Action in the white space - Part III

The Smash Cut

The last thing I will mention about writing in the white space is something the movie/TV business calls - The Smash Cut.

What does this mean?

According to Wikipedia:

It is technique in film where one scene abruptly cuts to another without transition, usually meant to startle the audience. To this end, the smash cut usually occurs at a crucial moment in a scene where a cut would not be expected. To heighten the impact of the cut, a disparity in the type of scene on either side of the cut is often present, going from a fast-paced frenzied scene to a tranquil one, or going from a tense scene to a pleasant one, for example. Sometimes it is also used to transition from the more peaceful scene.

An example of a clichéd smash cut is in a murder scene; a knife is raised, and thrust down, with a smash cut to a more peaceful locale (a birthday party, for example) right when impact is expected.

Smash cutting can also be used to comedic effect; for example, directly after a prediction is made, cutting to the future showing the prediction to have been horribly wrong.

Writers can use this technique to... and should. Why? Because it can save many words writing the transitional explanation of how we got from one scene to another.

Take for example a subplot where one of your minor characters is in love and someone proposes to her. The next scene, the major characters are dancing at a wedding. We assume that the minor character said yes but we don't need all the filler of how the engagement and wedding planning went, especially if it's not vital the plot.

Picture Source: here

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Great blog post today by Stephen at Breakthrough Blogs on the seven C's of writing a great mystery. Check it out!

Also, another funny post by Elspeth Antonelli from It's a mystery about 5 questions not to ask a writer.

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Action in the white space - Part II

This pic has nothing to do with the article.

Yesterday was part one...now part two of communicating a point without actually writing it. Writing between the lines...or not. Here are a few more devices the writer can employ to engage the reader:

1) First, instead of narrating actions or emotions, let the other characters do it. Let them describe, let them notice emotions.

"Are you leaving, Jayne?"
"Ah, Patricia, you scared me."
"That’s ridiculous. How could my coming out of Peter’s room scare you?"
"I never heard you come into the kitchen. Never mind."
"Are you going out, Jayne? You’ve changed your clothes."
"Yeah, thinking about it. Your hair’s wet. Did you you and Peter shower... together?"

2) Do, don't tell. If you have chances in the book, use interactive narrative devices instead of talking to the reader.

Here is an example:  Rather than a character counting to three, the narrator does...thus, the reader counts along with the character.

One-thousand-one, one-thousand-two, one-thousand-three.
He plugged his ears. Any second now. She should see the snake.
One-thousand-four.
She should be screaming by now.

Source: Brainstormer

Theme and Strategy: Part 4 - Pattern in Action

Once you decide what your plot will be in your story, you can translate the concept into action, into events. Who does what, when. 

A common mistake beginning writers make is to think of action as nothing but a series of successive events like beads on a string. First this happens, then that, then that, and so forth. But action is responsible for building tension, for gaining momentum in a story. You have to learn to pace actions so that events build dramatically.

How to create pattern in action:

1) After you write a scene, ask yourself in what way (or ways) a scene contributed to developing or answering  the plot questions you've raised.
2) When stuck, ask yourself the plot questions and how to direct your efforts to answer them.
3) Don't overwhelm your readers with plot questions, 2-3 are enough.
4) Don't delay giving answers. Some answers give early. For example in a mystery you can answer 'Whose are the bones?' and later answer 'How did the bones get into the cellar?' Pace the answers from beginning to end.
5) Make sure the action is consistent with the dramatic phases of the pattern.

Action is the means; plot is it's end.

Source: A book from Ronald Tobias