Download - All Write - Fiction Advice_ August 2013

2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:August2013

http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2013_08_01_archive.html 1/16

SA T URDA Y , 3 1 A UGUST 2 0 1 3

Arerulesmadetobebroken?

Letsgetstraighttothepointrulesareputinplaceforareason.Butthatsnottosaywecanbendthoseruleswhenitsuitsus.

Butwhenitcomestofictionwriting,howfarcanyoubendthoserulesandisitokaytoevenbreakafew?

Theanswersdependupontherulesinquestionandthekindofcircumstancesthatexistforwritersi.e.whetherthewritersarejuststartingoutontheirfictionwritingjourney,orstillunpublished,orwhethertheyreestablishedandexperiencedwriterswhoperhapscangetawaywithafewwritingtransgressions.

Thereiscertainlynoreasonwhywecantbendafewfictionwritingruleswealldoit,butblatantmisuseofthemwontdowritersmuchgood.

Firstly,newandunpublishedwritersshoulddispensewithanyarroganceaboutItsmystoryIcandowhatIlike,howIlikewherecreativewritingisconcerned.Thatkindofattitudewillnotgetyoupublished(unlessofcourseyouareanexceptionalwritingprodigyburstingwithimmensecreativetalentandpublishers

A LL WR IT E F I C T IONADVICE

IsBackstoryNecessary?CreatingLastingImagesTrustYourMemoriesReadingYourMSSOutLoudSortingFactfromFiction

WE LCOME T O A L L WR IT E

Soyou'veembarkedonyourfictionwritingjourney.

It'soneofthehardestthingstodocreateawhole,believableworldforotherpeopletoenjoy,especiallyifyou'renewtowriting.It'salsooneoftheloneliestjobs,especiallywhenthereisnohelporadviceorsupport...sorightheretherewillbehandyarticles,examplesandsimplestepbystepguidestohelpmakethecreativeprocessthatmucheasier.

FE BRUA R Y FE MME SFA T A LE S

Thisnewdeliciouslydarkanthologyisoutnow,witharangeofstunningfemalewriterstoscareanddelightinequal

NotFoundTherequestedURL/ttwasnotfoundonthisserver.

AdbyBrowserShop|Close

14 More NextBlog CreateBlog SignIn

A L L WR I T E F I C T I ON ADV I C EA D V I C E O N C R E A T I V E WR I T I NG



fallatyourfeetforyoutodictatetothemhowthingsshouldbedone).

Intherealworld,however,therealityisquitedifferent.

Yourjobasawriteristoimpressanagentorpublisher,tomakeyourworkstandout,tomakethemsitupandtakenoticeofyouand,ultimately,takeachanceonyouandyourwork.Thatmeansputtinginthehardworkthroughthepainstakingwritingandeditingprocessandthepolishingtoperfectionofyourmanuscript.Italsomeansabidingbygeneralfictionrulesinordertogiveyourselfanadvantage.

Butwhydosomebreaktherules?

Moreexperiencedandpublishedwritersthosewhohavedevelopedagoodworkingethicwiththeireditors,thosewhoearnalotofmoneyforthemselvesandtheirpublishers,areallowedtopushtheboundaries.Manyfamouswritersdobendandbreaklotsoffictionwritingrules,butthatisbecausetheyvealreadyworkedhardtoestablishthemselvesthroughpublication.

Whichwritingrulesmatter?

Theruleseverywritermuststicktoconcerngrammar.

Correctgrammarisparamountitsetsastandard,andtheyshouldneverbeinfringed.Wherenovelwritingisconcerned,anywriterwhocannotgraspbasicgrammarwillgetrejectedbecauseyouareshowingprospectiveagentsorpublishersyourpoorwritingskills,thusexposinglimitedcapabilities.

Dontthinkforoneminutethateditorswillgladlygiveuptheirtimetogothroughyourmanuscriptcorrectingyourmistakesbeforejoyfullydeclaringtheywillacceptyourmasterpiece,becausetheywont.Youwillberejected.

measure.Iamprivilegedtohaveeightshortstories/poemspublishedinthisbook,soifyoulikeyourdamesalittledarkanddangerous,thisisthebookforyou.

