Lights

Hi Everyone:

Every now and then, one of my friends will ask me, “What are you working on now?” and I reply something like this: I just finished writing chapter twelve of my current writing project. It is historical fiction. I am aiming for an audience of teenage readers, a first for me.

 Now, it bears a working title: The Adventures of Silent Sam, and takes place during the American Revolutionary War.  I have always been interested in history, especially American history, and while I once toyed with the idea of writing a novel around General U. S. Grant’s siege of Vicksburg, this will be a first for me. When I write, there is often a certain amount of research that needs to be done, but nothing like what I am doing now; it’s a challenge.

When it is finished, I shall dedicate it to my granddaughter, Jennifer, who was the cause of my first historical tale and to my daughter, Terry who suggested I use the tale I invented to interest her daughter in American history as a springboard for this novel.

 

“Lights !  Action!  Camera!”

Those are famous Hollywood commands; in writing, we only have one such command, but in a way, we try to obey all three. The reader craves action and we strive to deliver it by our awareness of those things that slow or stop action. We turn on the lights when we are able to keep the reader focused on the action of our story and of course, we, and through us the characters are often the eye of the camera.

When watching a movie or story on television, everything is right there in front of the viewer’s eyes; action, dialogue, and setting are simultaneously experienced. However, even in Hollywood, the story sometimes requires giving the audience information about the past.  To do this, the film editor may insert a sign notifying the viewer, it proclaims:

“3-YEARS EARLIER”

Then what we call: back-story is shown in flawless action giving the viewer what is needed to make the plot more understandable. The next time you see this, note how little it negatively influences your enjoyment of the story. The reason for this is that it is visual and immediate.

Unless handled carefully, two of the things that can stop the action in written form are description and back-story. One way to handle description is to make it part of the action. Here is how I handled it in a short story, Fruits of Labor. Ex-bank robber, Jack Snyder, enters a bank in Brazil to rent a safe deposit box. There, he is escorted to that department by Antonio:

          With a firm grip on his briefcase, Snyder followed the slender, young man past the many teller windows toward the rear of the bank. His professional eye took in the two armed-security men and the half dozen video cameras mounted on the walls. . . . 

          He noted with pleasure, the sharpness of his reflection on the polished marble floor. Beyond the tellers, a soft, dark green carpet cushioned the sound of their footsteps. Snyder observed that Antonio’s trousers were the same color as the carpet. Must be some kind of uniform, he decided. The other guys are wearing beige jackets and dark green pant too. They didn’t do that at the branch of this outfit that I knocked over.

You can read the entire short story on my website: joshswritingroom.com

Another literary problem writers encounter is that of Narrative summaries, the recounting of things that happen out of the readers sight or hearing. While narrative can move from point A to point B faster than dialogue, if it’s long, it stops the action.  For that reason writers often remind themselves, show don’t tell. Narrative summary if kept brief can transport the reader from one immediate scene to the next.

          “Sam jumped on his horse and rode over the hill.”

“Sam jumped on his horse,” is the immediate action, while the last part of that sentence, “and rode over the hill.” is narrative summary, beyond the readers sight. It can be used to transition to a scene on the other side of the hill.