Making a Transition

Making a Transition

By Rory C. Keel

Have you ever felt the need to write every minute detail in order to transition between a situation, image or scene? You know, the insignificant information that ends up getting cut during rewrites? The words that took so much of your precious time, because you felt you had to “fill in the gap” to get to the next idea?

Too much filler can diminish the impact of the previous idea, or bog the reader down so they lose interest going into the next scene.

Here are a few simple fixes that can help.

First, you could start a new Chapter.

Secondly, Skip a line and start a new paragraph. The extra space indicates the start of a new scene. Simply leave the filler out.

Thirdly, use a transitional word or phrase, such as “Meanwhile…” or “the next day…” or even “when he opened his eyes, everything had changed…”

Fourthly, Use common traits in two different objects, for example, “The frost on the window reminded him of the ice that ran through her veins. She was cold, but not because of the weather.”

Remember, transitions should be simple, direct and crisp advancing the reader to the next scene or idea.

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