What Makes a Story Go Flat? Part 3

Change.

In real life few people like it. They see it as a negative in their lives because it forces them out of their comfort zones. But like the Dead Sea which has no outlet, we can grow stagnant if we have no change in our lives. And a story without change—wouldn’t be a story at all.

Like desire and stakes that I covered last month, a book has story-level and scene-level change. If change is missing, the reader is going to sense that lack on the scene level first because that’s where the action happens that brings story-level change.

In this post I talk primarily about scene-level change. So, from the beginning of the scene to the end, something must be different.

What Needs to Change?

Avid readers will notice when change isn’t there, even if they can’t pinpoint what’s wrong. They’ll sense when something is “off.” But don’t make this harder than it is. Change can occur in a number of ways, but it needs to be noticeable.

Remember that the scene POV character has a scene goal. Did they achieve their goal or fail? Asking that question might help you find the change. When I’m reviewing my scenes, I ask myself the simple question of “what’s different at the end?”

• Is the protagonist in a different emotional/mental/physical state?
• Is there a new problem?
• Is the character facing worse consequences?
• Has new information come to light?
• Have the stakes grown higher?

You are working on the scene level, so keep your thinking on that level. If you’re struggling to find the change, that’s a big clue it might be missing. But you also might be trying to make that change bigger than it needs to be. Review the list above. Bookmark or print this post so you have the list handy when needed.

When I finish writing the draft of a scene, I check it for change. If there is none, I know I’m not finished working on that scene. This might not be a process that works for you, but experiment to find what does. Somehow it just seems easier to ensure it’s there in first writing than going back to the scene much later, especially given that what changes in that scene might impact what follows.

Story-Level Change

Along the way, change should be occurring in the story-level goal, usually for the worse. Remember, reaching the story-level goal should be like jumping the Grand Canyon. Things get worse or harder for the protagonist to reach that goal.

Not every scene of your story will directly connect to your story goal; however, as you are reviewing your scenes for scene-level change, make a note of those that do connect. You’ll want to go back to these scenes when you are diagnosing your plot points. While there might be other scenes that connect, the plot point scenes must directly connect to the protagonist’s story goal. What change occurs between these plot points? If nothing is changing, then your plot is missing or needs strengthened.

Yes, it’s all too true. You will make several passes through your manuscript before you arrive at the final draft that’s ready for you to line edit and then pass on to a professional editor. Do not let this discourage you! Remind yourself you will have a more polished manuscript when you’re done with your diagnosing. In addition, your skill as a writer will grow, and each successive book won’t require as much self-editing.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series. Put them all together and you’ve got a wonderful little tool to guide your writing and your self-editing.

In case you missed them, here are parts 1 & 2:
“What Makes a Story Go Flat? Part 1”
“What Makes a Story Go Plat? Part 2”