” As a writer, you must know what promise your story or novel makes. Your reader will know. “
” If you consistently write ‘The sun set’ rather than ‘The sun sank slowly in the bright western sky,’ your story will move three times as fast. Of course, there are times you want the longer version for atmosphere – but not many. Wordiness not only kills pace, it bores readers. “
” Even if your novel occurs in an unfamiliar setting in which all the customs and surroundings will seem strange to your reader, it’s still better to start with action. The reason for this is simple. If the reader wanted an explanation of milieu, he would read nonfiction. He doesn’t want information. He wants a story. “
” The reader is going to imprint on the characters he sees first. He is going to expect to see these people often, to have them figure largely into the story, possibly to care about them. Usually, this will be the protagonist. “
” If your reader has been given a rousing opening, he will usually then sit still for at least some exposition. But be sure to follow that chunk of telling with one or more dramatized scenes. That’s much more effective than being given section after section of telling. “
All 5 Nancy Kress Quotes about Will in picture
Topics: Will quotes