Notes from "Conflict, Action and Suspense" (Noble)

The following are my personal notes from the book "Conflict, Action and Suspense," by William Nobel, which is part of the Elements of Fiction Writing series.

+Good writers have an unspoken partnership with their readers, and should never forget that
+With details, use image-provoking language
+To know more is to feel more
+Action means happenings, suspense means uncertainty
+Drama must build, it cannot stay at a constant level
+One way to escalate a story is to keep adding uncertainties to a resolution of the conflict
+Characters are the most important elements in a story
+Remember to use an active voice and active verbs
+Charge your images - make the mental pictures life-sized
+Reader's expectations are like cliches. Use contrast in characterization and setting to catch them off-guard.
+Excite readers by leaving them in the midst of conflict, then resolving the issue later.
+Scene cutting quickly and often moves the story forward and keeps the reader in heightened suspense
+Transitions (i.e. "ten months later") should occur during tense moments, and they should not resolve the conflict
+Dialogue offers the advantage of immediacy and quick drama, while Narrative allows a more thorough build-up
+Story pace means smooth, even writing without anticlimaxes or lengthy static prose, carefully constructed scenes that blend with one another and build to a satisfying climax.
+Pacing a story means controlling it, don't rush the story. Here's how: Don't pick up the story threads too quickly. Let uncertainty fester. Stretch out the solution. Offer less-than satisfactory alternative to dilemmas.
+You can leave readers hanging in the middle of a scene by beginning with something interesting or dramatic to establish conflict, then stopping at a point where the reader doesn't expect it (the point of confrontation, cusp of explanation, edge of victory). Satisfy yourself that the reader is intrigued, but don't give away the answer or explanation. Then shift gears. If you've been doing action, change to suspense and vice versa. Be sure to follow the shift to its conclusion, as you can't leave them hanging twice.
+Dialogue is conversation with drama and helps with characterization. It must contribute to the telling of a story. If it doesn't, it should be removed.
+Questions posed by a character need not always be answered directly or immediately. Indirect answers can be more realistic, especially if it moves the story fwd or if the reader already knows the answer.
+Underplay in a scene can add to the uncertainty. It can be done by: Being matter-of-fact in the midst of an emotional whirlwind, remaining quiet while others shout, showing little interest in a major discovery.
+Gesturing is a form of dialogue.
+Arrange things so that something severe could happen unless certain things are done (anticipation). Have severe things happen and then make it plain that even more severe things could happen (dread).
+Appeal to all of the senses--smell, taste, touch, sight and hearing.
+The 3 M's: Motives, Memories, Mirages. Motives are why they do it, Memories are what happened to make them do what they do, and Mirages are how the characters fool themselves about what happened and why they did it.
+Conflict should be sharper at the end.
+Plot-hypers make subtlety and misdirection possible. They create uncertainty that might complicate things and raise the tension. Making veiled references to things will keep the cat in the bag while opening it just enough so that the cat can breathe.
+Plot-hypers work by: Offering a thread of information. Forcing the reader to deduce the relevance. Not highlighting the information (make it seem like a natural outgrowth of the conversation), but not burying it either - no unreasonable obfuscation.
+The longer we keep readers guessing, the more attention they will pay to what they are reading.
+Hints and shadows don't trumpet their appearance or disappearance. They can be physical habits, out-of-place remarks, misplaced items, weird physical reactions from inanimate objects, or unexplained absences or presences.
+Good writing doesn't always follow the social norms (ex: handsome men don't have to be kind). +Reversals in expected characterization or setting can create conflict and spice things up.
+Tell a story, don't write at the reader.
+On Pacing: Plan your race - know where you're going. Understand that your story has limited strength and endurance - it can't go on forever, and needs to take breathers. Pace your race - Don't win too early.
+A crisis is a crucial moment when circumstances or people change, usually without warning. They should be spaced out in a story so as not to become normal or expected. Each crisis should create as many questions as it answers.
+Narrative pacing works best when: It opens the story or chapter, it runs on several pages, it builds into a crisis, it keeps the story moving, it develops conflict early and keeps it pulsing.
+Avoid bogging down the reader with narration or dialogue that goes on for too long without a breather.
+On endings: make the climax the hottest action or suspense scene. Rev up the conflict. Leave the final confrontation to the last scene if possible. Stay away from injecting sudden new elements.
+The circular ending: Concentrates on contrasts of then/now, showing changes that have occurred in the attitude, place and position. Usually has characters returning to or rediscovering the original story setting. Can tie up loose ends after the climax. Ends not with a "BANG!" but a "whoosh!"
+The linear ending: Shows character and plot have developed beyond original portrayal. Stops right after the climax. Introduces no new characters or subplots. Should be the result of a story narrowed to its essential conflict/confrontation, it's "ultimate" struggle.