Let’s Write a Book! | Part VII: Act 2

“Shit just got real”

Word count so far: 21,264
Completed chapters: 15

When I first set out to write this book, I wanted to keep things simple — a small cast, a straightforward plot, and a clear framework. The storytelling model I knew best was the three-act structure, from a lifetime of watching films.

For anyone unfamiliar, the three-act structure works thusly. Let’s use the 1994 runaway bus classic Speed as an example:

Act 1

We meet the characters and learn their motivations. [I am here].
We find out who Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock are, and what they’re doing before they get on the bus.

Act 2

A dramatic moment of no return happens. The stakes are raised. We should care enough about the characters at this point for the audience to care.

They’re on the bus, but oh no — there’s a bomb! And oh no — the bus will explode if it slows down!

Act 3

All the key characters and conflicts are in play. They resolve their problems and we get our dramatic payoff.

In Speed, this is when they’re off the bus and chasing Dennis Hopper – the weakest stretch.

Keanu Reeves sandra bullock speed — *Really, Speed is a second-act movie.*

In my own book, I’m now sketching out Act 2 before diving into the writing. I’ve got five core characters who all need goals, motivations, and reasons for doing what they do.

I’ll be back in Korea in April 2026, and I’ve heard that once a book draft is finished, it’s best to let it “germinate” for a while before rereading and tackling the edits.

Between now and then, I have almost no social plans — except dragging my wife to the cinema so I can study how stories work on-screen.

A lot of first-time authors try to do something wild and unconventional. As much as I hated The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger definitely broke the traditional three-act mold. Less structure, more stream of pretentious nonsense — but still, it was unlike anything else I’ve read.

Me? I’m playing it safe. A romantic comedy told in three acts feels manageable — and hopefully fun.

I’ve got the characters set up, the people who need to fall in love are in place, and I’ve seeded some small problems that will grow as their relationships develop. The main story will follow the emotional contours of a romance, with a side love story played more for laughs.

The April deadline feels pretty daunting, so I need to pick up the pace. My current process is:

Plan the upcoming chapter — what it does for the characters, why it matters.
Write a rough draft.
Do a detailed line-by-line edit.

That final step makes each chapter nice and shiny, but it’s much more time-consuming than I expected.

I started writing seriously in March 2025, so I’ll have to really gun it to have a full draft ready by April 2026. I know I’ll probably tear it apart later, but for now, the most sensible approach is just to write rough and keep moving forward.

We’re taking the Dory approach

I can always leave myself notes for future tweaks. I already know the rough plot and the beats I want to hit — so the best thing I can do is keep up momentum.

I never like the first pass of anything I write, which means this will require some tolerance for imperfection. Honestly, I rarely like what I’ve written even after editing — so leaving things rough feels unnatural. But it’s necessary.

My goal for an 80,000–100,000 word book is 5,000 words per week, which means I need to push forward without worrying about polish.

If all goes to plan, Act 1 will be finished in the next two months — probably around 40,000 words. I’ll just keep to a rhythm of one chapter per week.