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SWRT 255 | Using Repetition in Your Story
May 26, 2022

Writing Dramatic Tension into Your Story

Dramatic tension is the engine of story. Without it, there is no forward movement, and without forward movement, there is no reader engagement. In other words, without tension, we’ve lost our reader. 

Dramatic tension is essentially the anticipation of what will happen next without knowing what will happen next. 

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From Meet Joe to Meaningful Joe

Is Joe likable or a lout? Remains to be seen, but we will let the reader decide by showing her Joe, his words, his actions, and the reactions others have to him. The reader gets to discover Joe for herself, sure, but we are crafting our story carefully so that the reader’s opinion of Joe will be what we want it to be, more or less. We might decide Joe is a likably flawed guy, a bit shady, a bit of an attention hound, but loyal and generally willing to do the right thing. If well crafted, readers will see him that way and, depending on their personal lenses, like (or dislike) him more or less than we do. 

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Fibonacci Spiral & Story Structure

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This week on the Story Works Round Table, Alida, Kathryn, & Robert discuss the usefulness and drawbacks of using repetition in your story. What kind of repeition is typically employed in story? When does it become predictable or dull? How can we use repetition effectively to add to the reader’s experience without compromising novelty?

Are you getting my Thoughts on Craft emails? They are currently only available to my email list and Instagram and Facebook followers. We all know how ephemeral those social feeds are. Here now, gone in a second. If you want to get thoughtful writing tips and prompts that you can use to grow your craft, scroll down to sign up for my email list in the footer of this page. Want a taste of what you’ll get? Check out the slider with three samples.

 

 

 

VIDEO

 

 

AUDIO

 

 

SHOW NOTES

What we talked about:

What problems do we see with repetition? (0:44)

The problem of repeating story elements. (3:52)

The problem of showing progression. (5:00)

Earn your reader’s attention. (7:20)

Make your journey make sense to the reader. (8:35)

Can you make plot repetition work for you? (10:50)

How do you innovate on the repetition? (18:12)

Watch for your patterns, and micro repetitions. (20:00)

 

 

LINKS

Get Alida’s Writing Tips here.

 

Things we mentioned:

The Sword of Truth Series by Terry Goodkind 
Jack Reacher Series by Lee Child 
Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle 
The Spenser Series by Robert B Parker 
Harlan Coben 

Have thoughts, questions, other examples? Join the conversation at the Story Works Writers Facebook group. 

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About Your Hosts

Alida

Alida Winternheimer is an award-winning author with an MFA in writing from Hamline University. She pursues her fervor for all things story as a writing coach, developmental editor, and teacher. Three times nominated for the Pushcart Prize, she is also a notable in Best American Essays and winner of the Page Turner Award. Author of The Story Works Guide to Writing Fiction Series, Alida lives and writes in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She camps, bikes, and kayaks in her free time. Unless it’s winter, in which case she drinks chai by the fire. You can find more at www.alidawinternheimer.com.

Kathryn
Kathryn Arnold writes fantasy and anything else that sparks her creativity from her home in Kingston, Washington. She currently earns her living as an insurance underwriting assistant, where she also creates marketing and web copy. When not writing, she plays (and teaches) piano and keyboard in a band (or two), and is working on starting a ministry team with her husband. You can find Kathryn at www.skyfirewords.com.
Robert
Robert Scanlon was born in Australia, but whisked off to England when only a baby. After many years complaining about the weather, he did the sensible thing and moved back to Australia. Despite a career in the music industry, followed by decades teaching public speaking, Robert is an introvert who adores reading. Robert grew up on a diet of sci-fi masters, eventually discovering he had read the library’s entire science fiction section. Now he has to write his own. Robert is the author of Constellation, book one of the Blood Empire space opera series. Find out more at www.RobertScanlon.com

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