NOW A VA I LA BLE ONAMA ZON

FebruaryFemmesFatalesTheBook

WISE WORDS . . .

Writingislikebeingmarriedyouhavetoworkhardatmaintaininghappinessandequilibrium,butinvariablyonealwaysendsupinthedoghouse.

A BOUT ME

AJHUMPAGE

UNITEDKINGDOM

I'vebeenwritingforover25yearsandstartedoutinthe

publishingindustry.I'vepublishedarticles,studyguides,poems,flashfiction,shortstoriesandanovel.IalsoworkfulltimesoI'mALWAYSworking.

VIEWMYCOMPLETEPROFILE

BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R



Ifyoucannotpresentaperfectlypolishedmanuscripttoagentsorpublishers,youwillnotfindpublication.Theywillspotsillygrammaticalmistakes,evenifyoudont,andtheywillnotonlyjudgeyourwritingskillonthecontentofyourmanuscript,butalsoonthestandardofyoursynopsisandyourcoveringletter.

Whataregeneralfictionrules?

Thereareplentyofunwrittenrules,alonglistofdosanddontsthatarenotasstrictorasrigidasgrammarrules,butwriterscancreativelybendsome,andonoccasion,breakthem.

Hereareafewexamplesofthekindofgeneralrulesthatwritersshouldobserve:

Dontusetoomanyadverbs.Cutdownontheuseofadjectives.AvoidhangingparticiplesDontuseclichsShow,donttellWritingshouldbeactive,notpassiveDontchangetenses

Whilethesearenotsetinstone,theyexisttosupportthewriterinthemostpositiveway,andtheyexistbecausehundredsoffamousandtalentedwritersbeforeushavetoiledandploughedthroughtheircreativeworks,gonethroughmanyrejectionsandlearnedthroughfeedbackwhatisacceptedandwhatisnt,andtheyhavepassedthisimperativeadviceontofellowwriters.Ifnotforthem,wewouldnthavetheserulestoguideus.

Newandunpublishedwriterscanbendthem,toapoint,butshouldavoidbreakingthem.Remember,youarewritingtoimpressagentsandpublishers,notyourego.UntilyouaresittingalongsidethelikesofStephenKing,JKRowling,NeilGaiman,TomClancy

NowavailableonAmazonKindleUKandUS

BLOOD A ND GUT SANT HOLOGY

YOUASCAREDYCAT?NowavailableatAmazon

FE BRUA R Y FE MME SFA T A LE S S T OR IE S



orRobertHarris,thenitsbesttosticktoconvention.

Everywriterstartsatthebottomoftheladderandhastoworktheirwayup,sowhenyoudobecomepublishedandyouhavethatexperiencebehindyou,thenyoucanexperimentwithpushingboundariesandbreakingtheoddruleortwo.Untilthattime,theadvicewouldbetosticktofictionwritingrulestoincreaseyourchancesofbecomingthenextbigthing.

Thereisneveranyshortageofwouldbenovelistswhothinktheyknowitallanddontsticktoacceptedconventions,whoseworksarelitteredwithcrimesagainstfictionandallmannerofgrammaticalnasties.Theyarethekindofpeoplewhowillnotlistentoadvice.Nowonder,then,thattheyremainunpublished.

Rulesarethereforareason.Bendthem,buttrynottobreakthemifyouwanttogetyournovelnoticed.

Nextweek:Howimportantiswritingstyle?

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, AUGUST31, 2013NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST

REACTIONS: Helpful (1) Interesting (0) OK (1)


ProloguesThePros&ConsPart2

Inpart1,welookedattheadvantagesofhavingaprologue,soinpart2wewilllookatthedisadvantagesofusingthem,andwhytheynowprovingunpopularwithagentsandpublishers.

Whatarethedisadvantagesofaprologue?

Thesimpletruthisthatprologuesareseenasunnecessary.Theyformagreatchunkoftextatthe

VisittheFeardomclickthepic

FOLLOW BY E MA I L

S T YL ISH BLOGGE R AWARD

BLOG A R CHIVE

2015(8)

2014(46)

2013(49)December(4)

November(4)

October(3)

September(4)

August(5)Arerulesmadetobe

broken?

