Keep'n it Tight, Keep'n it Real
If there's one thing every great book needs, it's tension.
Recently I was reading a book where, although I didn't really like the heroine, I empathized with her and the story even caused me to get some prickly eyelids (you know, the almost-cry?). Imagine my surprise though when fifty pages from the end all the tension suddenly dropped out of the story. The last part of the book was a tying up of plot threads. I almost didn't finish because the sigh-worthy moments had already happened.
So how do we keep a reader turning the pages to the very end?
Tension.
But it's gotta be tight. I happen to think there should be some form of tension on every single page. Whether in the form of dialogue, actions or narrative, there needs to be something that makes the reader say, "oooh, this is going to be interesting" or "uh-oh".
Not only that, but the tension has to be real. It has to be believable. It's possible to create paper-thin conflicts. Imagine tension as a tight thread stretched from one page to the next. If the conflict/problem becomes something the reader thinks is silly or not believable or easily solved, then the thread is cut and the tautness is gone. And the reader will probably stop reading.
Do you like page-turners? What do you find harder to do in your story, tension on every page or believability to support that tension?
Recently I was reading a book where, although I didn't really like the heroine, I empathized with her and the story even caused me to get some prickly eyelids (you know, the almost-cry?). Imagine my surprise though when fifty pages from the end all the tension suddenly dropped out of the story. The last part of the book was a tying up of plot threads. I almost didn't finish because the sigh-worthy moments had already happened.
So how do we keep a reader turning the pages to the very end?
Tension.
But it's gotta be tight. I happen to think there should be some form of tension on every single page. Whether in the form of dialogue, actions or narrative, there needs to be something that makes the reader say, "oooh, this is going to be interesting" or "uh-oh".
Not only that, but the tension has to be real. It has to be believable. It's possible to create paper-thin conflicts. Imagine tension as a tight thread stretched from one page to the next. If the conflict/problem becomes something the reader thinks is silly or not believable or easily solved, then the thread is cut and the tautness is gone. And the reader will probably stop reading.
Do you like page-turners? What do you find harder to do in your story, tension on every page or believability to support that tension?
Comments
www.KarenAmandaHooper.com
It's not hard to put tension on every page. It's the believability that's the challenge. Good point about paper thin conflict. I've been guilty of that one.
I prefer the 'one more chapter' books. :D
~ Wendy
I'm willing to suspend belief a little as long as I'm absorbed in the story.
I agree with you about tension in every scene, but like you said, it has to be believable. And not just done for tension's sake. It has to make sense in the larger plot. It's exhausting when there's so much tension and you're wondering why?!
Karen, me too!!
Hi Linda, yeah, in the unraveling there should be tension, you know? If there's not...we skim. lol
Wendy, that's a good point. Because tension is more than just people fighting. It's also an internal thing.
Cindy, you probably are better at it than you think. :-)
Me too, Sandra.
Exactly, Lisa! Sometimes we need that suspension too.
LOL Lindsay! Very true.
Sounds like the book you read might have ended in the wrong spot.
I want a book that keeps reading and wanting more until it's finished.
Great post, Jessica!
I can't wait to read how you used tension in your book! Not long now...
Hi Melissa, good points! Thanks for dropping by. ;-)
Exactly Stacy!!
Oh dear, Jeanette, just keep in mind that it's easier to dispense advice than follow it. lol
Patti, I think you're probably right.
Me too, Loree!
Great post, pal!
I heard recently that it helps to think about four places or situations your main character would not like to be in, and then put at least two of them into your story.