Sometimes a scene in a story can take on a life of its own. You might get carried away with dialogue or details, but when you read it over it becomes a slog. There are many ways to shorten the scene to improve pacing and reader interest.
- Use an arbitrary word count and trim until you reach that total. While this can work, it won’t necessarily make the scene more engaging.
- Eliminate the beginning. Drop us into the dialogue or details. Try cutting the first page out entirely and then look for the most interesting line to begin the new scene on.
- Reduce the chapter to three sentences. What? That’s not all. Once you rewritten the scene in 3 sentences to convey the purpose, seek out the parts in the scene that convey those three points without repeating them.
- Use a different narrator or point of view. Certain characters see the world differently and are likely to relay their view of what occurs more succinctly than others.
- End it sooner. You might have the perfect ending, or that perfect ending is hidden within the scene. Try cutting the final three paragraphs and keep going until you reach the most impactful line to transition to the next scene or chapter.
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