How to give the readers breathing space, without putting them to sleep?
I remember reading somewhere that while plots should have tension, too much tension will tire the readers out, so there should be some breathing place, where the reader can get a chance to catch their breath.
Unfortunately, in one or two books I read recently, right after a tense scene, the authors started talking about something trivial, like psycho-analysing the hero's childhood, or the mid life crisis of a middle aged superhero. This bored me and I threw the books away.
While I understand that a breathing space is needed, how do I ensure that this breathing space doesn't turn into "bore" space?
Edit: The examples I gave are from action/thriller books, where all the psycho-analysing and "characterisation" really felt out of place. I understand these scenes may have been appropriate in a literary novel.
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I read a book called The Poison Throne (part of the Moorehawke Trilogy) by Celine Kiernan recently where I felt this was done incredibly well. She would build up the tension by building up the atmosphere of distrust between characters and hinting at violence to come, which would climax in said violence. Then she would give the readers a break with a scene or chapter in stark contrast to that atmosphere, where the characters are in the privacy of their own room(s) and you can see the very real, underlying love and trust between them that usually has to be hidden. It was a good way to let the reader catch their breath and far from sending them to sleep, it made the scene more powerful emotionally. Then the scene would launch another round of tension-building.
I think what made this work was the contrast. The tension comes from the characters not knowing who they can trust, and knowing that a single misstep in a world where everyone seems to be hiding a knife behind their back could cost them not only their lives, but that of those they love. Then she gives the reader glimpses of quiet times when the characters know that they can completely and utterly trust everyone else in the room and let down their guard.
Obviously your story won't have the exact same scenarios, but you could try contrasting technique and see if it works for you.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/3877. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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An analogue:
I had a friend in college who was a choreographer. She had recently presented a piece to rave reviews, and was amused that one of the moments which got the most positive attention was a long, slow, sweeping movement (I don't recall what the dance term for it was).
She told me, "This thing they love — it was right after a big, complicated, difficult sequence. I put that arm-sweep thing in to give the dancer a chance to rest!"
You may know that you're putting in a quiet scene to give the reader a breather. But the quiet scene has to have purpose. It has to contribute to the story. Find a reason for the quiet scene, and the tension-release takes care of itself. If you can't find a reason for a low-key scene, then maybe you don't need one.
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