john pacing presentation

L/O/G/O

Narrative PacingA Presentation by J. Everett Hale

Narrative PacingA Presentation by J. Everett Hale

PacingPacing

What is Narrative Pacing?

• The speed at which an author tells a story; the movement from one point or section to another. 

•  The rate at which a story moves.

Scenes and InterludesScenes and Interludes

• When you think about a scene in a novel, the first thing that comes to mind is a fast-paced action sequence.

• Interludes are the slower parts in between the scenes when the character reacts emotionally to whatever has just happened.

• Scenes in a novel should actually read slowly, and interludes should happen more quickly.

• Scenes, broadly speaking, contain all of the novel's interesting and exciting and dramatic material. It makes sense, therefore, that the readers won't want them to be over with too quickly.

Scenes and InterludesScenes and Interludes

Controlling the PaceControlling the Pace

Showing vs.

Telling

Showing vs. Really

Showing

There are two ways to control the pace in a narrative: Showing vs. Telling and Showing vs. Really Showing 

• Showing means writing fiction in such a way that everything is described in vivid, sensory detail.

• Telling is flat and factual. It states something but doesn't demonstrate it.

Showing vs. TellingShowing vs. Telling

• While telling usually takes place in a few words, showing can take up as little or as much space as you want. How much space you allow it to take up depends on the event's importance in the narrative, and whether you want the readers to skip through it relatively quickly or to linger over it for much longer.

• How much you show can make the difference between a chapter being ten pages long or fifty pages long.

Showing vs. Really ShowingShowing vs. Really Showing

Linking DevicesLinking Devices

Use theme and motifs to connect the major acts of the book and provide propulsion forward in the plot.

• Story links help the readers make sense of what’s going on by reminding them of the goal and journey.

• They leave a scene unresolved, urging the readers to read on to provide closure.

SequencingSequencing

Pacing, as a technique, is “carried” by individual scenes, and often requires preparation to get the reader anticipating what’s to come.

• Scene sequencing (a sequence of scenes presented as a mini-story, rising to a turning point) can increase the pace.

PropulsionPropulsion

• Anything that “pulls” the reader into the next scene or makes her speculate about the future will quicken the pacing.

• Make the reader ask a question in one scene and then postpone the answer for another scene.

Fast is Not the Only PaceFast is Not the Only Pace

You can vary the pacing of scenes in different parts of the book for different purposes.

• Slow down to create suspense

• Speed up to simulate urgency

BeatsBeats

A beat is a segment of narration that tells the reader what's happening in a scene, gives them a good fix on the setting, and helps manage the perceived passage of time in a story.

Beats in ScriptingBeats in Scripting

• The term, “beat” comes from playscripts and screenplays.

• In scripts, when the playwright wrote a “beat”, it meant that he wanted the actor to pause a moment before speaking the next line.

Beats in FictionBeats in Fiction

• Use beats in your scenes when you need a character to pause a moment before going on to the next action.

• Beats can be used when a character would take a moment to absorb the impact of something that has just happened.

Beats Manage PacingBeats Manage Pacing

• Beats—their presence or absence, and their length, long or short—are the playback knobs of your story.

• The longer the beat, the longer the pause.

• More text in a beat means more time has elapsed in silence.

Beats in Action ScenesBeats in Action Scenes

• As you get closer and closer to the climactic moment, use shorter and shorter paragraphs.

• Long paragraphs = lazy summer afternoons.

• Short paragraphs = urgency and quickness.

ResolutionResolution

• The end of the scene is crucial for pacing.

• Don’t end a scene on a resolution (except perhaps the last scene in a book), but on some issue that won’t resolve until at least the next scene.

• If the scene ending is too “complete,” add some tiny question or doubt at the end.

L/O/G/O

Works CitedChapman, Harvey. "How To Write a Narrative With Pace." Novel-Writing-Help.com. Novel-Writing-Help.com. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.novel-writing-help.com/how-to-write-a-narrative.html

Chapman, Harvey. "Writing a Narrative by Showing and Telling." Novel-Writing-Help.com. Novel-Writing-Help.com. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.novel-writing-help.com/writing-a-narrative.html

Gerke, Jeff. "Fiction Writing Tips." WhereTheMapEnds. Marcher Lord Press. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.wherethemapends.com/writerstools/writers_tools_pages/tip_of_the_week--31-40.htm

Rasley, Alicia. "Top Ten Pacing Tips." Romance University. WordPress, 28 February 2012. Web. 9 March 2013.http://romanceuniversity.org/2012/02/28/top-ten-pacing-tips-by-alicia-rasley/

Works CitedChapman, Harvey. "How To Write a Narrative With Pace." Novel-Writing-Help.com. Novel-Writing-Help.com. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.novel-writing-help.com/how-to-write-a-narrative.html

Chapman, Harvey. "Writing a Narrative by Showing and Telling." Novel-Writing-Help.com. Novel-Writing-Help.com. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.novel-writing-help.com/writing-a-narrative.html

Gerke, Jeff. "Fiction Writing Tips." WhereTheMapEnds. Marcher Lord Press. Web. 9 March 2013.http://www.wherethemapends.com/writerstools/writers_tools_pages/tip_of_the_week--31-40.htm

Rasley, Alicia. "Top Ten Pacing Tips." Romance University. WordPress, 28 February 2012. Web. 9 March 2013.http://romanceuniversity.org/2012/02/28/top-ten-pacing-tips-by-alicia-rasley/