Wordplay

Chapter breaks are do-or-die territory for novelists. You may be spinning a grand ol’ tale, full of fascinating characters, but if your chapter endings leave readers no reason to turn the page to find out what happens next, all your hard work on the other aspects of your story will be wasted. Not every chapter needs to end with a cliffhanger, but they do need to encompass a question powerful enough to make the reader crazy to know the answer.


This is no easy task, in large part because not every chapter is going to feature huge revelations and startling questions. So how do you mine your story for the tension and conflict that will translate into the most powerful question a reader can ask: What’s gonna happen next? Following are ten suggestions for turning your blasé endings into killer chapter breaks.


1. Promise of conflict to come.

Example: The hero has just been challenged to a duel.
Inherent Question: Will he survive?

2. A secret kept.

Example: The hero’s partner hides a letter.
Inherent Question: What’s in the confounded letter?

3. A major decision or vow.

Example: The hero swears to avenge his wife’s murder.
Inherent Question: How will he go about it? Will he succeed?

4. An announcement of a shocking event.

Example: The hero’s father dies.
Inherent Question: How did he die? How is the hero going to react?

5. A moment of high emotion.

Example: The hero is enraged by the promotion of an incompetent coworker.
Inherent Question: How will the hero express his anger? Will he experience repercussions?

6. A reversal or surprise that turns the story upside down.

Example: The heroine discovers her long-dead mother isn’t dead at all.
Inherent Question: Where has the mother been all this time? How is the heroine going to adjust to this new paradigm?

7. A new idea.

Example: The hero comes up with a new scheme for defeating the bad guy.
Inherent Question: Will it work?

8. An unanswered question.

Example: “You’re not who you said you were, are you?”
Inherent Question: Is he who he said he was?

9. A portentous metaphor.

Example: A solar eclipse over a battlefield.
Inherent Question: Is this an indication of tragedy to come?

10. A turning point.

Example: The heroine is shipped off to an orphanage.
Inherent Question: What will happen in her new life? How will she adapt?

It’s possible—and even preferable—to use all of these examples in one story. Use a wide variety of chapter breaks to keep your readers guessing. Ending every chapter with a cliffhanger can become monotonous, so don’t feel as if the tension has to be ratcheted to breaking point at the end of every scene. Make sure your readers are left with a question—a reason to know more—and, before they know it, they’ll have read your entire book in one sitting.


Related Posts: 10 Ways to Strengthen Your Beginning

Top 7 Reasons Readers Stop Reading

Metaphorically Speaking
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Good dialogue is one of the most enjoyable parts of any story—both for the reader and the author. But dialogue alone isn’t enough to make a scene. Perhaps you’ll recognize the following from your own reading—or maybe even (gasp) your work-in-progress:

“John, where have you been?”
“Oh, just… out.”
“Out where?”
“You know, errands. The bank, haircut, library.”
“Think you’re cute, don’t you? Howard called. He said you were playing slots again.”

This dialogue-heavy scene is suffering from several problems, most notably “white-wall” or “talking head” syndrome. Although the bare facts of the conflict are conveyed through the dialogue, we have no idea who these people are, where they’re situated in the scene, or what their body language is conveying. Dialogue can easily carry the bulk of a scene, but it shouldn’t have to do everything. Compare the first scene with the one following, which includes just a few added sentences.

The door banged behind me, and I winced.
“John, where have you been?” Michaela stomped into the kitchen doorway, slinging a wet towel over her shoulder like it was a matador’s cape.
“Oh, just… out.”
“Out where?”
“You know, errands.” I pushed past her and went to the sink for a glass of water. “The bank, haircut, library.” Lukewarm water shot out of the spigot and overflowed the glass. I turned around, trying to blink innocently at Michaela, drink my water, and rub my sopping sleeve against my shirt to dry it.
“Think you’re cute, don’t you? Howard called. He said you were playing slots again.”
I choked. Water shot up the back of my nose.

When planning your scenes, even scenes where what’s said is what’s important, give your characters something to do—or what bestselling mystery writer Elizabeth George refers to as “Talking Head Avoidance Devices” (THADs). Her wonderful book Write Away: One Novelist’s Approach to Fiction and the Writing Life includes a list of various tasks your characters can undertake to keep the scene alive while they’re talking (including getting a bee into a jar, performing surgery, and cleaning a swimming pool—the possibilities are endless).

But don’t forget that it isn’t enough to give your characters mindless busywork to fill up the blanks between dialogue. Their THAD has to matter to the plot, has to bring something new to the table—such as John’s drinking a glass of water being an attempted cover for his nervousness at being caught. Just as you should never include a filler for the sake of filling, you also shouldn’t hesitate to dig a little deeper into your scenes in order to avoid white-wall syndrome. By allowing your characters to communicate with their bodies as well as their mouths, you can open up a whole new layer of nuance in your dialogue.

