Empty Space
So a 5 hour long drive today had me thinking. How do you fill empty space? For instance if your character has a really long drive to you describe in detail the music s/he listened to or the scenery on the drive or do you just create a break in the story and they are just there? How do you fill that empty space?
Some books that have multiple POV's might switch to the other POV while it is assumed that the other person made it to their destination.
Example:
Molly couldn't take it anymore. The desire to get away from him was too strong. As he snored loudly from the other room she quietly packed her things into a small duffel bag. Briefly she thought of leaving him a note, but the thought faded as fast as it came. She knew he didn't even deserve and explanation. As soon as she was out the door she pulled out her phone and hit the last called number.
"Mom, I need to come home."
Other POV
"Jim, Jim wake up," trying to shake her husband awake she checked her phone again, hoping Molly was okay. The phone call had been brief but the strained hurt in her daughter's voice shook her.
"JIM!" She yelled, starting to get desperate with worry.
"Hmm, what?" He rolled over sleepily and opened one eye to look at his wife. "What is it?" The site of her frantic expression bringing him to full alert.
"Molly's coming home. I think something happened. I can't sleep," Anna wrung her hands through the sheets and stared at him.
"She'll be fine Anna. She's coming home, away from that no good son of a-"
"Jim!" Anna was still worried, her eyes begging him to do something. "What if he really hurt her this time?"
Or you could just end the chapter with "Mom, I need to come home." Then the next chapter can pick up with her at her parents house.
Another way I use to get around the empty space is a short paragraph of the drive (or whatever else is happening).
"Mom, I need to come home."
The drive passed quickly, Molly's mind hardly on the road beneath her. The amount of verbal abuse she had been through the last year. How she had stood being degraded and put down for a whole year, made to feel as if she couldn't do anything. Then last night, they had fought, louder and longer than they ever had before. All she had done was ask him to load the dishwasher. He screamed at her, "I bring home the money, I pay for bills, you sit around and do nothing all day! Can't be bothered to clean a damn thing and I come home from my JOB and I'm expected to do the damn dishes for you?" He had gone on for hours finally ending it by smacking her across the face. The mark still stung, but it had been a wake up slap. It had been the last push to get her away from him. The image of his rage filled eyes haunted her the entire three hour drive. It wasn't until she pulled off onto the exit and could see the road home did she turn her thoughts to her parents and how worried they must be. It wasn't long before she pulled into the driveway. Staring up at her childhood home she finally felt herself relax for the first time in a year. She was home.
Of course if you aren't ready to reveal things like "what happened" then you would want a break and not want to delve into the characters thoughts.
If you're writing for NaNoWriMo a description of the empty space is good to get your word count up. Drawing it out and creating a break will lead to a more dramatic explanation of "what happened" in the empty space.
I like writing cliffhangers and leaving the reader wondering what happens next, or leaving them wonder what happened. So I tend to use the former two examples.
Some books that have multiple POV's might switch to the other POV while it is assumed that the other person made it to their destination.
Example:
Molly couldn't take it anymore. The desire to get away from him was too strong. As he snored loudly from the other room she quietly packed her things into a small duffel bag. Briefly she thought of leaving him a note, but the thought faded as fast as it came. She knew he didn't even deserve and explanation. As soon as she was out the door she pulled out her phone and hit the last called number.
"Mom, I need to come home."
Other POV
"Jim, Jim wake up," trying to shake her husband awake she checked her phone again, hoping Molly was okay. The phone call had been brief but the strained hurt in her daughter's voice shook her.
"JIM!" She yelled, starting to get desperate with worry.
"Hmm, what?" He rolled over sleepily and opened one eye to look at his wife. "What is it?" The site of her frantic expression bringing him to full alert.
"Molly's coming home. I think something happened. I can't sleep," Anna wrung her hands through the sheets and stared at him.
"She'll be fine Anna. She's coming home, away from that no good son of a-"
"Jim!" Anna was still worried, her eyes begging him to do something. "What if he really hurt her this time?"
Or you could just end the chapter with "Mom, I need to come home." Then the next chapter can pick up with her at her parents house.
Another way I use to get around the empty space is a short paragraph of the drive (or whatever else is happening).
"Mom, I need to come home."
The drive passed quickly, Molly's mind hardly on the road beneath her. The amount of verbal abuse she had been through the last year. How she had stood being degraded and put down for a whole year, made to feel as if she couldn't do anything. Then last night, they had fought, louder and longer than they ever had before. All she had done was ask him to load the dishwasher. He screamed at her, "I bring home the money, I pay for bills, you sit around and do nothing all day! Can't be bothered to clean a damn thing and I come home from my JOB and I'm expected to do the damn dishes for you?" He had gone on for hours finally ending it by smacking her across the face. The mark still stung, but it had been a wake up slap. It had been the last push to get her away from him. The image of his rage filled eyes haunted her the entire three hour drive. It wasn't until she pulled off onto the exit and could see the road home did she turn her thoughts to her parents and how worried they must be. It wasn't long before she pulled into the driveway. Staring up at her childhood home she finally felt herself relax for the first time in a year. She was home.
Of course if you aren't ready to reveal things like "what happened" then you would want a break and not want to delve into the characters thoughts.
If you're writing for NaNoWriMo a description of the empty space is good to get your word count up. Drawing it out and creating a break will lead to a more dramatic explanation of "what happened" in the empty space.
I like writing cliffhangers and leaving the reader wondering what happens next, or leaving them wonder what happened. So I tend to use the former two examples.
Comments
Post a Comment