Writing Craft Part 1 – Dramatic Structure, Plot and Pacing

This series of posts are for writers who may be new to this business or looking for a few pointers as they try and wrestle their novel into shape.  Understanding the theory of writing is one thing, putting it into practice is another.  In the first of three weekly posts on writing craft I’m going to briefly look at the overall dramatic structure of a novel, as well as plot and pacing.

When I first began writing novels I used to read a lot about the importance of ‘developing my craft’, without really understanding what that phrase meant.  There are lots of elements to this and I think the fundamental building blocks are: 

• Dramatic structure

• Plot

• Pacing

• Characterization

• Description

• Dialogue

You can read various books on the subject of writing craft.  So far, the only one I’d recommend is Stephen King’s seminal work – On Writing, A Memoir of the Craft.  It was hugely influential on my own writing and if you haven’t already got a copy, you should place an order without delay! 

Dramatic Structure 

Most authors writing books of novel length understand a story comprises the following basic elements: 

• Exposition (introducing the characters and the situation they are in)

• Conflict (one or more challenges the protagonist(s) face)

• The story’s climax (the turning point of the story, determining the fate of the protagonist as they respond to these challenges)

• Conclusion (the resolution of the story, where the protagonist either triumphs or fails)

If you don’t get this right you’ll have a dull novel that readers will struggle to engage with.  I think most people understand this kind of structure at an instinctive level.  In modern society we’re avid consumers of stories on a daily basis.  This goes beyond books – we see this used all the time in movies, on TV, in magazines and even in adverts and video games.  We expect our stories to follow this pattern and most of us will write using this structure without even thinking about it.

Before I go any further I want to make one thing clear.  You’re the final arbiter of how to write your novel.  None of the following ‘rules’ I’m about to outline should be followed slavishly but break them too often at your peril.  I’ve found these tips incredibly helpful and all of this is drawn from my own personal experience.  Believe me, I’ve made all of these mistakes myself and it’s amazing how easy it is to repeat them. 

Avoid the dreaded information dump 

As an author you need to be clear on where your novel is set and the situation your characters are in.  When does your story take place?  Is it set in our world or somewhere else?  Who are the central characters, what do they do for a living and what is their relationship to each other? 

In order to enjoy and understand your novel the reader needs to know all these things.  However, trying to establish all of this up front in large chunks of text can get in the way of the story you’re trying to tell.  There’s also a good chance the reader won’t remember every detail, leaving you with the choice of either repeating those facts again later in the story or leaving them out and confusing your audience.  At its worst, this kind of writing kills the story stone dead.  The classic example of doing this wrong is introducing your protagonist in chapter one and then going on to tell the reader his or her entire life story – where they grew up, who their parents were, where they went to school, their first job, how they met their spouse etc. 

Much of this detail may not even be relevant to the story and is just getting in the way, weighing the novel down with unnecessary detail.  This kind of information is best provided in small amounts, woven throughout the text and interspersed with the action.  That way, the reader has a much greater chance of remembering what you’re trying to tell them. 

Going back to the previous example, if the protagonist’s school is important to the story, perhaps you could have your character walk or drive past the building and reminisce on when they went there.  If the school isn’t important then why bother to mention it in the first place?  If it’s not relevant to plot or character, then consider leaving it out altogether. 

Be careful if the information is a major plot point.  For example, if your protagonist can assemble a rifle in 15 seconds and is a crack shot, the reader is likely to feel cheated if they only discover this fact 250 pages into your novel the first time they handle a gun and take out the bad guys.  Again, there are no absolutes with this kind of thing.  Perhaps they’re keeping their military background a secret from their family and this is a big reveal.  The key thing is to keep your story believable and avoid stretching credibility. 

Lack of compelling action 

Whatever genre you write in, it’s important there’s sufficient action/conflict to make your story interesting.  Generally speaking, the protagonist needs to overcome some sort of adversity at the climax of a novel to achieve their goal.  The journey towards that climax should involve them overcoming other challenges and obstacles along the way.  Most importantly, the outcome should be uncertain.  The reader should always be in some doubt about whether or not the protagonist will succeed in their objective. 

Without this, your story is likely to suffer from the following flaws: 

• Nothing happens – yawn

• Lots of things happen but the protagonist deals with all of them easily, resulting in no narrative tension and an easy ride to the finishing line – yawn

 Conflict and adversity can come from all sorts of things:

• A car chase – will they get away or be caught?

• A fight – who will win?

• Romance – who will win the favour of the love interest in the story?

• An inheritance – which child has been favoured by their parents in their will and why?

The important thing here is to create situations that reward the reader as they turn the pages, keen to know how the protagonist resolves a particular problem.  Ideally, those situations should also reveal the character of the protagonist and/or other characters in the story.  Taking the inheritance example, how does the protagonist feel when they learn they’ve been cut out of the will?  What do they do about it?  Their decisions help define their character for the reader.  However, this scenario can also reveal the character of their parents.  Why have they done this?  What values did they hold dear that led them to favour one child over the other? 