ProloguesThePros&

Recommend this on Google

Emailaddress... Submit



beginningofanovel,whichreadersmighteitherignoreorskimreadoutofboredom,oritputsthereaderoffreadingtherestofthenovelaltogetherbecauseitsjusttoomuchofachore.

Theideawiththeopeningchapterofyournovelistogetrightinattheheartoftheactionordefiningmomentinyourmaincharacterslife,sowhyspendsomuchtimeconstructinganattentiongrabbingopeningchapter,onlytostallthewholethingwithalargepieceofnarrativestuckatthefront?

Anymomentum,gravitasorexcitementthatyouwantedtoachieveinyouropeningchapteriscompletelywipedoutbyaploddingprologue.Itsnotexactlythebestwaytothrillandimpressanagentoreditor,isit?Anotherbignegativeisthatmanypeoplealsoseethemasinfodumps,thekindofinformativenarrativethatjustwontfitintoanychapterorscenewithinthenovel,yettothewriteritseemsnecessarytotheplot,sotheyendupwritingalargechunkofinformationinaprologuethatinrealitybecomesaninfodump.

Anotherdrawbackisthatsometimesprologuesaremisplacedorillthoughtoutinotherwords,theyhaveverylittleimpactonthestorywhatsoever,ordontrelatetothemainplotinanysubstantialway.

Othertimes,writersunintentionallylettheprologueturnintoapreambleofboringexplanationswithoutrealisingthatitwillstifletheintegrityofthestory,andthatwillbeasurefirewayofinstantrejectionfrompublishers.

Ofcourse,writersdontactuallyneedprologues.

Theycanactuallyintegratethenecessaryhints,information,teasersandPOVsintothemainstorywithouttoomuchhassle.Andtheycandoitbecausetheytakethetimetostructurethestoryandtofullyunderstandit,andtheydosothroughdialogueoraction,characterthoughtsorflashbacks.

Sohowcanawritertellifincludingaprologueistherightactiontotake?

Inordertoanswerthatquestion,awritershouldaskafewmorequestionsinreturn:

ConsPart2


SceneBreaksPart2

SceneBreaksPart1

July(4)

June(5)

May(4)

April(4)

March(5)

February(4)

January(3)

2012(48)

2011(50)

2010(32)

TWIT T E R

YoucanfindmeonTwitter:@AJHumpage

FOLLOWE R S

JointhissitewithGoogleFriendConnect

Members(266) More

Alreadyamember?Signin

SUBSCR IBE T O

Posts

AllComments



Doesthestoryreallyneedaprologue?Whatpurposedoestheprologueserve?Howdoesitimpactthestory?Doesitaccomplishwhatisactuallyneeded?Doesitenhancethestoryordoesithinderit?Canthesameresultbeachievedthroughthemainstory?

Haveagoodlookatthenovelanddecideiftherereallyneedstobeaprologue,wheninsteadyoucandoawaywithitandgetstraightintotheactionwithagrippingopeningchapter.Iftherewasntaprologue,wouldthereaderstillunderstandandfollowthestory?Moreoftenthannot,theanswerisyes.

Wouldtheprologueactuallyproveadistraction?Wouldthereaderrememberthedetailsinitwhilehalfwaythroughthenovelandwhileconfrontedwithrevelationsthatreferbacktoit?Ifyouthinkitwouldbeadistraction,thendontuseone.

Dontmakeitcomplicatedtothepointthatitwilldistractthereaderfromthemaineventsinthestory.

Forthemostpart,prologuesarejustnotnecessary.Theyvefallenoutoffavouroverthelastdecade,simplybecausereadersnowwanteverythinginstantly.Theydontwanttowadethroughacoupleofpagesortwoofprefacebeforetheyactuallygettothenovel.

Andfromaneditorspointofview,ifitsthedifferencebetweengettingnoticedorheadingstraightintotherubbishbin,thenleaveouttheprologuetoimproveyourchancesofpublication.

Potentialpublishersoragentsreallyarentinterestedinahugeinfodump.Theywantdirectaccesstotheaction,thestoryandthecharacters.

