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On writing: pacing
Jun. 16th, 2019 12:33 pmI grew up reading mostly YA fantasy, but I burned out on that pretty hard around 2013 (back when the most popular YA fantasy books were the likes of Throne of Glass, Shadow and Bone, and The Young Elites—all of which I hated). Then, I transitioned to reading adult (queer) romance, most of which was contemporary.
And now I'm trying to read more YA fantasy again.
Except...it's become weirdly hard to do so.
And I think I know the reason: pacing.
Most people wouldn't think that contemporary romance is "fast-paced." But...in a way, it kind of is?
Let's talk about it in terms of the three-act structure. In romance, Act I is A meets B, Act II is A and B fall for each other but encounter some obstacle to their being together, and Act III is confronting and resolving that obstacle. So the inciting incident is A meets B, and the "doorway of no return" to mark the end of Act I and beginning of Act II is A/B's decision to pursue the other. In romance, the inciting incident and doorway of no return usually occur very close together, which then sets up the momentum for building up the relationship. So, actually, the pacing is quite brisk.
Fantasy is different. In fantasy, the inciting incident could happen right away, but it's typically delayed from the doorway of no return, especially since many fantasy books devote many chapters in the beginning to setting up the world and/or intricate plot. In some fantasy books, Act I doesn't even end until one-third of the way through the book.
So getting used to reading romance has skewed my ability to read fantasy, apparently, because I'm used to the plot moving at a different (faster) pace in terms of setting up the stakes and momentum.
Who knew that romance could be considered face-paced?
(Or I guess it's possible that after the stress of law school, my brain is stuck in "immediate gratification" mode and that's why I don't do well with books that require long set-up time anymore :P)
And now I'm trying to read more YA fantasy again.
Except...it's become weirdly hard to do so.
And I think I know the reason: pacing.
Most people wouldn't think that contemporary romance is "fast-paced." But...in a way, it kind of is?
Let's talk about it in terms of the three-act structure. In romance, Act I is A meets B, Act II is A and B fall for each other but encounter some obstacle to their being together, and Act III is confronting and resolving that obstacle. So the inciting incident is A meets B, and the "doorway of no return" to mark the end of Act I and beginning of Act II is A/B's decision to pursue the other. In romance, the inciting incident and doorway of no return usually occur very close together, which then sets up the momentum for building up the relationship. So, actually, the pacing is quite brisk.
Fantasy is different. In fantasy, the inciting incident could happen right away, but it's typically delayed from the doorway of no return, especially since many fantasy books devote many chapters in the beginning to setting up the world and/or intricate plot. In some fantasy books, Act I doesn't even end until one-third of the way through the book.
So getting used to reading romance has skewed my ability to read fantasy, apparently, because I'm used to the plot moving at a different (faster) pace in terms of setting up the stakes and momentum.
Who knew that romance could be considered face-paced?
(Or I guess it's possible that after the stress of law school, my brain is stuck in "immediate gratification" mode and that's why I don't do well with books that require long set-up time anymore :P)
