Thursday, July 7, 2011

Somewhere in Midair


The other day, I reached the mid-point in the book I'm currently writing. It wasn't a planned middle. I didn't reach any arbitrary number on an outline or some magical word count. As I was writing the scene, I began to struggle and I realized it was because I'd reached the point where the story must take a turn. The scene needed to bring a few conclusions, but those answers needed to lead the main character to even bigger questions. The middle and I had finally met.

One of the aspects of novel writing that you cannot teach is how to have a handle on the pace of the story. It's one of those things that comes over time. When you've done it enough, you get the feel for telling a story of novel length. You know when you reach these moments and therefore can make sure each scene is achieving what it needs to. It took me a good two days to get it right, but I'm happy to say I've turned the corner.

Here's hoping the path ahead remains clear.

2 comments:

  1. A novel seems a bit like a chess game (I'm a keen player) with an opening, middle and ending. Good luck with the rest of the novel.

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  2. I wish you the best of luck in your novel. Great things happen when you least expect it.

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