Pace in Writing

The variety said to be the spice of life is equally important in your writing. Repetition in the form and sounds of your writing can make your narrative flat and lifeless. The same structure and phrasing reviewing similar content slow writing to a standstill. Readers head for the exit.

See what I did in that paragraph. Structural and content similarity. When used well, repetition can hammer an important message home, but too often it is simply tedious.

To avoid reader departure or tedium, vary the sounds, structure, length and rhythm of your sentences. Consider sharp constrasts.

Whack!

The pumpkin split slowly, its fibrous tendrils clinging to each other as if to stitch the wound but then yawning and breaking to leach orange slime, seeds, and pumpkin guts onto her beloved beige carpet.

There are several ways to alter the “speed” of your narrative.

1. The judicious use of the sound of language. Sharp crisp consonants vs longer fricatives and sibilants and short vowels vs long subtly affect the pace of the reader and the narrative. Kate hit vs Simantha slapped.
2. The rhythm of words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs. Do rivers meander, rumble and froth or sit limpid? Does the sun shine or light streak?
3. The number of syllables in the words, clauses and complete sentences. Longer, more complex structure and phrasing slows things down, even when the writing has the same focus. Flatulence simply lasts longer than a fart.
4. The content. Encourage your language to reflect its focus. Stillness wants detailed description, a slowed gaze to observe the minute, the immobile, the fading. Fast or sudden movement invites the opposite. Think: The bubble bath drained slowly, the last of the foam sliding imperceptibly into the open drain. vs The black dog snatched the steak. Gulped it down.

To slow down, attend to scene. Use longer more complex sentences and paragraphs immersed in the scene. Provide specific, concrete details to involve the reader. Careful and intentioned use of adverbs/adjectives helps here. To accelerate, exposition and summary move the reader quickly through less essential elements. Sentence fragments, dialogue in short snippets, and single-syllable words with crisp consonants and short vowels also speed the pace.