Scenes

A scene is where the action is.

Growing up in the 50's and 60's we all wanted to be where the action was. How many cool scenes had nothing of significance only that it was a groovy place to be?

Scenes in a novel need to have pertinence to the story and plot. If your protagonist is having a great time and lots of action but not one bit of new information or she's grooving at a stand still, get it out of your manuscript.

A scene has a beginning middle and end. It incorporates character, POV, action, dialogue, plot, and conflict.

It's important to ground your reader at the beginning where the hero is and what POV (if there's more than one) the reader is viewing through.

In the middle, conflict and drama take place. This is where it should get hairy. A complication that causes a struggle for your hero.

The end will give your reader a reason to keep reading. Whether it's bits of information about the plot or a cliff hanger leaving her not able to turn the page fast enough.

To read more, I love Make a Scene by Jordan E. Rosenfeld.

New Year, new Writing Classes

Fifteen days into the New Year and I still haven't finished a first draft. And my inner critic keeps reminding me that my writing is not up to par. My biggest problem seems to be that during the Christmas Holiday, I didn't write. I can sure see why after a first draft one puts it away and then comes back to edit. I'm lost. I've forgotten what I've written, and where I put  my unorganized files.

Catching up on my blogs I read Kristen Lamb's posts. She mentioned Write it Forward workshops. I clicked over there and found the workshop for February is Outlining and Plot, taught by Bob Mayer. AND that the cost is only $20. You can bet I signed up for that. Hope to see you there.