Do you enjoy smorgasbords? I grew up around Scandinavians so I know smorgasbords, but maybe you don’t.
A smorgasbord is a delightful spread of food—lots of food—an array of hors-d’oeuvres (hot and cold), salads, meats (hot and cold), fish (smoked and pickled), cheese, and relishes.
You get to sample them all!
Today’s post is a smorgasbord of writing tips for you!—tips, quotes, and links about including suspense in your memoir.
Your memoir needs suspense. It hooks your reader and makes him keen to know the outcome—but makes him wait for it.
Suspense implies an uncomfortable waiting mixed with impatience, with an eagerness for a good solution.
Suspense arouses curiosity and keeps readers turning pages.
So let’s look at this important ingredient for your memoir: Suspense. Conflict. Tension. Friction. Anxiety.
Tension is “an essential element of any narrative worth telling. A plot without tension is a flat line, a life with no rises, no dips, no anima. Life, by definition, involves tension. . . . Tension is the medium in which we breathe every day.” Dan Allender
“Conflict is good: Stories boil down to conflict. We crave that tension and a barrier between the hero and what he/she is seeking. That’s what separates a good story from just an anecdote that may be told at the water cooler.” Slash Coleman
“Conflict has to occur not just on the larger scale . . . but also on the smaller theater of the character’s inner life. . . . Include the outer battle (the physical reaction to the conflict) and the inner battle (the psychological and emotional reaction to events).” K.M. Weiland
“The cliffhanger is a striking event that happens at the end of an episode, chapter, scene, or season of a story. It leaves doubt in the reader’s mind—usually regarding the fate of the protagonist—and all but forces them to come back to see what comes next. . . . You want each ‘scene’ to lead your readers deeper and deeper.” Robert Bruce
At FaithWriters blog, Lillian Duncan offers ways to work tension into your stories. Here are a few to enhance a memoir:
- introducing unpredictability
- ending chapters with a cliffhanger
- racing a time limit
- foreshadowing (hints at what is coming, or might come, in the future)
- throwing out a red herring (diversion)
- keeping stakes high
Read more at Lillian’s “Writing Suspense.” Many if not all of her fiction techniques also apply to memoir.
Find the drama in your story and highlight it—but keep a proper balance. Like Chip MacGregor says, “Unlike a novelist, you can’t dwell on conflict. . . . I’m looking for a book that will offer me a solution.”
K.M. Weiland says it this way. “Stories are about balance. A tale in which there is no conflict is going to be just about as boring as watching condensation dissipate. But a tale that never pauses to let its characters (or its readers) catch their breath is boring in its own way. We have to find ways to adjust the level of the conflict. We have to give our characters a chance to slow down and get their thoughts gathered. . . .”
So there you have it: A smorgasbord of writing tips!
Find nourishment, enjoyment, and inspiration in sampling them.
I’ve critiqued many rough drafts and can report that
a lack of suspense—
a downplaying of tension—
is often a problem.
Look over your rough draft.
How can you heighten suspense?
Remember: Your story is important.
It can bless individuals, families,
communities, towns, nations, even the world.
Your story can change lives for eternity.
Write your story!
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