Related Posts: It's What Your Characters Do That Defines Them

Describing Characters

The All-Important Link Between Theme and Character
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Music is arguably the purest art form. It’s a breathing of the soul, a perfect embodiment of emotion, a story without words. For the most part, we lowly writers can barely hope to tell as complete a story in 300 pages as can be found in almost any collection of musical notes. If you’re a composer or a musician, God bless you. You’re sharing a little bit of magic in everything you do. If, on the other hand, you’re like me and your only musical accomplishment is playing the radio, your best hope of sharing some of music’s clarity and emotional depth is to tap into it as a springboard for your writing.

The arts feed off each other, but perhaps never more so than in the case of music. I’d venture to say we’ve all been driving down the road, listening to the radio, humming along, only to find our next story idea buried within the lyrics. A Man Called Outlaw was inspired by the western ballad “Outlaw Canyon”; battle scenes in my medieval novel Behold the Dawn came to life through Loreena McKennitt’s “The Mummer’s Dance”; and my work-in-progress The Deepest Breath found the twist in its ending through a Jeremy Camp song. I put my iPod on shuffle while I workout in the mornings and just wait for the next spurt of inspiration to hit me. It’s a glorious thing.

If something so incidental as a random music lyric can fire up the muse, why not approach it a little more purposefully? Why not tap into the power of music when you need the inspiration most: while you’re writing. In his recent post “Five Bands You Should Be Writing To,” Christopher Jackson says:

Music can be a powerful tool. It can continually inspire you as you write…. By creating a mood it can fuel your writing and drive it to places you might not otherwise go.
Also, I find that listening to music as I write can help me block out distractions—both physical ones demanding my attention, like people and noises, but also distractions in my head, random thoughts and “Things You Need To Do” fighting for your attention and telling you to stop wasting time writing stories. By listening to music, especially through headphones, you may find it easier to settle into the writing zone, to shut out those other distractions by filling your ears with sound and clearing your mind, especially with ambient or instrumental music.

In his post “Infusing Your Fiction With Heart and Soul: An Exercise”, “storyfixer” Larry Brooks advocates using:

…music to tap into a level of perception, appreciation and creative energy that seems otherwise inaccessible. One way to write scenes with greater depth and emotional resonance is to select music—I suggest movie themes—that matches the contextual mission of the scene itself.

Movie soundtracks are my own music of choice while writing. The inherent drama—the ebb and flow of action and poignancy—lends itself well to the needs of fiction. I avoid lyrics for the most part, both because they distract me and because I dislike “dulling” favorite songs by training my brain to force them into the background. Albums with plenty of loud, intense action themes are handy, not just for battle scenes, but for ramping up my own adrenaline and keeping my fingers flying over the keyboard. My word-per-minute rate never fails to skyrocket whenever “The Battle,” the third track on the Gladiator soundtrack starts rumbling my subwoofer.

I only rarely select music to fit whatever scene I happen to be writing. I prefer to let the music surprise me, to affect my words in ways I may not have otherwise found. Writing battle scenes to the plaintive “Love Theme” from Attack of the Clones or love scenes to the aggressive drum beat of Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World’s “Smoke N’ Oakum” always brings out elements I wouldn’t otherwise have found.

If you haven’t already done so, make music a part of your writing routine—and reap the benefits of immersion in the magical realm of stories without words. Below are some of my favorite soundtracks. I’d love to hear about your own favorite writing music!

My Favorite Writing Music

Gladiator by Hans Zimmer, Lisa Gerrard, & Klaus Badalt

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves by Michael Kamen

The Lord of the Rings trilogy by Howard Shore
The Patriot by John Willliams

American Outlaws by Trevor Rabin

Star Wars series by John Williams

Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy by Klaus Badelt and Hans Zimmer

The Last of the Mohicans by Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman

Black Hawk Down by Hans Zimmer

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World by Iva Davies, Christopher Gordon, Richard Tognetti

Treasure Planet by James Newton Howard

Related Posts: Five Bands You Should Be Writing To by Christopher Jackson

Infusing Your Fiction With Heart and Soul: An Exercise by Larry Brooks

5 Ways to Create Inspiration

Opening Yourself to Inspiration

Writing With Joy
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Think of a well-known author.
Who’d you pick? Maybe you chose Stephen King, Janet Evanovich, John Grisham, or Nora Roberts?
Whoever you chose, I’m willing to bet that when the name popped to mind so did a very definite sense of genre. Each of the authors I mentioned is tied inextricably to the genres in which he has been so successful. Genre is a huge selling point. Marketers use genres as convenient niches to classify books, steer readers toward their preferences, and keep their attention. As a result, most successful authors are successful in large part because their names have become equivalent with the genres they write.

