodo and Sam.
Just short of the Crack of Doom, Frodo collapses. He is completely vulnerable. If neglected (or rejected), he'll die.
Sam gets to choose whether to accept, reject, or neglect Frodo at this critical moment. Frodo is at the complete mercy of Sam. He's "naked."
Sam accepts. This is shown by him putting Frodo over his shoulders and carrying him the rest of the way. This is a definitive moment that draws them closer than ever before. It completes their positive steadfast relationship arc.
Let's look at another example. In Frozen, the main relationship plotline is between Anna and Elsa. Near the end, Hans is moving in to kill Elsa. Anna is also in danger of dying from Elsa’s magic. Both are more vulnerable than they’ve ever been, and there is a lot at risk. At the last minute, Anna sacrifices herself to shield Elsa. And once Elsa accepts this, she is able to melt the frozen kingdom. (And the act also saves Anna herself.)
While this example is a little more complex (and it’s okay to have variation), once again, Character A depends on Character B's response, and it completes their relationship journey; Anna and Elsa will never go back to being (essentially) strangers.
The Grand Gesture may not always include the risk of literal death, of course, but it's a good idea for there to be at least a risk of figurative death.
If your relationship plotline is your primary plotline (which is always the case in a romance, but can also be the case in plenty of other genres), then the vulnerability here almost always needs to be voluntary. Character A needs to choose to lay it all on the table (like Andrew does for Margaret). This is the grand gesture, where Character A makes his move to be closer to Character B. This is the main climax of the story. And just as with external plots, the climax doesn't work well if the character doesn't use his agency in this critical moment. It will land flat. We need to see the character choosing what to do at the climax.
If your relationship plotline is not the primary plotline, the vulnerability may be forced upon Character A by something else (often by an antagonist). The bad guy may have Character A tied up to a bomb that is counting down, and Character B needs to swoop in and save him. Similarly, Frodo doesn't choose to collapse, the Ring and the obstacles of the journey wear him down until he does.
How exactly this shows up will depend on your story--choose what is most satisfying to your plotline.
Negative Relationship Arcs: Rejections (or Neglect)
Negative relationship arcs end with the characters becoming (more) distant. This is done by Character B rejecting (or neglecting) Character A's major moment of vulnerability.
For example, in Revenge of the Sith, Obi-Wan has beaten Anakin, who now lies limbless and on fire. This is the most vulnerable Anakin has ever been. Like Frodo, if he doesn't get help, he'll die. He needs mercy.
Obi-Wan gets to choose whether to accept, reject, or neglect him in this critical moment.
He neglects him. He turns his back on Anakin and walks away, definitively ending their relationship. They are more distant than they have ever been before.
Second example. In Mockingjay, Gale tearfully apologizes to Katniss about what happened to Prim. He is completely vulnerable in doing this, laying his heart on the table.
Katniss gets to decide whether to accept, reject, or neglect this.
She rejects. She does this by coldly bidding Gale goodbye.
If the relationship plotline is the primary plotline, the climax will often show up as a faceoff between the two characters, and Character B will force Character A into a vulnerable position. For example, in The Prestige, Borden holds Angier at gunpoint (forcing him into that vulnerable state), and after a moment of deliberation, shoots him.
If the relationship plotline is not the primary plotline, this may not be a faceoff and again, Character A's vulnerability may be forced upon him or her by another entity. In the recent film adaptation of Dune, it is publicly revealed that Chani is Paul's "pet." This puts her in a vulnerable position. When Paul asks for Irulan's hand in marriage, Chani sees this as a rejection (in more ways than one), and leaves. (And yes, I know this is a significant change from the book.)
There is more that can be said about the Grand Gesture, but it all starts to get rather complex from here, because how to handle those other elements will depend on genre, relationship arc, and how prominent the relationship plotline is. Flesh out the bones as it best suits your particular story.
If you are writing romance though, there are plenty of resources you can review. Personally, I like Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes.
Also, just one note I felt was important to share. Whether or not the Grand Gesture aligns with the climax of the external plotline will depend on how you are structuring your story. They may overlap, like in many of these examples, or the Grand Gesture may happen before or after the external climax.
If you want to go deep into structuring multiple plotlines, I have a comprehensive article: "Writing & Structuring Multiple Plotlines."
I appreciate your insights.
ReplyDeleteThank you :)
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