I’ve always had trouble with chapter breaks. Once upon a time, I assigned chapters based on word count. Later, I decided two scene changes would be equal to one chapter. But scenes vary widely in length and content, making my two scene rule more trouble than it was worth.

This is What I Did doesn’t use proper chapter breaks, but rather journal breaks. Scenes change the way movie scenes might, flowing one to the next without any additional exposition. While using the exercise below, I realized Ann Dee’s take on chaptering is akin to storyboarding.

Consider Friday’s scenes from This is What I Did:

That was Wednesday after Scouts–my first time back because Dr. Benson said I should go and my parents agreed.
When I came home I tried not to tell Dad.
I didn’t want to say: Dad, I got kicked in the balls at Scouts and then they all made a circle around me.
Bruce: Watch the crapstock bawl, guys.
All of them: Wah Wah Wah Wah Wah!
So I went straight to my room. I was late because I was supposed to walk straight home from the church after Scouts.
And I did walk home, but not until they had all left and I was lying there on the gym floor.

* * *

Me: I’m fine, Dad.
That’s what I said because since I was late; he was knocking on my door.
Me: I’m fine, Dad.
But he wouldn’t let it go. He never lets it go.
Me: Okay, you can come in.
Dad: What’s wrong, Logan?
He was trying not to look all worried. I could tell.
Me: Nothing’s wrong.
Nothing’s wrong.
He sat on my bed and I was sitting on the floor going through my comic books–just like normal. Nothing’s wrong.
Dad: Tell me. Was it those boys again? Tell me right now. Was it Jack?
Me: There’s nothing nothing WRONG WRONG WRONG, DAD!
It came out a lot louder than I thought it would, but not as loud as it was in my head.
I never knew what to say or how to control anything anymore.
I didn’t want him to know.
Dad: You can tell me anything…anything. I won’t get mad or try to fix it: I promise.
And he says how we can’t let things go as long as they did before.
Dad: Logan, you have to tell me. You have to.
Me: I know Dad, I know. I will. If anything is wrong, I’ll tell you. I’m fine.

See how they’re tightly focused and script-like? There’s no extra material, just what’s needed. The first flows into the next, too, using the information about Scouts and the gym as a starting point for the revealing dialogue between Logan and his dad.

Storyboarding

I also use  storyboarding for planning out my WIP. Though I always do an outline before writing non-fiction–copy, analysis, even memoir–I’m not much for fiction planning. Instead, I storyboard those sections of the story I find most difficult.

What exactly is storyboarding?

Simply put, it’s sketching out a sequence of story to visualize it better. It’s commonly used in film and advertising; some playwrights have also admitted to storyboarding. Can’t sketch? Not a problem. I use comic like speech balloons and stick figures to mark out important conversations, and line-draw in important objects/settings. (If it helps, you can also use photographs or magazine pictures.)

Why do I storyboard?

A couple of reasons. First, it helps me plan–I get a better sense of my story’s arc, and the board helps me get a handle on where I’m going and how without subsuming my (very limited) writing time. Second, I can pin a storyboard up near my workspace for easy reference, and easily make notes as needed. Third, I’m a visual learner, and find that looking at a board helps me see the natural breaks in a story.

Exercise

Grab a couple of your favorite books–YA or adult.

Pick a chapter somewhere near the beginning, one near the middle, and one near the end. (Stuck for time? Try using the above scenes to start.)

Note down the salient points in each chapter.

Read the chapters after, and look at how they flow. Try to see how each ensuing chapter builds on reader knowledge.

Use index cards or a storyboard template (if you’re a Mac user, Pages has one under miscellaneous templates) to visualize the chapters and the changes from one to another. Download a printable storyboard template here.

How do you handle chapter breaks? Are they obvious to you? Do you have a go-to rule?

And that’s it for my series, This is What I Learned. All feedback is welcome and appreciated. Have an idea for a post? Let me know in the comments, or email me.

[Miss the other posts in the series? See them here & here.]

(A late post today–a teething, snugglier-than-usual Mir-cat is keeping me busy!)

This is What I Did revolves around Logan’s reaction to an event–an event that occurred before the novel begins (and isn’t fully explained until around 135 pages in). Hints are sprinkled through the text, sometimes as flashbacks, but more often as  Logan’s thoughts and actions. The latter–reveals–are very hard to do well, and something many authors, YA and adult alike, fail at. (For an example of an epic fail, check out any Danielle Steele novel at your local library.)

