Writing Big Scenes in Fiction




Dear Fellow Writer,

The second in the SERIES is out! 99 cents...

YES! Part TWO of this number one selling encyclopedia of independent authorship is now on sale at Amazon. Get it while it's HOT!


Fast & Furious 2: Writing For Amazon and Kindle (The Easy Way to Write)
Click the link to get this brand new writing resource for just ONE DOLLAR!


Keep Writing!

Rob@easywaytowrite.com
Your Success is My Concern 


Writing Big Scenes in Fiction
Writing Big Scenes in Fiction

Let me ask you a question.

Do you avoid / dread / loathe writing the big scenes in your fiction?

Over the years I've noticed two things happening when it comes to big scenes in many aspiring authors' manuscripts.

One, the newbie author is so nervous about writing the big important scene that they will subconsciously avoid it by taking ages to get to that part in the story.

Here's how that goes:

There's a crucial scene in the story where there's a confrontation or a climactic event - and the writer is creeping toward it, filling the pages with exposition and preparatory dialogue - only to freeze just before the big scene. 

They may even then STOP and put off writing - sometimes for months or, in some cases,years. 

They're actually afraid of writing the big scene.

Two, the other scenario involves glossing over the part in the story where the big scene should be. 

You'll often see writers fill pages with the run up to the big event, often very nice showing instead of telling in real time and yet, when it comes to the big scene, everything stops, a new chapter starts and then the event is told from a distance or from an uninvolved point of view or, most commonly, from a retrospective point of view, after the event.

This practice might seem strange, though I can confirm it's fairly common.

I guess it's related to the idea that writers are sometimes afraid to confront their own deepest emotions. 

I think that in the same way that most sane people avoid confrontation, writers will avoid opening themselves up to a challenge.

But you have to remember: 

Climactic set pieces make very compelling reading. 

Writers are often judged by their ability to pull off action-centered drama - and perhaps that's the problem. 

Authors don't always want to be judged by writing that is focussed, action-based, and graphic as an open wound.

We'd prefer to hide behind the relative comfort of internal dialogue, character exposition and literary description. Mistake!

'Big scenes' normally involve heightened emotion - something not all writers are comfortable describing - because I assume they're worried that their particular experience of heightened emotion seems so personal - even private.

But that's the point. 

Readers want to know what other people's heightened emotions are like! 

They want to experience the thrill of adventure, danger, risk, marriage, death, murder and the myriad of other BIG emotions any one of us may fall victim to.

It's important not to shy away from the challenging - in life and your writing. 

Stretching yourself makes you grow. 

Growth helps you gain wisdom and enable you to lead a more fulfilling life.

Plus, you don't have to actually drive Speedway cars to describe the thrill of racing. 

You can use your imagination - that's what it's for - and describe what you feel for the benefit of your reader.

In a sense, that's your job: to give a reader the experience of 'being there' without having to leave his or her armchair.

You owe it to your reader to confront the big scenes.

If you shy away from confronting exciting dramatic set pieces in your fiction, as an exercise, try writing JUST big scenes, especially if you're a little afraid of them.

Pick a word count, say one-thousand words, and write only action, drama, and conflict. 

I think you'll find that these set-pieces are very satisfying to complete, even if they might take just a little longer to get right.

Get straight into the action. 

Keep the sentences relatively short and describe ONLY what is happening in real time with no reflection, exposition, or internal dialogue.

I'm sure you'll benefit as a writer - and so will your reader.

Keep Writing!

Rob Parnell

THE FAST & FURIOUS SERIES

 
MY CURRENT AMAZON KINDLE BESTSELLERS:

MY CURRENT AMAZON FICTION:
    Sherlock Holmes

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How To Create Writing Success

Image
Here's a cute lie that most people believe: Writing is more than a skill, a pastime or a way of making a living. It is a vocation - like being a nurse or missionary. In order to commit yourself, and impress those that would read your work, you have to want to do it for nothing. Indeed this is how many of us become writers - it's something we feel compelled to do, whether asked to, required to or not! Certainly I've noticed that when you first start dealing with publishers, your enthusiasm, commitment and talent are of primary concern. Any talk of money too early in the process will see you ostracized very quickly. You're supposed to want to write for yourself - for art's sake - first. I guess it's about trust. The people that would help us get our work seen - in other words, published - need to be sure that our motives are sincere. That we write for some purpose other than just to make money. Tosh! I have discussed this aspect of the writer'...
Read more

Cash Management for Writers

Image
(Irrelevant picture but at least the copyright is mine!)  I'd be lying if I told you that being a full-time writer is all wine and roses and endless days of blissful creativity - especially at the start. It's rarely that for most. If you look at the lives of the great writers throughout history, they invariably grew familiar with the pain of rejection, the fear of failure, and often the gnawing ache of poverty. These days poverty is a relative term. If you have a computer and an Internet connection, you're by no means poor, no matter how you may feel. Recently I spent some time in Luxor, Egypt. There I met many people who thought regularly going without food for a few days was normal; people who thought you were unimaginably rich if you could afford to catch a plane; people who dreamed of one day owning a mobile phone. These people were by no means peasants, they were town dwellers with jobs and apartments who, despite living without electricity, managed to b...
Read more

The Times They Are A'Changin...

Image
It seems the longer time goes on, the more traditional publishers are shutting their doors to new authors.  Writers I speak to are getting their manuscripts back sooner and more frequently with those customary rejections these days, even if they've had publishing deals in the past. Anyhoo, where I live, South Australia has more than its fair share of successful writers - Sean Williams, who writes Star Wars novels, for one.  DM Cornish, whose Monster Blood Tattoo trilogy has a Hollywood option.  My wife, Robyn Opie, is the author of 85 internationally published books.  Janeen Brian is the proud author of 75 picture books, the list goes on. Wannabe professional writers should find this encouraging. Of course a lot more writers find success online these days, being independent and carving a niche as an authorpreneur. My subscribers often complain about how long it takes to gain some traction as an independent author. But don't forget it's never be...
Read more