Theprologue,however,maybetooslowandnotengagingenoughforthattohappen.

Prologuescanserveausefulpurpose,ifcleverlywritten,buttheycanalsodestroytheimpactofanovelsopeningchapter.

Thegeneraladvicewhereprologuesareconcernedis

MOST POPULA R A R T IC LE S

Chapter&NovelLengthsJusthowlongshouldachapterbe?

Whatsthebestlength?Anddoesanovelhavetofitintoasetamountofwords?Thesearejusttwoo...

FlashbacksWhatisaflashback?Flashbackis

oneofthoseusefultoolsthatawritercanusetoenhanceastory.Itenrichesand,inasense,nourish...

SubplotsImoftenaskedbynewwriters

howsubplotsshouldevolve.Somewritersfindsubplotsdifficulttogettogripswhileothersareputofftry...

WORK S OF A J HUMPAGE

http://ajhumpage.blogspot.comThrillersChillers'n'Killers

SHA R E I T

SharethisonFacebook

Tweetthis

Viewstats

(NEW)Appointmentgadget>>

T R ANS LA T E

SelectLanguage

Poweredby Translate

S E A R CH T HIS BLOG

Search



tocarefullyconsiderwhetheryournovelneedsone.Ifyoureallymusthaveone,makeitcount.Makeitengagingandintriguingsothatitgrabsthereadersattention.

Andifyoudochoosetohaveone,makeitmemorable,justlikeyouropeningchapter.

Nextweek:Arewritingrulesmadetobebroken?

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, AUGUST24, 2013NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST




Thereareplentyofnovels,particularlyolderones,whereyoumightseeaprologuebeforethemainstoryactuallybegins.

Butwhatarethey,andwhatpurposedotheyserve?

Firstly,aprologue,orprologosinGreekwhichmeansbeforewordsisaprefacetothemainstory,oraseparateintroductionofsorts.

Sometimestheyareonlyaparagraphortwolong,whileotherscouldbeaslongasanaveragechapter.Thereisnosetlengthtohowlongprologuesshouldbe,andnogoldenrulesthatgovernthem.

Insimpleterms,fortheprologuetobeeffective,itmustcontributetothemainplotinsomeway,itmustprovidefactsandinformationwhichisrelevant,otherwiseitwillloseimpactandultimatelyfail.

Howusefularethey?

Thatdependsonwhatthewriterwantstoconvey.

Prologuesareawayforwriterstohintatthemain

S T A T S

PA GE VIEWS LA S T MONT H

21,553

14

GOOGLE + BA DGE

AJ HumpageAuthor and artist

Follow




storyinsomewaybecausesometimestheyfeeltheyneedtoconveyevenmoreinformationthantheycancomfortablyslotintotheirmainstory,especiallyifthewriterwantedtoexplaincertainthingsthatwouldproveotherwisedifficulttodointhemainstorywithoutmakingthestoryoverlylong,seeminglyjarringorbyburdeningthenarrativewithinfodumps.Sometimesawriterjustcantconstructachapteraroundcertaininformationorfactspertinenttothestoryarc.

Ascrazyasitsounds,theremaybetimeswhenbackgroundinformation,pasteventsorcharactersmightrelatetothemainplot,howevertheydontactuallyneedtobepartofthestory,sointhatsense,prologuesdoserveapurposebygivingthewriterachancetoshowsomeaspectsofthestorythatrelatetothemainplot.

Whataretheadvantages?

Prologuescanacttohighlightsomethinginthepastthatnowhasabearingonthestoryinthepresent,oritmayhaveunknowncharactersthathaveinfluencedthemaincharactersomehow,butarenotactuallypresentinthemainstory.Thisisawaywriterscanprovidethereaderwithcluesaboutacharactersmotivations,byprovidingcluesintheprologuethatwillbeapparenttothereaderlaterinthenovel.

Writersalsouseaprologuetoshowspecificmomentswhichhavehappenedinacharacterspastandthatonlythereaderwouldknowabout.Thiswouldhaveabearingonthecharacterasthestoryunfolds,towhichthereaderisprivy.

