REVISING SCENES
While revising my middle-grade novel April Fool, I have found Donald Maass’ THE FIRE IN FICTION to be enormously helpful. The whole book is terrific, but I’ve been focused on Chapter 3: Scenes that Can’t Be Cut. I have heard many times that a character should want something in every scene and that something should change for the character in every scene, but I haven’t always been sure about how to accomplish that. Using exercises Maass offers at the end of this chapter, I have created a scene worksheet that I have found helpful. Pick a scene, answer the following questions, and then revise the scene with your answers in mind. I hope you find it as powerful as I do! The questions from my worksheet, adapted from The Fire of Fiction, follow below:
WHAT DOES YOUR CHARACTER WANT IN SCENE?
3 HINTS THAT HE/SHE MIGHT GET IT:
3 HINTS THAT HE/SHE WON’T:
NEW STRONG FIRST LINE:
NEW STRONG LAST LINE:
WHAT IS THE TURNING POINT, WHEN THINGS CHANGE?
HOW DOES THE CHARACTER SEE HIMSELF/HERSELF BEFORE TURNING POINT?
AFTER?
THREE SENSORY DETAILS DURING THE TURNING POINT:
FIVE SETTING DETAILS:
I hope you find this exercise as powerful as I do!
Elizabeth Rusch
