Shawn Maravel's Blog - Posts Tagged "plot"
Delicate Calculations
When writing I often find myself thinking , "What do I explain in detail? What do I leave out? What do I brush over with minimal explanation?" It's hard to tell a story completely without writing a 1,000 page book. The art of writing a novel I must admit is one that is very hard to perfect, especially at the age of almost twenty-three-years-old with experience shadowed by that of most other authors out there.
For me, the love story in a book is my main focus when reading or writing. I want each character to have a back story, to undergo change, and to have greater understanding by the end of the book but if I feel teased by a love story, never to be satisfied then I often find a story disappointing. I'm a sucker for love stories, I know that not everyone is, but for me it's a must.
So the question is, how can you write a story and leave out just the right things while simultaneously elaborating on the aspects that need elaboration? For me a lot of this can be sorted out by avoiding repetition. If you've already given the reader information than there's no need to keep telling them. Also there's no need to keep a reader up to date on every single facet of a character's life. If the character goes to school or has a job I think it's important to focus mainly on what they do in their spare time, only taking the reader to their job or school when the scene proves to be compelling or vital to the story. Sitting in on every family dinner or every morning ritual is hardly necessary either. It's great to give characters hobbies and daily activities but there's no need to sit in on them every single time they partake in the activity.
In addition, I think that the first time characters meet is vital. Each character should be introduced in a compelling way. Be it a good or bad impression it should be equally impacting and memorable for the reader, otherwise they won't care if they ever meet that character again. Every new advancement in their relationship needs to be well explained. If not then their relationship may seem forced or unbelievable by the end of the story. If you never get a true sense of how they are together be it friendship or romantic relations they you as the reader won't feel compelled to know what happens next in their relationship.. The conversations they have, the dates they go on, these for me are all very large and important pieces of the puzzle, and if left out then the reader might feel uninterested. If all the pieces aren't there to put together then why continue trying to see the story through to the end?
I don't consider myself a professional or even a credible critic, but I know what I like to read. I know what wrong turns a book can take in order to enter that twilight zone in which finishing it begins to hurt in an almost physical way.
So how do you know what to leave out? What to explain in beautiful detail, how many similes to use, how deeply you'll need to describe which scenes in order to keep the reader interested? I'm not sure that I have the concrete answer to those questions or that I ever will. I think it has a lot to do with someone's natural ability to keep from rambling. Their ability to highlight in their mind what matters most and which characters to keep flat and which ones to make round. It's a matter of balance and focus; keeping the story connected enough to yourself to make it relatable while also being sure not to let your own personal messages take the story away and lead the reader's eye in too many direction, laving them lost and confused.
This is one of the aspects of writing in which I hope to build upon and improve with every story I write. Any great story can be ruined with good intentions and a misguided understanding of what will keep the reader interested or not. My hope is that I can tell the difference!
Shawn Kirsten Maravel
For me, the love story in a book is my main focus when reading or writing. I want each character to have a back story, to undergo change, and to have greater understanding by the end of the book but if I feel teased by a love story, never to be satisfied then I often find a story disappointing. I'm a sucker for love stories, I know that not everyone is, but for me it's a must.
So the question is, how can you write a story and leave out just the right things while simultaneously elaborating on the aspects that need elaboration? For me a lot of this can be sorted out by avoiding repetition. If you've already given the reader information than there's no need to keep telling them. Also there's no need to keep a reader up to date on every single facet of a character's life. If the character goes to school or has a job I think it's important to focus mainly on what they do in their spare time, only taking the reader to their job or school when the scene proves to be compelling or vital to the story. Sitting in on every family dinner or every morning ritual is hardly necessary either. It's great to give characters hobbies and daily activities but there's no need to sit in on them every single time they partake in the activity.
In addition, I think that the first time characters meet is vital. Each character should be introduced in a compelling way. Be it a good or bad impression it should be equally impacting and memorable for the reader, otherwise they won't care if they ever meet that character again. Every new advancement in their relationship needs to be well explained. If not then their relationship may seem forced or unbelievable by the end of the story. If you never get a true sense of how they are together be it friendship or romantic relations they you as the reader won't feel compelled to know what happens next in their relationship.. The conversations they have, the dates they go on, these for me are all very large and important pieces of the puzzle, and if left out then the reader might feel uninterested. If all the pieces aren't there to put together then why continue trying to see the story through to the end?
I don't consider myself a professional or even a credible critic, but I know what I like to read. I know what wrong turns a book can take in order to enter that twilight zone in which finishing it begins to hurt in an almost physical way.
So how do you know what to leave out? What to explain in beautiful detail, how many similes to use, how deeply you'll need to describe which scenes in order to keep the reader interested? I'm not sure that I have the concrete answer to those questions or that I ever will. I think it has a lot to do with someone's natural ability to keep from rambling. Their ability to highlight in their mind what matters most and which characters to keep flat and which ones to make round. It's a matter of balance and focus; keeping the story connected enough to yourself to make it relatable while also being sure not to let your own personal messages take the story away and lead the reader's eye in too many direction, laving them lost and confused.
This is one of the aspects of writing in which I hope to build upon and improve with every story I write. Any great story can be ruined with good intentions and a misguided understanding of what will keep the reader interested or not. My hope is that I can tell the difference!
Shawn Kirsten Maravel
