/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.11390770]

My novel is going well.

However, I wonder if any of you have came across any useful tips to speed up the process of actually constructing engaging scenes that flow well together. I'm taking a little break break today before moving on to revise the third chapter of one of the characters stories, and when I was writing the first draft there were a couple of situations where I thought that I wasn't milking them to their fullest. I could easily see how "this could go into this and be more interesting" but lacked any concrete ideas on how to actually mold the scene to be more interesting AND to still flow intelligently into the next one. Have you ever been in a similar situation and what exactly helped during it?

[Anonymous No.11390779]

That cat is so fat.
Lol.

[Anonymous No.11390787]

What a fat cat

[Anonymous No.11391861]

>>11390787
>>11390779
looks like he just had a bath too, probably hoping to get that milk as a reward, like he isn't fucking fat enough already

[Anonymous No.11391873]

Fat Cat thread

[Anonymous No.11391877]

>>11390770
I enjoy how the bowl mimics his or her body shape.

[Anonymous No.11391887]

>>11391873
this one is kinda fat
he mad though lol look at him, he don't like le picture

[Anonymous No.11391950]

>>11390770
Damn, I could really go for some fruit loops now

[Anonymous No.11392021]

>>11391873
Why are fat cats so adorable?

[Anonymous No.11392035]

lmao only fat cats could eat this bread

[Anonymous No.11392045]

>>11392035
why does he look so sad?

[Anonymous No.11392153]

Someone please make the screenshot already.

[Anonymous No.11392154]

>>11392045
lives in russia

[Anonymous No.11392177]

>>11392021
GARFIELD!!

[Anonymous No.11392371]

>>11390770
It's a really vague problem you're describing there, you're gonna have to be more specific.

As far as general editing tips, I find it's easier to rewrite an entire scene rather than edit line by line in places that just aren't working. Take the core motifs/beats of that section and see if you can't introduce them some other way.

Again, you're going to have to be more specific if you want ideas about how you can reframe a scene.

[Anonymous No.11392393]

>>11392371
I guess Im asking for more abstract pipeline styled processes that writers might have developed for ironing out scenes. I often have ideas for strong scenes and events but sometimes have trouble making the flow from one to the next feel completely natural

>As far as general editing tips, I find it's easier to rewrite an entire scene rather than edit line by line in places that just aren't working.

This is what Im doing, although Id say "revising" while the "editing" is more line by line

[Anonymous No.11392397]

>>11392393
The answer is always...Read more.

[Anonymous No.11392403]

>>11392397
There is literally nothing to be achieved by a mindless "read more" approach

[Anonymous No.11392420]

>>11392403
Look don't bring your faggot ass shit in here. Read more. FAGGOT

[Anonymous No.11392426]

>>11392420
>how should I cut and edit this movie scene to flow well
>WATCH MORE MOBIEE

[Anonymous No.11392457]

Ray Bradbury said read more faggot.

Specifically read an essay a short story and a poem every night guh ht and write a short story every week.

Start there.

And my advice volunteer for a reading position for an online literature magazine. You'll end up a better writer.

Now that answers any and all how do I write better thread questions.

[Anonymous No.11392474]

>>11392153

[Anonymous No.11392477]

>>11392393
I'm no professional and in no position to be offering advice, but I can throw some ideas out there in regards to my own writing process. Maybe it might help.

When I'm writing a chapter, I try to come up with a structure first. For example, if the main beat is a callback to a previous chapter, I make that the "goal" I need to hit. So I think about where the characters are currently, why they would be in proximity to that goal, and think of a way to get them there without it seeming too forced.

If you're having trouble getting your character from, let's say the office to the bedroom where there's going to be an important scene, think about ways you can naturally draw the character to that location.

This is basically a plotting issue and I know Stephen King says he never plots his books, but his books end up with giant underage orgies in sewers, so take that advice accordingly. If the scene transitions don't seem natural enough, it's probably because you haven't given sufficient motivation at a plot hook level for the character to do that thing. Consider the scene in ASoFaI where Tyrion kills his father. Even though its placement in the story is seemingly random, it is completely convincing because we know about their preexisting relationship. This was not entirely a crime of passion. Tyrion was looking for an excuse to do that because of all the abuse and humiliation he was put through.

tl;dr-- try plotting your novel more. Give your character sufficient motivation to be in a scene and it will be convincing to the reader.

[Anonymous No.11392518]

>>11392477
Im actually very intensive about plotting and planning for individual chapters, I think my issue is more about sometimes getting the sense of dead space within chapters where its a lot of buildup and then an event. In the revision process so far I've definitely improved it heavily so that the dead space has been either replaced or improved with something more active, interesting and plot heavy, but I guess what I'm wondering is if people have techniques that guarantee a good structure right off the bat

As an example, you said that you also think about the "goal" and the way to get there. Simplified, my point is simply to intertwine it from goal to goal to goal intelligently, smoothly and in a way where the "way there" doesn't actually feel like downtime before the next real event

[Anonymous No.11392543]

>>11392518
If you have dead space, there are few things you could try.

>Cut it out entirely
This would be my first approach. See if the story works without the extraneous space. If you are missing a crucial detail by cutting out the dead space, then:

>Create another minor goal to reach in this chapter
Maybe in this chapter, your mc is learning how to become a man, culminating in a scene where he has to suck it up and do something he really doesn't want to do. In the leadup to this scene, his example changes the minds of other people around him, which catalyzes a change in their outlook. Lastly, you could also try to:

>Use the time to foreshadow future events
I generally plot out my foreshadowing way before I even try to write a chapter, but you might be able to work in some foreshadowing in the places that aren't doing much.