PRIEST: Novelist | Astonishing Scenes

SCENE CONSTRUCTION

Molecules are the smallest particles of pure chemical substances that still retain their composition and chemical properties. Similarly, a Scene is the smallest particle of a story that still retains the narrative’s properties. Words act as subatomic particles, joining to form the “atomic” sentence. But to tell a story, one uses the molecules called Scenes.

In constructing Scenes, one must always consider the entire novel. Extremes of heat and pressure are necessary to turn carbon into diamond; your novel requires similar amounts of heat (in the form of your passion to write) and pressure (in the form of your focus upon theme and purpose) to become a great novel. Remember that people don’t recall whole novels, or whole movies – they recall Scenes.

Okay, enough of that. Here’s the secret of scintillating, astonishing Scenes: CHANGE.

Between one moment and the next, something changes. There are two ways to go about using change in your scenes: promise a change will come, and deliver the change you promised. One writer summarized this process as the Promise and the Payoff.

In the first part – the Promise – you pique the curiosity of the reader. They know something’s going to happen, even if they’re not too sure what will happen. Foreshadowing and Chekov’s Gun are two methods of using plot devices to “promise” the reader something in the near future. But the value of the Promise Scene lays in the way it presents the promise. If I promised you money, that’s one thing. If I promised you ten million dollars, you would stick around for it longer than you would for an undisclosed amount. A clever method of making the promise is important.

Still, a promise is only as good as its Payoff. In the Payoff Scene, you make good on the promise – Chekov’s Gun is fired in this type of scene. The foreshadowing is explained in this type of scene. The obvious trap here is failing to deliver, or not delivering enough, on the promise. You can’t promise to pay ten million dollars and give them ten thousand – you have to put your money where your mouth is. Also, the Payoff Scene is usually remembered more than its Promise Scene, so make it count!

The next aspect of a good scene is its ability to fulfill a Purpose. Many writers get lost in details that don’t really fulfill the purpose of the scene they started writing – even though they might serve the story. Focus on accomplishing something with every scene. If it’s a Promise Scene, what else can the scene do to further the story? Perhaps it can add a bit of characterization, or set the stage with setting descriptions, or set the tone or pace? Multi-task your scenes, and make sure that they support each other in a logical manner. You don’t want to switch too abruptly from exposition to action – the change in pace is too fast. Each scene should strengthen the preceding scene until the chapter break. Then you can reset the tone, pace and other aspects as necessary. Give your readers time to recharge before throwing them back into the fray.

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