Prologuescanactasflashbacksbyprovidingbackgrounddetailaboutcertaineventsthathavehappenedinthepastthatonceagainhaveadirectbearingonthemaincharactersstory.

Theyalsoactasplotseedersinotherwords,theprologueplantsseedsoffutureeventsyettohappeninthestory,whichlatermayformabigrevealorimportantplottwist.

Itsalsoagoodwaytosowsomesimpleorsubtleplottwistswithoutfallingintothetrapofinadvertentlycreatingaduesexmachina(aforced,contrivedscene



orsetupthathasnoactualrelationtothestory,butiswrittensimplytogetthewriteroutoftightspot).

Theuseofaprologuecanalsobeeffectiveforsettingupdifferentpointsofview.Forinstance,theprologuecanbetoldinadifferentcharacterviewpointtotherestofthestory,oritmightbetheprologueistoldinfirstperson,andtherestofthestoryfollowsinthirdperson.

WriterswhohaveusedprologuesincludeCliveCussler,StephenieMeyer,KenFolletandCharlesDickens,amongmany.

Whenitcomestousingaprologue,thewriterhastomakeitasinterestingandeyecatchingattheopeningchapter.Andjustliketheopeningchapter,ithastoengagethereaderfromthestart.Ifitdoesnt,thenthepremiseoftheprologuewillfailandtheunfortunately,readerwilljudgethewriteronthat,andnotthecontentoftherestofthestory.

Anotherthingtoconsiderwithprologuesisthatifyoudohintateventsyettounfold,orcharactersthatareyettoberevealed,thenanyensuingplottwists,subplotsandconflictscreatedbytheprologuemustberesolvedbytheendofthemainstory,otherwiseyouwilldisappointthereaderbyleavingplotthreadsandquestionsunanswered.

Buttheonethingthatallwritersshouldknowwhereprologuesareconcernedisthattheyeitherwork,ortheydont.

Inpart2welllookatthedisadvantagesofusingaprologue,andwhywritersshouldcarefullyconsiderusingthembeforeusingthemintheirnovel.

Nextweek:ProloguesThePros&ConsPart2POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, AUGUST17, 2013NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST


SUNDA Y , 1 1 A UGUST 2 0 1 3




SceneBreaksPart2

Inthispartwewillconcludeourlookatscenebreaksinfictionwriting,andwhyweneedthem.

FollowingonfromPart1,wherewelookedatpoint1achangeofscenefromonelocationtotheother,andpoint2toshowachangeofcharacterviewpoint,wellcontinuewiththereasonswhyandhowweusethem:

3.Tonotifythereaderthattimehasprogressedfromthelastscene

Scenebreaksareaveryeasywaytoshowhowtimehasmovedonfromonepointtothenext.Itspossibletoskiphours,daysorevenweekswithascenebreakaslongasthewriterdrawsattentiontothefactthattimewillpassbybeforethenextscene,otherwiseajumpintimewithouthintingatitorpreparingthereadermightconfusethethem.Forexample:

HepeeredacrosstheRiverThames,thoughtaboutEve.Eventhoughshehadfledthecountry,Peterknewheneededtoseeher,andhewasntpreparedtowaitanylonger.Heknewhehadtogoandfindher.

(SCENEBREAKHERE)

Sixhourslater,PeterarrivedintheGothictownofPragueetc.

Fromtheexample,itsobviousthatPeterwillgoafterthegirl,anditinvolvestravelling,sothenotionoftimeprogressinghasbeenhintedatforthereader.Thewriterhaspreparedthem.Thereforewhenthenewscenestarts,sixhourshavepassed,anditsstraightintotheaction,withoutjoltingthereader.

4.Tomovethestoryforward

Imagineiftherewerenoscenebreakswithinanovel.Itwouldjustgoonandonandonandprobablywouldntbeanenjoyableread.Itwouldbelikelisteningtoa10hourconcertwithoutrespiteeventuallyyoudgetboredandswitchoff.



