ExpositionThe opening, which introduces the characters and setting. It tells what came before the action begins.
Inciting incidentThe event that sets the story moving, right after the exposition. Freytag called it the exciting force.
Rising actionEvents that build to the point of greatest interest. They build in one or more stages.
ClimaxThe turning point that changes the main character's fate. Also the point of greatest interest.
Falling actionWhat follows the climax as the story heads toward its end. Freytag called it the return or fall.
ResolutionThe ending, where the story's problem is settled; also called the denouement.
The writing boxes: 3 3
Characters and setting boxA box to note who the story is about, where and when. These are the things the exposition introduces.
Conflict boxA box to note the problem. It drives the rising action toward the climax.
Theme boxA box for the idea or message the story leaves you with. That is its theme.
How this list was compiled: Read 2026-09-26. Wikipedia, List of story structures (the article Freytag's pyramid redirects to), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_story_structures : Freytag's five parts, introduction (later renamed exposition), rise, climax, return or fall, and catastrophe; the exciting force beginning right after the exposition and building the rise, in one stage or several, to the point of greatest interest, the groundwork for what is now called the inciting incident; the climax as the turning point that changes the protagonist's fate; the denouement as a later name for the final section; the exposition telling what happened before the action began. The three writing boxes are this worksheet's own layout, not part of Freytag's scheme. Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site by script, 2026-09-26. Own work, nothing traced. Licence: own work
How it works
A plot diagram, blank or labeled: the story mountain from exposition to resolution, with boxes for characters and setting, conflict and theme. Print it blank as a plot diagram worksheet, or switch to Numbered or Named.
Read the full guide
Reading the mountain
The flat start is the exposition. The inciting incident sets things moving, the rising action climbs to the climax, the turning point, and the falling action leads down to the resolution.
Using it for a book or your own story
Print the sheet blank. Write each event of the story beside its part of the line, then fill the three boxes: who and where, the main problem, and the idea the story leaves you with.
Find the climax first: once you know the turning point, everything before it is rising action and everything after is falling action.
Questions and answers
What are the five parts of a plot diagram?
Exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution. Many diagrams also mark the inciting incident, the event that starts the rising action.
Where does this plot diagram come from?
It follows the pyramid Gustav Freytag drew for plays of five parts, or acts, with the names teachers use today: his introduction became the exposition and his exciting force the inciting incident.
What does the blank plot diagram show?
The mountain and the boxes with a line at each of the 9 parts and no names, ready to label and fill in by hand. Numbered puts a numbered ring on each line.