An example of a reveal from This is What I Did, from pages 1&2–the scenes after yesterday’s sentence about the Scouts. Note that the first part is also a little bit of a flashback.

That was Wednesday after Scouts–my first time back because Dr. Benson said I should go and my parents agreed.
When I came home I tried not to tell Dad.
I didn’t want to say: Dad, I got kicked in the balls at Scouts and then they all made a circle around me.
Bruce: Watch the crapstock bawl, guys.
All of them: Wah Wah Wah Wah Wah!
So I went straight to my room. I was late because I was supposed to walk straight home from the church after Scouts.
And I did walk home, but not until they had all left and I was lying there on the gym floor.

* * *

Me: I’m fine, Dad.
That’s what I said because since I was late; he was knocking on my door.
Me: I’m fine, Dad.
But he wouldn’t let it go. He never lets it go.
Me: Okay, you can come in.
Dad: What’s wrong, Logan?
He was trying not to look all worried. I could tell.
Me: Nothing’s wrong.
Nothing’s wrong.
He sat on my bed and I was sitting on the floor going through my comic books–just like normal. Nothing’s wrong.
Dad: Tell me. Was it those boys again? Tell me right now. Was it Jack?
Me: There’s nothing nothing WRONG WRONG WRONG, DAD!
It came out a lot louder than I thought it would, but not as loud as it was in my head.
I never knew what to say or how to control anything anymore.
I didn’t want him to know.
Dad: You can tell me anything…anything. I won’t get mad or try to fix it: I promise.
And he says how we can’t let things go as long as they did before.
Dad: Logan, you have to tell me. You have to.
Me: I know Dad, I know. I will. If anything is wrong, I’ll tell you. I’m fine.

In 26 lines, we’ve learned several things:

• The kids at Scouts don’t like Logan.
• Logan is seeing a therapist.
• His relationship with his parents is tense.
• Something bad has happened, resulting in Logan seeing a therapist.
• Logan is walking on eggshells, afraid of making things worse.
• Logan feels out of control.
• Logan feels like everything is going wrong.

All 6 points are revealed through dialogue, Logan’s thoughts, and Logan’s actions. Nothing is over-narrated. True, Ann Dee could have written:

Dr. Benson made me go to Scouts. He’s my therapist. My parents made me start seeing a therapist after what happened, but it’s not working. I still feel out of control all the time, and I think my parents hate me. The kids at Scouts hate me. My Dad is always pushing me to tell him things, but he’ll hate me if I do. Everything is going wrong. I want everything to be fine again, but it’s not, and I hate it. I hate it I hate it I hate it.

The above paragraph covers all the same points as the scenes in a quarter of the words. But it’s also a lot more boring–everything is said outright, meaning there’s no mystery, no sense of discovery. Worse, it sounds like an adult trying to imitate a teen–so zero points in the voice department.

Exercise:
I use this in developing my own work, but also when I’m analyzing someone else’s.

Take a scene in which you need to reveal certain information.
Make two columns on a piece of paper, or in a handy dandy word document.
In the first column, write down–in point form–exactly what you need to reveal. Be as specific and detailed as you can. Don’t leave anything out.
In the second column, write down a thing your character might do to show this. Use dialogue, actions, and thoughts.

E.g. Let’s look at the above scenes from This is What I Did. They take place right after has been “kicked in the balls at Scouts”.

• Logan has been beaten up at the Scouts, but doesn’t want his dad to know.

–> Logan tells his dad everything is fine, and not to worry. Tries to reassure him that he’d say if something was wrong.

• The kids at Scouts don’t like Logan.

–> Logan gets beaten up and called “crapstock”.

• Logan is seeing a therapist.

–> there’s a reference to Dr. Benson, and being sent to Scouts. Regular doctors don’t do that sort of thing.

• His relationship with his parents is tense.

–> Logan’s dad is pushing him to talk. Logan shouts at him.

• Something bad has happened, resulting in Logan seeing a therapist.

–> Logan’s dad says things like “can’t let things go as long as before”, referencing the past.

• Logan is walking on eggshells, afraid of making things worse.

–>Logan’s Dad is worried, but even though he invites Logan to talk, he won’t. Logan shouts, but he doesn’t mean to.

Are there any books you think deal with reveals and flashbacks well? How do you handle reveals in your own work? Tips and tricks are always welcome!

Tomorrow Monday: chapter breaks.

(Miss yesterday’s post? Read it here.)