Do not Pass Go, Do not Collect $100
What is the fastest way from Point A to Point C? Generally
speaking, a straight line through Point B does the job. Like pawns in a board
game, characters move from one point to another around the story—but their
writers should be warned. Mobilizing a main character from the breakfast table to
school to a post-game pep rally should not, literally, take all day.
Is it part of the game? If not, skip it. I’m a wordy writer. My first drafts are complicated affairs
with blow-by-blow action determining what each limb is up to (“with one hand,
the protagonist did x but with the other, he did y!) and so on. Boring! It is
not necessary (or desirable) to report every turn of the doorknob between Point
A and Point C (unless, of course, the knob-turning is a vital part of the
suspense you are creating). Learn easy techniques for speeding up your scenes at my publisher's blog today! 4RV Publishing newsletter for writers and artists
