The other day someone reached out to me through my site to ask my advice on how to let a scene breathe. Unfortunately, I couldn't contact this person back, so instead, I decided this would be a good topic for a post.
But before that, I want to say that I'm always excited to hear when other people start writing as well, and I love to share my expertise so never hesitate to reach out to me! But be sure to leave a correct email address so I can reach you back ;)
Letting a scene breathe
How and when to let a scene breathe, depends on the story you're trying to write. Honestly, I try never to think about writing in such specific terms all that much. It's easier to let it flow naturally. Even in an action-packed story, you can't just go from one fight scene to the next forever, after all. No matter what kind of confrontation or climax you're building toward, there's always a moment after where all the action or drama dies down. Characters need to rest, they need to eat, and they especially need some time to talk.
The biggest pitfall in trying to let your scene breathe is that some writers add these moments just because they think they have to. But if you write something you yourself don't like, I can guarantee you that your readers won't like it either. That's why it's important to write every scene in service to your story as a whole.
Calm moments, for example, can be great for deepening your characters, so both you and your readers can get to know them better.
What works for me
There really isn't a one-way approach to writing and everyone has their own style, so it's important to figure out what works well for you. The scenes in my books that give my readers time to breathe are usually just the characters sitting together, hanging out together in some way or another, and talking or eating, or teasing each other.
I have a moment in my book where the main character talks to her mother about her past after they just had to flee a dangerous situation. It's a calm moment, where they're just sitting and talking, making a little joke here and there, yet at the same time, you get to know a little more about who they are as people and what their relationship is like. It gives the readers time to breathe, but it also helps them understand why these characters do and say some of the things they do and say. That way, even the quieter moments are still an important part of your story.
Action scenes
Of course, the only way to let your story breathe isn't just by adding calmer scenes in between. Even your fast action scenes should have 'room to breathe'. That doesn't mean you have to slow them down, they're fast scenes after all, but you also shouldn't rush them. Give the reader enough information to understand what is happening, and to get sucked in, but don't drag it out too much with so many descriptions that the action gets lost and the scene gets boring. This is a fine line to walk and it pretty much just takes practice.
At first, you'll probably notice that you'll write especially these scenes as more of a summary. 'He hit him and then she hit her and they fell over, etc.' It's also easy to use a lot of telling instead of showing in such scenes.
The best thing to do is to just write them out. Once you have on paper what you want to tell, go back and see where you fell into these habits and try to redo it. If someone fell over, for example, what sound did it produce, was the ground dry or wet for example, did you hear a splash or smell wet earth? What sensation did they feel, did they fall hard enough to get hurt or did it only hurt their pride? Did he simply 'get hurt' or did he groan and bring his hand to the back of his head to feel if he was bleeding?
The more you write, the easier you will do this in your first drafts right away!
Improving your skill
I think the most important part of writing and learning how to write is to just do it a lot and test it a lot and of course, to have fun with it. That usually works best for both you and your audience. If you write something you love, chances are there will always be others who will love it as well.
And of course, read! Even if you read a book that you don't like, you will still learn something, even if it's only what not to do. And especially subtle things like letting a scene breathe are something you can learn well by seeing it done in other books.
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