Let’s quickly wrap up Pacing so we can move on to Setting. Here are the last few items in the Pacing segment of the Elements of Fiction Editing Checklist: ☐ Excessive step-by-step description of actions is avoided. When you describe each individual movement the character makes, you slow pacing to …
Tag: Pacing
Logical Flow Propels Pacing
As we look at this item about pacing, it may sound familiar, because it is related to plot: ☐ Events flow logically in cause-and-effect relationships. That is, each scene doesn’t just happen after the prior scene, it happens because of the prior scene. When events flow from one to the …
Tension Keeps Readers Turning Pages
Writing teachers often say there should be “conflict” in every scene. There’s a problem with this, because too many writers think this means everyone always has to be arguing with everyone else. As if no two characters can ever agree on anything. There’s a difference between conflict and tension. We …
Pacing is a matter of proportion
Pacing is one of the more difficult elements of fiction because it is so subjective. A reader who loves rich description will enjoy a scene that lingers over the setting details, while another reader will complain that it’s slow and boring. Nevertheless, there are some aspects of pacing we can …