But you should also note that despite their huge success in their trademark genres, none of these authors have allowed themselves to be pigeonholed. They’ve all gone on to write successful novels in vastly different genres (albeit sometimes under pseudonyms), not only proving that art need not be fettered by the sometimes stifling confines of the market’s dictates, but also that the better the artist, the more varied his work and the more successful are his varied works.

I’m admittedly a bit of a Mexican jumping bean when it comes to genre. Life’s too short to explore the same ground over and over or to shackle myself to just one type of story. I’ve written two historical novels in vastly different time periods, my next book is a fantasy, I’m currently working on a literary piece, and I have stories romping around in my brain that span the gamut from suspense to steam punk. I love to experiment; I love to push my limits and force myself to grow. With every new genre or subgenre I attempt, my abilities as a writer are tested and polished. Even if I’m not successful in every genre, even if not every story finds its way into print, I’m not only enjoying the wide-open horizons of unbounded possibility, I’m also strengthening my competence in the craft.

In the November/December 2009 issue of Writer’s Digest, editor Jessica Strawser points out:

Our writing projects can be our favorite well-traveled destinations. We return again and again to that work-in-progress, cozy in to the groove we’ve worn from what we already know we’re good at, what we already know feels comfortable and, if we’re being honest, maybe a little safe—predictable, even. And writing should be that kind of refuge. Your manuscript, your niche or your genre becomes that place where you can get just lost enough to satisfy the longing…. [But] When’s the last time you explored a new direction, took a little detour?... Diversifying the writing you’re doing grows your platform.

Sometimes the thought of mastering even one genre can be daunting enough. But our journey as writers should be about growing, learning, and strengthening ourselves. Stagnation isn’t fun or profitable, and it isn’t likely to produce high-quality work. Every once in a while, dare to step outside the bounds of normalcy and see what unexpected adventures you can find off the beaten path. If you do, who knows—we may be seeing your name alongside the likes of King, Evanovich, Grisham, and Roberts!

Related Posts: Why Genre Writing Could Kill Your Career
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I’m guest posting today (on a subject unrelated to writing, believe it or not) over at Lynn Mosher’s great inspirational blog Heading Home. If you have a minute, stop by and read my post “Just Who Am I Supposed to Be?” Here's a tidbit...

It had been a bumpy week. People I didn’t even know seemed intent on jabbing needles of disdain and belittlement into the vulnerable balloons of my confidence and self-worth. Words like failure, runner-up, and loser clattered through my brain like cars on a runaway train. I stood in front of the mirror, scrubbing away at my teeth, and it hit me, once again, that I don’t fit into a mold. I’m not what people expect me to be. I’m not what they want me to be. Maybe I’m not even what I’m supposed to be.

I’m pleased today to be a stop on the blog tour of inspirational author C. Maggie Woychik, whose first book I Run to the Hills was released earlier this year. Maggie is an award-winning, multi-published author of over seventy-five mostly print articles, and author of the blog Encouraging Emerging Authors. Her work has appeared in War Cry, Wesleyan Advocate, Christian Women Today, Woman’s Touch, and many others. She lives in the Midwest, on a small farm with her husband of twenty-seven years; her only child, Craig, is off to college. Below, you can read about Maggie’s journey to publication with I Run to the Hills. Scroll down and click on the book image for a synopsis and purchasing information.

KMW: When did you start writing?
CMW: 1995


KMW: What inspired I Run to the Hills?
CMW:Each reflection is based on at least one lesson I have learned in my Christian walk.

KMW: How long did it take to write?
CMW: I collected and worked on the essays over the course of several months spread out over several years, not in a dedicated block of time. I mention ten years on the back cover simply because it took that long from start to finish. In reality it was probably more like two or three off and on.

KMW: Any major lessons you learned writing it?
CMW: Probably the biggest lesson, the lesson I’m still learning, is that good writing takes a lot of effort, and stellar writing takes a lifetime. Obviously I’ve not yet achieved the latter.

KMW: What was your greatest challenge in writing this book?
CMW: I wrote most of it while my son was still being homeschooled, so that was a challenge—wanting to get those lessons out on paper while still giving him the time he needed and deserved.

KMW: What’s next?
CMW: I have several projects I’m working on, some closer to completion than others. Each one has a special place in my heart. And I’m hoping that each one will become a better book than the one before. This one was my “trial run.” I’ve learned a lot of invaluable lessons during the process of writing Hills; I wouldn’t trade them for anything!

KMW: What’s your word of advice for other authors?
CMW: Don’t stop learning, regardless of where you are in life or with your writing. Whether eighteen or eighty, continue to learn and grow as a person and an author. Work on technique, but more than that, read great authors. Read authors who have paid the price to learn to write well, then emulate their example. Never be ashamed to go back and make improvements; none of us gets it right the first or even hundredth time. We’re not God, but we try to honor Him with our writing, and that includes striving for excellence.