This is one of my writing samples meant to demonstrate the voice construct I call the “Pragmatic Mentor”. This tone of voice is meant to demonstrate expertise, trust, and confidence. Think of it as the Get-things-done voice.
How To Raise Tension And Drive Plot With ‘Scene and Sequel’ Writing
Hello everybody and welcome back to Part 3 of our Thriller Writing Series.
Today we’re going to get things moving by learning techniques used by the pros to ratchet up the tension and propel the plot forward. By the end of this lesson, you’ll be writing breakneck fiction at breakneck speeds.
Are you ready?
Let’s do this.
How to Control The Pace of a Story
One question I get asked all the time is: “How do I control the pace of the story”?
You know you want to write a thriller. You know you want lots of tension and suspense.
But every time you read back over your first draft, the pacing is all wrong. Somehow it doesn’t feel right.
The reason this happens is that new writers tend to come to this game with the assumption that a fast plot needs constant action.
But here’s a strange truth about fiction: Constant action is boring.
The reader adapts to it and it becomes white noise.
Sure, you’ve got chase scenes and shootouts on every page, but after a while, the reader thinks, “Oh look… another shootout.”
So how do we fix this?
Oddly enough, the key is to break up the action with an alternating pattern called “Scene and Sequel”.
The Secret to Perfect Pacing: Scene and Sequel
Coined by Jack Bickham and codified in his book “Scene & Structure” this alternating pattern works because it gives readers a momentary pause between bouts of action.
You are technically slowing things down, but because you give readers a moment to think, it creates the illusion of speeding things up.
So how do we do it?
First, let’s talk about the “Scene”. This is the unit of story you are most familiar with. It’s where the action happens.
You’ve probably written a thousand of these. But Bickham has a few suggestions that can really make your scene pop:
- Each scene should contain exactly one unit of action or conflict.
- Each scene should have a goal that is clearly defined from the very beginning
- There should be obstacles preventing the character from obtaining the goal (thus creating conflict).
- The goal should only be achieved rarely – that is, a secondary, unexpected goal should be achieved after the original plan falls to pieces.
- Achievement of this secondary goal should directly lead to the next scene in an obvious cause/effect relationship
So far so good, but this isn’t where the real magic happens.
If you write a string of scenes exactly as described above, you’ll still end with a boring story.
Why?
There is no time for the reader to feel what the characters feel.
The reader can only see what they do. They don’t get to listen in to their thoughts, their fears, or their secret desires.
So, says Bickham, you should follow every scene with a “Sequel”.
After each and every scene, Bickham advises that you add a “Sequel”. This is a unit of story that happens in a single time and place and has very little physical activity.
Instead, the Sequel should be full of discussion, dialog, argument, planning, and whatever other reactions are relevant to the Scene that ended.
A solid Sequel should have three elements:
- Reaction
- Dilemma
- Decision
…
For reference, this sample has an Automated Readability Index (ARI) score of 6, contains 548 words, and would take the average person about 3 minutes to read.