By Rosemary Twomey
Writing long-form fiction is a marathon, not a sprint, and it's hard to create a plot with good pacing. Caitlin Barasch, author of A Novel Obsession weighs in on the topic.
Throughout my time studying writing at university, almost all of my coursework was in creative non-fiction. This type of personal essay-esque writing taught me to be economical with my wording, but it also tamed my voice into the confines of something you may read in a newspaper. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and a place for a thoughtful personal essay, but a 300-page fiction novel is not that place.
Writing long-form is a marathon, not a sprint. When you begin crafting a story that will span 300 pages, whether it be fiction or non-fiction, the structure and plot need to have peaks and valleys to ensure the reader is enticed enough to stick around.
Using the metaphor of the marathon, as a writer you need to ensure there are water stations placed appropriately along the reader's route.
This is where many emerging writers who decide to take on the task of writing a full-length novel run into some problems. No matter how many books you’ve read or short scenes you’ve crafted, it is hard to look at your story from a bird's-eye-view and pin down the exactlocations of the water stations, but also if your reader will be able to make it to them.
If you’ve ever gotten feedback on a long-form piece and you’ve received the comment, “Cut this scene” (which let's be honest, we all have), don't ignore the advice. What you reader is saying is, “I can’t see the value of this interaction between characters and how it contributes to the plot”. In this case, the reader is asking you to raise the stakes of the scene. Make something unexpected happen. Reel me back in.
I’m not saying throw in a dead body or reveal an evil twin, but there are ways to entice the reader and remind them that there is an arc on the way. Throw them a water break if you will.
A novel I read that continuously raised the stakes and had me hooked throughout the entire story was A Novel Obsession by Caitlin Barasch. The story is about a young bookseller living in New York City who becomes obsessed with her current boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend.
As the protagonist, Naomi, meets her boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend, and soon she becomes completely entranced with her life.
I sat down with the author Caitlin Barasch to talk about how she was able to continuously escalate the plot.
Born and raised in New York, Barasch is currently a creative writing instructor at The Writers Circle and a Visiting Assistant Professor at Colorado College.
She first began writing A Novel Obsession during her time at NYU. She recounted how nervous she was to share her work with the group thinking they might find it strange she was writing a story about such an obsessive character.
“I was so nervous to share my story but everyone told me to make her weirder! She initially wasn’t weird enough. I really think [my classmates] gave me permission to allow my characters to be humiliated. That's what we always talked about in class. Writers should press on the bruise of their characters, because that's where the story is," says Barasch.
The idea of pressing on the bruise, or a character's flaws, is one that evokes a quite physical response. Often, as writers, we will get advice on making our characters “likeable,” but Barasch’s character, Naomi, is not naturally likable. She ism however, relatable, which is arguably far more important. Everyone has dealt with feelings of low self-worth, anxiety surrounding an intimate relationship, and jealousy, and it is exactly this reliability that allow the reader to connect with the story.
Barasch raised the stakes, allowing Naomi to do the wrong thing - as humans often do, while not completely making the reader dislike her. Your character needs to be able to make a wrong decision to drive the plot forward, all while still keeping the reader close and in their head.
Expanding on this, Barasch explains that, “The more the character cares about their goal, the higher the stakes if they don't get it."
"I feel like stakes are automatically generated by care and by what a character wants," she says. "I worked hard on making Naomi, my protagonist, a really active character. In almost every single chapter I wanted her to be making decisions, oftentimes the wrong decisions, because usually the wrong decisions create consequences that are incredibly fun to write about and allow you to push into new territory.”
Talking with Barasch brought up a lot of questions about plot pacing, mainly surrounding how to “re-hook” your reader to ensure you are keeping them engaged. Recognizing these low points in your writing can be difficult and may require an outside perspective. One thing that has helped me immensely is adding what's called “crashing the party” moments.
When you’ve plotted out your story and you’re drafting a scene that has a purpose (as every scene should), but doesn’t feel active or lacks a certain level of excitement, “crashing the party” is an excellent way to engage the reader. Push the character into a situation where they are forced to make a decision. The more wrong or unexpected the decision is, the more drama.
In the early days of my writing, I would have never “crashed the party”, but during the first draft, it is important to take risks and break a few glasses.
For example, if your character walks into a coffee shop and the “big moment” of the scene is to have them send in their job resignation, have them overhear a conversation while standing in line. Maybe that conversation is surrounding the primary plot point. Then have them interrupt the conversation to ask questions.
Whatever the expected behaviour in a scene is, think to yourself “How can I disrupt this in a way that is still relevant to the story and that a reader can relate to?”
That will be your key to raising the stakes and keeping your reader hooked.
Special thanks to the amazing Caitlin Barasch for talking to us.
You can find her on Instagram (@soembarasched) and listen to her speak more on the topic in an episode of The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Podcast.
Her book, A Novel Obsession, is available online and in bookstores.
About the Writer:
Rosemary Twomey is a writer based out of Montreal, Canada. She fell in love with character writing and development during her time studying professional writing at the University of Toronto. She can often be found reading with a cup of tea in front of a sunny window.
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