Great books are made of great scenes. Which means the skill of writing and editing amazing scenes is one of the most important skills you can learn if you want to create a novel readers will love.
The thing is, though, readers don't think in terms of scenes. Chapters are clearly marked for readers, but scenes often aren't. Which means that when people make the jump from "reader" to "writer," they often don't know what scenes actually are.
What is a scene? What elements must it include? What makes the difference between a scene readers want to skip and a scene that earns its place in your book? And how can you fix a boring scene?
In this episode, I'll cover all that and more. You'll learn:
And I'll break all these elements down using an example scene: the first scene of UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR by T. J. Klune. Read the first scene for free here. (And if you love it, read the whole book—it's a good one!)
Ready to apply all these concepts to your book and make your scenes un-put-down-able? Download the Scene Analysis Worksheet at alicesudlow.com/sceneworksheet.
And if you'd like expert feedback on your scenes, plus personalized strategies for how to make them even better, I'd love to help. Send me a note at alice@alicesudlow.com and tell me about your book!
Links mentioned in the episode:
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Want more editing tips and resources? Follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, would you mind leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts? That helps more writers find these editing resources. And it helps me know what's helpful to you so I can create more episodes you'll love!
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