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If you've been around romance publishing spaces for even a short time, chances are you've probably seen the phrase third-act break-up.
But what does it mean? Which three acts is it referring to?
And does your book need one?
To fully understand the term and answer these questions, we need to first look at the three-act structure, and how it applies to romance.
Three Act Structure
Most narrative fiction is structured into three acts. In narrative fiction, the first act is the set-up, the second act is the rising action, and the third act is the conclusion. The exact descriptions of each act vary by source, but the gist is the same—the first act sets things up, the second act is where the bulk of the action happens and conflict is introduced, and the third act is when conflicts are resolved and the story is concluded.
Romance novels are structured in a similar way, or at least, traditionally, they were. The first act sets up the romance, the second shows its development, and the third act throws some problems at the characters that they have to solve before they get to their happily ever after.
And traditionally, these problems, which again, happen in the third act, result in a break-up. Hence the term third-act break-up.
The break up instigates what Gwen Hayes, author of the essential work Romancing the Beat, about traditional romance plot structure, and others have called the Dark Night of the Soul moment. It's when the characters grapple with what they've done wrong, and feel like they'll never be able to fix things between them. This then leads to, in Gwen's words, the "Wake Up! Smell the Coffee!" moment, when the characters realize the error of their ways and commit to fixing things between them, usually through a grand gesture of some sort.
Note I'm using the word traditionally a lot. That's because while traditionally, romance novels have followed this structure, the way some authors choose to handle the third act is changing. Some authors have decided to forgo the beat, i.e., pivotal scene, altogether, creating what readers now refer to as low angst romance novels.
The Rise of Low Angst Romance
Back when Gwen wrote her book, low angst wasn't nearly as popular as it is now. Likely because the world felt a bit less like a garbage fire, so readers could handle a little more drama and heartbreak before their HEA. Readers were willing to go through the heartache of a break-up, knowing that, because they were reading a romance novel, and the happily ever after/happy for now was a forgone conclusion, the characters would work things out in the end.
Now, however? The world is a garbage fire. We're tired and fragile, and that affects the way we read. Not all readers want the heartache. Some don't want to see the main characters break up at all. They want them to have a bump in the road at most, or perhaps an issue that requires a deep talk. No separation, no dark night of the soul. Aka, low angst.
When a book is low angst—a term borrowed from fan fiction, where so much of romance's evolution comes from—it's lower in internal conflict, and internal conflict is what drives the break-up in the third act. Less internal conflict causes less strife for the characters, meaning that any issues they have are easier to work out, and can usually be done in a conversation, rather than a temporary rend of their relationship. Some authors forgo all internal conflict in the third act, choosing instead to focus on external conflict from outside their relationship.
Does Your Book Need a Third-Act Breakup?
This depends on a few things:
the tropes you've included in your romance novel
your author brand, i.e., the tropes and story elements you've promised readers they can find in all of your books
the sub-genre you're writing in
Romance Tropes and the Third Act Break-Up
Some tropes do better with a third act breakup to resolve the conflict baked into the trope. A good example is a love triangle. This is a famously angsty trope, because one main character is deciding between two other people. That comes with a lot of strife, aka angst, and when you have angst, you usually need a third-act break-up to work through it. The break-up is a catalyst, forcing the characters to think deeply and decide who is really right for them, why, and how they're going to get them back.
Other tropes that are more satisfying with a third act break-up include bully, forbidden love, kidnapping, and revenge.
Your Romance Author Brand and the Third Act Break-Up
If you've been writing heart-wrenching romances about wounded heroes totally in love with their partners, but who push them away when things get good because they're afraid it'll all fall apart, and you suddenly pivot to books about flawless cinnamon rolls who spend the whole story caring for the heroine and helping her achieve her dreams, you've got a problem.
Your readers expect every release from you to be an angst-ridden tearjerker that shatters their hearts only to sew it back together again. They want that from you. It's why they come back again and again, because you're writing exactly what they love to read. So if your next release is a total 180 from what you've been writing thus far, they're going to be confused. And rightly so! You've changed the game, and haven't clued them in.
Now, if you're burned out on emotionally laborious books, and want to pivot to softer stories, that's okay. But you need to warn your readers. And, depending on how you approach your writing—as a hobby, as a business, or as something in between—it might make sense for you to create a new pen name, to keep your readerships separate and avoid confusing them, or losing readers who don't like your pivot.
Romance Sub-Genres and the Third Act Break-Up
Some romance sub-genres contain so many stories with third act break-ups baked in that straying from the crowd can lose you readers. This is becoming less of an issue thanks to the wealth of new romance readers coming to the genre from social media. With such a large readership, you can find an audience for almost anything.
The exception is dark romance. If you're writing dark romance, a sub-genre that readers expect to have lots of angst and internal conflict, and you market your book as a dark romance even though the story strays from the status quo, your book sales will suffer. If you're just writing for fun and pleasure, and not to make money, then your might not mind the sales dip, but if writing is your main or side hustle, you have to make sure your book matches the market you're trying to sell to.
Looking for more insight into romance plot structure? Check out my article on romance story arcs. And until next time, happy reading and writing!