Beginning, middle, end

Without an end it is not a story. It is a list that fell asleep.

A story has three parts, even a school one.

The beginning says what this is about and why now. The middle carries one to three proofs or scenes. The end leaves in the desks a sentence they take away.

If you have only a middle, the bell hits you at the best bit and the teacher asks “and the close?”. If you have only a beginning, you say a funny hello and claim nothing.

Today you split slides into three piles. Not twenty-five middles. Three parts.

The end is not “thank you for your attention” as a sticker. The end is the sentence repeated in other words, or a question — you will get to the question. Now it is enough that the end exists.

Example: trip photos from Wednesday to Sunday, the bell on Thursday. Beginning “We got lost”, one scene in the woods, end “A map before a photo” — that you can make.

On paper three boxes. Then thumbnails on the left: first start, last stop. Ctrl+M adds empty ones if you have only one slide. A castle that belongs in no box, delete.

Adam showed trip photos from Wednesday to Sunday, all of them. The bell came when he was still on Thursday in the story.

Ema: beginning “We got lost, that is why I read a map now”, middle one scene in the woods, end “A map before a photo.” She made it.

Adam said he still had a castle. The castle was middle number twelve. The class did not need a castle. They needed an end. Adam had no end, because he believed the photos would end on their own. Photos do not end. The bell ends. You have to finish earlier.

Three boxes, not an endless middle

Beginning: a title and a short “why I am saying this”. Middle: scenes that prove the sentence. End: the sentence again, differently, or a consequence for the class.

In the thumbnails you see it as first, middle, last. The number of slides in the middle is small. One to three. Not ten.

If you have five slides in total, a pattern: 1 start, 3 middle, 1 end, or 1-2-2. There is not one right one. Right is that the end has a name in the plan, not “we will see”. We will see = the bell.

You drag thumbnails so the end is at the bottom of the list, not second by accident. A slide with “thank you” in the middle is chaos.

You know order when you can say: first this, then this, finally this. If you can only say “and then and then”, you are in a list. A list is not a story.

Ema, hobby map: start “We got lost”, middle woods and one mistake, end “Map first”.

Adam: start a bus photo, middle castle, ice cream, museum, fountain, end none. With Ema the teacher repeats the sentence. With Adam they repeat ice cream.

Ice cream won because it was in the middle and sweet. The sentence lost because it had no close.

A bare end is more than none. A bare end can later be dressed with a question. No end cannot be dressed. There is nothing to dress.

Four things you will build in this course

The course has four small projects. You do not have to do them all at once. Today you add only this:

Three boxes on paper, then thumbnails

Pencil first. Then slide order on the left. A middle that overflows gets crossed out.

1. Three rectangles on paper: 开始, Middle, Stop. Into start the sentence and why now. Into middle at most three scene-words. Into stop the sentence in other words. If the middle has eight words, delete.

2. Open the file. On the left line up the thumbnails: first = start, last = stop. If you still have one slide, Ctrl+M add empty ones for middle and stop. Titles: sentences from the boxes, not Slide 2. Slide → Apply layout → Title and body.

3. Middle: one scene per slide, not three scenes in one mush. If you have an extra scene, either a new slide in the minute budget, or a cut. Slide → Delete. In PowerPoint almost the same: Delete on the thumbnail.

4. Drag slides so stop is at the bottom. Present (F5), go through with the arrow and say out loud: beginning, middle, end, when the slide changes part. If you cannot say it, there is no arc. Fix the titles.

5. Save. Leave the paper in the bag. When you want to add a castle, ask which box it belongs in. If none, the castle is a diary. A diary does not belong on the wall.

Find the hole

The most common hole is the end. The second is a beginning that is only hello.

1. Say beginning, middle, end in three sentences with no slides. If a fourth starts with “and then”, the middle is swelling.

2. Delete a slide that is in no box.

3. Replace thank you on the last slide with a sentence about what this is about.

Now you 💪

1. I can say beginning, middle, end in three sentences.
2. The last slide or the last sentence carries the message, not only thanks.
3. The middle does not have more scenes than time can carry.

What to take from this lesson

• A story has three parts, even a school one.
• The middle gets crossed out. Time does not stretch.
• The end is a sentence, not a thank-you sticker.
• The bell is not a close.
• Paper first, then thumbnail order.
• 姓名s in the examples (Ema, Adam) are made up. Do not put your number, email or photo on a slide.

© 2026 Ing. Martin Polak / AlgoRhino · 内容使用条款