January, 2009 Exercise: Tension on Every Page
This month, we’re going to take a look at tension in our novels.
Tension, as every how-to-book or agent will tell you, is the cornerstone of a successful novel. It’s a fairly simple formula – if you can keep the tension high, you will keep readers turning the pages. In fact, if you keep the tension high enough throughout, they’ll plant their butts in a chair and stay up all night to finish.
Isn’t that what we all dream of? Writing a novel people Just Can’t Put Down?
Think of your favorite novels. What was it that kept you reading? What made you say “just one more chapter!” before you put it down (if you COULD put it down, that is)?
A lot of times people assume that “tension” in a novel means you have to have a dead body every other page, blow something up, reveal The Big Secret, etc. Not true. Tension can be created in a lot of different ways.
This list isn’t all inclusive, but some ways of creating tension are:
1. Create questions that the reader wants answered. (Ex. How will the hero survive the bomb strapped to his chest? Will the heroine survive jumping off the second story balcony? Or much “calmer questions” such as – Will the hero ever confess that he’s in love with the heroine? Will the heroine discover that her sister slept with her husband?) There are a million variations on this and the goal is to keep throwing them at the reader.
2. Create stakes/consequences. One of the best ways to keep readers in their chairs is to build upon the tension in a novel – increasing it as you go. With every choice they make, the tension should rise and the consequences should increase.
3. Allow your characters to make mistakes. What could be more boring than a character who always does the right thing? Surely interesting characters will make some mistakes along the way, and the consequences of those mistakes creates great tension.
4. Have your characters do the unexpected. No one wants to read a novel about the guy who solves all of his financial problems by taking out a low interest loan at the local bank. We want to read about the guy who feels the only way out is to rob that bank!
5. Have your characters think/say one thing and then do the exact opposite.
6. Don’t reveal your characters’ true motivations right away. Keep it close to the vest for a while. Let them keep secrets from...[Message truncated] Jen
~Random Thoughts | 