Writersmustalwaysmovethestoryforwardateveryopportunity,andnovelsneedscenebreaks,becausetheyareanotherwayofhelpingtokeepthestorymomentum,andwevealreadylookedatwaysofdoingthatwithPoints1and2changesofsceneandchangeofcharacterviewpoints.

Theseallworktogethertokeepthestorymovingforward.

Whereshouldscenebreaksbelocated?

Placementofscenebreaksisvitaltheyshouldbeattherightmomentwithinthestory,withoutlettingthenarrativedragonandonuntilthereisnothingmoretosayinthescene,orwithoutprematurelycuttingoffthesceneandthusleavingthescene(andthereader)hanginginmidair.

Writersoftenmakethemistakeofinsertingabreakatthewrongmoment.Theideaisreallytobreakatamomentthatwouldseemnatural,orthewritercanendthescenelikeaminicliffhangerinordertokeepthereaderinterested.

Onthewhole,ascenebreakshouldoccurwheneverythinginascenehasbeensaid,i.e.allnecessaryinformationhasbeenimpartedandthestoryisreadytomoveforward.Scenesshouldneverdragon.Thiswillborethereaderandmakethestoryuntenable.

Buthowdoesawriterknowexactlywhentoinsertone?

Thatsthemilliondollarquestion,anditdoesnthaveadefinitiveanswer.Thatsbecauseeverywriterisuniqueintheirwritingtheirstyle,theirvoiceandtheirapproach.

Intruth,thereisnorightorwrong.Placingscenebreakscomeswithexperience,whenawriterbecomesusedtothescenesheorsheiswriting,sotheyintuitivelyknowwhenthebreaksshouldbeplaced.Themoreyouwrite,andgetbecomebetterskilled,themoreinstinctivelyscenebreakswilloccurtoyou.

Butwhathappensifascenebreakinyournovel



happensrightattheendofyourcurrentA4page,butyouneedtoshowthatthereisabreakinthenarrative?Withoutawayofshowingabreak,thenextpagewouldlooklikeacontinuationofthestoryandthusmightconfusethereader.

Thewaywritersgetaroundthisistoinsertthreeasterisks,centred,likethis:

***

Innovels,thegeneralruleisthatyoudontasterisizeatanytimeotherthanifthesceneendsrightatthefootofyourpage.Forallotherscenebreaksinnovels,usethethreereturnsmethod(ormoreifworkingwithsinglelinespacing,accordingtoapublisher/editorsparticularrequirements).

Shortstoriesarealittledifferentwherescenebreaksareconcernedbecauseyoucanuseeithergapsorcentredasteriskstodenotescenebreaks,butitsalwayswisecheckthepublishersrequirementsfirstbeforesubmittingyourwork.

Scenebreaksareoneofthosethingsthatwritersdontreallythinktoomuchabout,butyetareincrediblyimportantbecauseofhowversatiletheyareatshowingnarrativebreaksandtransitions.Theyarestandardcursorstoshowtheeditororpublisherthatyouunderstandtheideaofgeneralstoryformatting,thatyouknowwhatyouredoing.

Nextweek:ProloguesProsandcons

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSUNDAY, AUGUST11, 2013NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST


SUNDA Y , 4 A UGUST 2 0 1 3

SceneBreaksPart1

Everystoryneedsscenebreaks,butwhatexactlyare




theyandwhydoweusethem?

Writersusescenebreaksforavarietyofreasons.Firstandforemost,theyareawayofshowingthereaderthatthereisanormalbreakinthenarrative.Thisisawayforthereadertotakeabreatherfromcontinualnarrativeandreflectonpreviouschaptersorscenes.Moreimportantly,italsogivesthewritertheopportunitytomovethestoryforward.

Therearetwowaystodenoteascenebreak.Firstthereisthecleanspacewhichleavesagapbetweentheendofonesceneandthebeginningofthenewscene.Thesecondoneistheuseofthreeasteriskscentredonthepage.Thisisknownasasterism(fromtheGreekwordforstar).

Writersshouldrememberthatscenebreaksinnovelsdifferslightlyfromshortstoriesbecausetherequirementsintermsofscenebreakscandifferbetweeneditorsandpublications.