Unsatisfactory resolution 

Don’t forget to write the ending of your novel.  It sounds obvious but I’ve always found the ending the hardest thing to write.  Whether the protagonist succeeds or fails, the action/conflict they’ve faced throughout the novel should have a direct impact on the outcome of the story.  The ending of the novel gives those events meaning and should reward the reader for investing their time in the story and characters. 

For example, if your tale concerns a perilous mountaineering expedition, the climber could scale the deadly cliff face, be forced to retreat or plummet to their death.  Any of these endings works in this context.  What is likely to work less well is the climber scaling the mountain, returning home, tripping over the dog in the back yard and breaking their neck.  Unless you’re a literary genius, none of the events on the mountain will have any relevance to how the book ends, leaving the reader feeling cheated and dissatisfied.  In this example, it would have been better to end the novel on the summit, rather than the climber’s home. 

Be particularly careful with any sub-plots you’ve introduced.  Have they also been resolved?  Leaving loose ends (unless this is deliberate) for minor characters can be every bit as annoying for a reader, even if you’ve tied up the main story successfully. 

If you’re writing a linked series of books then cliffhanger endings can work well, encouraging your readers to purchase the next book to see what happens next.  Personally, though, I like a novel to feel like a complete work.  That means reaching a resolution of the main plot in that book, even if the action continues in a sequel. 

Plot 

This may seem like a stupid question, but do you know what is your novel about?  This links back in part to understanding the dramatic structure of your story.  However, this is more about how key facts and events establish that structure and make your novel work. 

Many writers start their novel with a strong opening and have a clear idea of how the story will end.  What they can struggle with is the bit in between – the dreaded ‘saggy middle’.  Often, those problems can arise from a lack of clear plotting, where events can feel unconnected and the story doesn’t go anywhere. 

Every scene you write should have meaning and relevance for the story.  Crucially, those scenes need to be propelling the novel towards its conclusion.  When writing the first draft and during editing I always ask myself the question ‘why is this scene here?’  If I can’t give a clear answer there’s a good chance the scene is merely padding, its only purpose being to add to the word count. 

Sub-plots can also be a pitfall for the unwary.  They can be helpful in adding interest, fleshing out your world or developing the supporting cast of characters in your story.  However, this mustn’t be at the expense of the main story and plot.  Those minor story arcs need to be plotted with the same attention to detail as the main narrative. 

Plot doesn’t automatically mean action.  For example, a scene can be relevant if it establishes certain facts that are important later on.  The scene may reveal aspects of someone’s character or backstory.  It may lead to a discovery that establishes the next goal of the protagonist, thus moving the story on. 

The key point is every scene must have a purpose that’s relevant to the story you’re telling.  I always create a high-level outline of my books before I start writing them.  The main reason I do this is to have a clear idea of the plot from the outset, so I know what my key scenes are and where I’m trying to get to by the end.  That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for creativity.  Some of the best ideas for my books have been lightbulb moments, where my characters have taken me off down an unexpected tangent, opening up new possibilities.  Even when this happens, though, you still have to keep the overall plot in mind.  A tangent painting your central character into a corner isn’t helpful and may even be a redundant sub-plot. 

Pacing 

When plotting out a novel I always try and keep in mind the pacing of every scene and how these all hang together.  Relentless action is likely to leave the reader exhausted.  It can actually devalue the achievements of your characters as they deal with one crisis after the next, leaving little time to reflect on what has gone before.  Similarly, exquisite prose where the story moves at a glacial pace (or even worse, nothing happens) risks boring the reader. 

It’s not a hard and fast rule but I generally try and build my novels around a series of rises and falls of action.  Moments of conflict and action are followed by quieter passages, where there is chance for reflection on what has gone before.  This allows the reader respite from continuous action and allows the author to provide key information or develop their characters.  For example, the story could involve a battle early on in the narrative.  In its aftermath who lived and who died?  What is the tactical position of the protagonist?  How are they positioned for the final battle you’ve planned for the end of the novel and what are the stakes?  Establishing these sorts of things in your quieter passages gives meaning and context to the next key action set-piece.  This helps ensure your reader is invested in both the story and the outcome. 

Generally, I plan my novels with rising and falling action throughout, gradually building up towards the novel’s climax at the end.  It’s worth repeating that there’s no absolute right and wrong way to write a novel.  However, you do have to hold the reader’s attention and keep in mind that whatever you’re writing needs to be interesting and compelling. 

Conclusion 

I’ve only skated over the surface of these subjects, which have books and courses dedicated to them if you want to take this further.  However, when I first began trying to write creatively I didn’t have a proper grasp of these structural issues.  I wrote my first novel and made it up as I went along.  Without a clear idea of what I was trying to achieve the results weren’t too good.  The story meandered and one third of the first draft involved an unwieldy sub-plot that went precisely nowhere, petering out just after the half-way point with no real resolution. 

I hope this post will help you to avoid some of the mistakes I made early in my writing career.  Moving on from the structural side of novel writing, my post next week will look at some other important elements of writing technique, covering characterization, description and dialogue.