I’d like to start this post by stating an opinion that I think pretty much everyone shares: Pacing Sucks. When you get it right, no one really notices. I mean, how many times have you read a 5-star review that went on and on about the awesome pacing? On the other hand, when the pacing’s off, it’s obvious, but not always easy to pinpoint; you’re just left with this vague, ghostly feeling of dissatisfaction. One thing, though, is certain: if the pacing is wrong, it’s definitely going to bother your readers, so I thought I’d share some tips on how to keep the pace smooth and balanced.
1. Current Story vs. Backstory. Every character and every story has backstory. But the relaying of this information almost always slows the pace because it pulls the reader out of the current story and plops them into another one. It’s disorienting. And yet, a certain amount of backstory is necessary to create depth in regards to characters and plot. To keep the pace moving, only share what’s necessary for the reader to know at that moment. Dole out the history in small pieces within the context of the current story, and avoid narrative stretches that interrupt what’s going on. Here’s a great example from Above, by Leah Bobet:
The only good thing about my Curse is that I can still Pass. And that’s half enough to keep me out of trouble. But tonight it’s not the half I need because here’s Atticus, spindly crab arms folded ‘cross his chest, waiting outside my door. His eyes glow dim-shot amber—not bright, so he’s not mad, just annoyed and looking to be mad.
Bobet could have taken a lengthy paragraph to explain that certain people in this world have curses that are really mutations, that Atticus has crab claws for hands and his eyes glow when he gets angry. But that would’ve slowed the pace and been boring. Instead, Bobet wove this information into the current story—showed Atticus leaning against the door, showed his crustacean claws and his freaky, glowing eyes so the reader knows that he’s a mutant and, to the narrator, at least, this is normal. This is an excellent example of the artful weaving of backstory into the present story.
2. Action vs. Exposition/Internal Dialogue. Action is an accelerant. It keeps the pace from dragging. Granted, there will be places in your story that are inherently passive, where characters have to talk, or someone needs to think things out. The key is to break up these places with movement or activity. Characters should be in motion—smacking gum or doodling or fidgeting— while talking. Give them something to do during their thoughtful moments, whether it’s peeling carrots or painting a picture. These bits of action are like an optical illusion, fooling the reader into thinking something’s happening, when really, nothing’s going on. This is one scenario when readers actually prefer to be fooled, so make sure to energize those narrative stretches with action.
3. Conflict vs. Downtime. On the flip side, you can’t have a story that’s all go and no stop. One might think that since action is good, more action is better. Not true. Readers need time to catch their breath, to recover from highly emotional or stressful scenes. A good pace is one that ebbs and flows—high action, a bit of recovery, then back to the activity again. Even The Maze Runner, possibly the most active novel I’ve ever read, has its moments of calm. When it comes to conflict and downtime, a definite balance is needed for the reader to feel satisfied.
4. Keep Upping the Stakes. We know that conflict is important—so important that every single scene needs it. But for conflict to be effective, it needs to escalate over the course of the story. To keep the reader engaged, each of the major conflict points needs to be bigger, more dramatic, and with stakes that are more desperate. This is exemplified in Ruta Sepetys’ excellent Between Shades of Gray, a historical fiction novel about the deportation of a Lithuanian family during World War II. It starts out ominous enough, with the family being forced from their home. Over the course of the story, they’re moved by cattle car across the continent, relocated to a forced labor camp, and eventually reach their final destination—a camp in the Arctic Circle where they’re expected to survive the elements with whatever resources they can scrounge. Clearly, lots of other conflict is interspersed, but when it comes to the major points, each one should have greater impact than the last.
5. Condense the timeline. When possible, keep your timeline tight. If it gets too spread out, the story will inevitably drag. It’s also hard, in a story that covers a long span, to keep things smooth; there will be time jumps of weeks or months or even years between scenes. Too many of these give the story a jerky feel. So when it comes to the timeline, condense it as much as possible to keep the pace steady.
For sure, pacing is tricky, but I’ve found these nuggets to be helpful in maintaining a good balance. What other tips do you have for keeping your story moving at the right pace?
SIDEBAR: A second post accidentally went out today for the monthly Critiques 4 U contest; that one wasn’t supposed to post today, so it’s been deleted. If you’re looking for that one, I apologize for the confusion!
Becca Puglisi is an international speaker, writing coach, and bestselling author of The Emotion Thesaurus and its sequels. Her books are available in five languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. She is passionate about learning and sharing her knowledge with others through her Writers Helping Writers blog and via One Stop For Writers—a powerhouse online library created to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Lauren Carter says
Great tips! Thank you! Another thing I learn and learn again about backstory is that I often write it to understand the characters and then end up cutting most of it out in later drafts.
Frank Peter Oliver says
Good timing – I’m still filling in the backstory, but don’t want to overdo : )
Claire says
Thanks so much for this post! Thinking of printing out those five subheadings and sticking them above my desk to remind me of pacing priorities as I write. 🙂
-Claire
Glynis Jolly says
Number 5 is one I’m most concerned about right now. My current project’s timeline spans over several years. To avoid the boredom that is probable to happen, I’m jumping from one time frame to the next and being as concise as possible until I’m closer to the climax.
JC (Judi) Martell says
First, great post – pacing in a nutshell and in a way I haven’t read before.
Second – it’s almost March and I’m excited about One Stop additions!!! I do business taxes for clients and it will be my “reward” 🙂
Judi
BECCA PUGLISI says
Yay! We all need rewards! I’m glad One Stop will be yours :).
liz n. says
A week or so ago, I finished writing two action-heavy chapters (which might get edited into one chapter), and found myself a bit worn-out from it. So very much happening, with several characters doing several key things within the same, short time-frame, and a lot of fictional terrain covered (literally)…
In the empty space on the page, after all that action, is written in red ink: “Calm everything down HERE.” Later, I scribbled, “Gina does laundry.” It’s still action, but this (rough draft) breather scene that follows the “GAAAAHHHH!!!” of so.many.things.happening is actually one of my favorites in this act.
And a new character comes into play soon. He must be introduced in tidbits; a little info here, a hint of something there…His arrival into the story is going to be a challenge because I need to sneak him in with far more subtlety than I can muster at this time!
BECCA PUGLISI says
“Gina does laundry” ! I love it!
Carol Baldwin says
Even peeling carrots is action. I’ll remember that line! I try to intersperse action into my dialogue. Glad that’s a way to trick the readers something is happening! Thanks for the post.
Brmaycock says
Great great post, thanks!
Simon Holloway says
Hi Becca,
Excellent post! Clear info on what, how and why…if only more writers understood that readers need to breathe in and breathe out, and must be given the chance and the time to do both…
Best,
Simon