Wherenovelsareconcerned,writersusedoublelinespacing,sotoshowascenebreaktheyleaveacleanblankspacebetweentheendofthelastscenetothebeginningofthenewscene,andtheydothisbypressingtheRETURNbuttononthekeypadthreetimes:

Thisthreereturnsmethodthengivesawideenoughspacetodenotetothereaderthatthenewsceneisacompletelyseparatescenefromthepreviousone.Itdefinesaniceclearbreak.

Forsomeshortstories,youmaybeworkingtoaspecificrequirementofsinglelinespacing(oreven1.5spacing)requestedbyaneditororpublisher,soitsappropriatetoreturnfourorfivetimestodenotealargeenoughcleanbreak.Itdoesnthavetobeprecisethesearejustguides,afterallbutonceyoudoit,youmuststicktothatthroughoutthestorysothatthebreaksremainconsistentandclean.



So,whydoweneedscenebreaks?Aretheyreallynecessary?

Intruth,yesweneedthemandthereareseveralreasonswhytheyrerequired,soIwilltrytoexplainhowtheyworkandwhy.

1.Toshowachangeofscenefromonelocationtoanother

Scenesareneverconstanttheyswitchfromoneplacetoanothertokeepthemomentumofthestorygoing,soratherthanspendtwopagesdescribinghowthecharactersmovefromonelocationtothenextduringalullintheaction,orhowascenechangesfromonetotheother,itsmuchsimplertoinsertabreak.

Thenewscenethenstartswithanewlocation,withouttheneedforthewritertoexplaineverything.Forexample:

Jasonslammedthephonedown,theconversationwithDavidrattlingaroundhisheadlikealoosepebble.Hegrabbedhiscarkeysandrushedoutthedoor.Hegotinthecarandracedoutofthegates,determinedtofindDavid.

(SCENEBREAKHERE)

Davidshouselookedquiet,butthatdidntmeantosayDavidwasnthome

Here,theexampleshowshowasimplescenebreakhelpstomagicallytransportthecharacterandthereadertothenextnewscene.Itsdoneseamlesslyandunobtrusivelyandfeelsnaturaltothestory.

2.Toshowachangeofcharacterviewpoint

Scenebreaksarealsoaperfectwaytoshowachangeofviewpointfromonecharactertoanother,andthatsbecauseviewpointsshouldneverchangemidscene.Theendresultwillbeconfusinganddisjointedandwontbeanenjoyableread.



NewerPosts OlderPosts

Ifyouwanttoconcentrateviewpointonanewcharacter,alwaysinsertascenebreakandstartyournewscene.Forexample:

Davestirredthecoffee.IsntitabouttimeyoukissedandmadeupwithAnna?Youtwocantavoideachotherforever.

JanehadinitiallydecidedagainstcontactingAnna,buttheenforcedsilencebetweenthemnowgratedagainsther.Ithadbeensolongthatshehadforgottenwhathadsparkedtheirfalloutthreeyearsago.

Toomuchtimehaspassed,Janesaid.Besides,therestoomuchresentment.Sheprobablyhatesmeevenmore.

(SCENEBREAKHERE)

AnnastaredatthephotographofJaneandDave.Shelookedupatherhusband.LookwhatIjustfound,hiddeninmyoldpurse

HerethescenebreakshowsthesceneendingwithJaneandthenbeginninganewscenewithAnna,withthestoryfromherviewpoint.Itsdonecleanlyandseamlesslyandthisiswhatwritersshouldaimfor.

Inpart2,wellcontinueourlookatwhyweneedscenebreaksinourstories,andwellalsolookatknowingwhentoinsertthem,becauseitsjustasimportanttoknowwhentousethemaswellasknowingwhy.

Nextweek:SceneBreaksPart2

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSUNDAY, AUGUST04, 20134COMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST


Home




Subscribeto:Posts(Atom)

LA BE LS

ACTION(1)CHARACTERS(1)DIALOGUE(1)SUBTEXT(1)


Apache/2.2.16(Debian)Serveratib.adnxs.comPort80



Apache/2.2.16(Debian)Serveratib.adnxs.comPort80


Download - All Write - Fiction Advice_ August 2013

Top Related