How do you structure your novel? How many words in a scene, or pages in a chapter? I get that question a lot, because the truth is there is no “rule” and the answer seems to vary with author. Here’s my formula, and why. I write many different length books for different genres: Contemporary Romance, Long Historical, Short Romantic Suspense, Novellas… but they all have the same story structure. (Or, if you follow MBT teaching the same LINDYHOP. Life, Inciting Incident, Noble Quest, Disappointments, Help!, Overhaul, Perfect Ending). This means, on average, the First Act (LIN) is 15% of the story, and the Third Act (HOP) is 15-20% of the story. Poor D, or the Second Act takes up 60-70% of the story. Which is why, of course, you want […]
Read the RestArchive | How to write a Suspense RSS feed for this section
Checklist for Meet the Girl Scene
Yesterday I posted the Meet the Girl scene for our Romantic Suspense novel, written in Luke’s POV. Read it here: Chapter 2.Scene 2.Luke with SMW Comments What are the things you need to cover in a Meet the Girl scene? Below find a checklist! 1. Remember to start with Storyworld/Anchoring! 2. Do we understand the state of the Love Life of the POV character? a. What is their history? b. Have they ever been in love? c. What holds them back from love? d. What kind of person do they need to meet? 3. What is your story structure – a Why/Why Not or a Why Not/Why? a. If it is a Why Not/Why, do you start with the essential conflict between them? Do you follow with a hint of the Why they might fall in love? […]
Read the RestChapter 2: Meet the Girl!
It’s time to Meet the Girl! Writing a romantic suspense has its own challenges – not only does the author have to deal with the suspense storyline, but the romance must be threaded in as well, usually in equal parts. Because we’ve already jumpstarted the suspense in chapter 1, Kenzie’s scene, and moved her forward into the Noble Quest (staying alive!) in Chapter 2, we’re now going to turn our focus on Luke, our hero. In Luke’s first scene, in Chapter 1, we started in his home world, and because the suspense plot hadnt’ quite touched him yet, I started out with a glimpse at his character, the heroic man he is, and a taste of what he’ll do for others (namely, risk his life). And, although his first scene […]
Read the RestHow to Write a Suspense: Chapter 2 Checklist
Yesterday, we talked about the considerations that go into crafting Chapter 2 of your novel. To see an application of these considerations, read Kenzie’s scene: Chapter 2.Scene 2.Kenzie with SMW Comments Here’s a checklist for you as you craft your chapter: Chapter 2 is The Great Debate. Have I anchored my reader into the scene with enough storyworld/facts? Have I recapped what happened so far, to remind the reader of the danger? What are the choices before your character? What will each choice cost them? What is at stake for the POV character? (IOW: what will happen if they don’t act?) Why should they act? Why shouldn’t they? What is the best choice, and what is their motivation behind choosing that? (IOW: hint at their backstory just enough to establish […]
Read the Rest
