Pitches at Bookends - Focus on the Conflict

Jessica Faust has now completed the fifth round of pitch critiques. The main problem in the pitches this time seemed to be that the pitches were focused on the things leading up to the conflict instead of starting with the conflict.

In the comments section, Karen Duvall said:

[This] is not a pitch, but filling in the blanks will help you focus on the important details when you're ready to create your pitch. The following was created by the great late Gary Provost, writing instructor master:

Once upon a time, something happened to someone, and he decided that he would pursue a goal. So he devised a plan of action, and even though there were forces trying to stop him, he moved forward because there was a lot at stake. And just as things seemed as bad as they could get, he learned an important lesson, and when offered the prize he had sought so strenuously, he had to decide whether or not to take it, and in making that decision he satisfied a need that had been created by something in his past.