Post History

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/37118
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

I wouldn't call this innovative, just borrowing a technique from other walks of life.

**The Sandwich method**. You start with something they like, then something they might like less, then immediately follow up with something they like again.

So, take your chase scene. Start with bullets flying and things exploding. Then, when one of them stops to catch their breath (or what have you), you segue into a part of a flashback.

You show one of the characters being all sentimental. Maybe even the bad buy.

> I lost him, for now. Doubling over, my lungs feel about ready to explode. Maybe I'm getting too old for this shit. Or maybe it was more fun when it was mom chasing me around the house with a broom, screaming that she was gonna beat be bloody.

Then, out of nowhere, there's a sound, a snapped twig, a door jerked open, and the chase is back on. It allows the character to catch his breath, it allows the reader to relax a little, but it always comes with the tension that this little break will end sooner or later.

Original score: 12