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This
blog post looks at what to delete from events in order to improve
clarity, voice, logic, and flow. By deleting content in your first
step of revision, you won’t waste time polishing material you will
only remove later on. And if deleting content leaves holes, you can
brainstorm and fill the gaps with something even better.
Summaries
and Descriptions may be where your voice shines through most clearly.
If you aren't sure what your voice is, here is a great place to look.
This area is one that can help define the genre you are writing and
every genre comes with its own expectations. Regardless of genre,
there are guidelines for good summary and description. I attempt to
touch on these.
Serves
one purpose. Good summary and description should do as many as
possible of the following: unify the story, ground the reader,
establish or intensify mood, develop character and world, show
physical and emotional reaction, introduce or develop background,
set up or fulfill reader expectations, foreshadow, increase
suspense, raise tension, trigger an event (or mini-event), compress
time, influence characters.
Poor
placement. Large chunks of summary and description
just don't work in the middle of intense action because it slows the
pace. One of the exceptions is when you want to stop all
forward action – maybe create the impression of a frozen moment of
time or a slow motion sequence.
Dragging
pace. Delete any summary and description that is not essential
to the story at that moment. If it is important later, put it
later (unless you are deliberately foreshadowing or using similar
techniques). This strategy of spreading out crucial information (and
if it isn't crucial it shouldn't be there at all) can increase
reader curiosity and engagement. The largest amounts of summary
often happen during transitions and transitions are particularly
vulnerable to mistakes that slow the pace of the story.
Out
of character. No
matter what POV you are using, you are still
using a point of view. Point of view influences what you can
mention. Delete anything the character would not notice. Each of
your characters will notice some things but dismiss others, be
repulsed by this
and obsess over that.
POV is affected not only by attitudes and preferences but the
current state of mind. A person who just visited a dying friend
probably won't revel in the glorious sunshine but notice the flies
on the trash heaps instead. Or maybe that person (being an
individual) would
do the reverse. When you use multiple points of view, you may want
to show the reader the same setting with this in mind. Delete
summary and description that is out of character at that moment.
This
is Part 3 of a series of five blog entries that look at deleting to
improve Style, Events, Summary and Description, Characters, and
Dialogue.
Three
very different book on summary and descriptions…
Alberts,
Laurie. Showing
& Telling.
Cincinnati: Ohio, Writer's Digest Books, 2010.
Bickham,
Jack. Setting.
Cincinnati: Ohio, Writer's Digest Books, 1994.
Rozelle,
Ron. Description
& Setting: Techniques and Exercises for Crafting a Believable
World of People, Places, and Events.
Cincinnati: Ohio, Writer's Digest Books, 2005.
