...and not middles!
Middles of books, that is.
The last 2 weeks at the Diner, we discussed various approaches to beginning a book -- first lines, worst lines, best lines, panty lines. Ok, not panty lines. This biweek, we're going to forge ahead to the middle and share our theories about the bulk of the novel writing process.
If you've been in the publishing world for very long, most likely you've heard the term "saggy middle". This refers to a book which has a snazzy and polished beginning and perhaps an action-packed and appropriately climactic ending but whose middle portion lags in pacing, its flesh draping down like the skin of an elephant who just endured 2 years of a strict hay, bark and watermelon diet. The plot slows to a crawl, and a reader might put the book down for fear that the end may never arrive.
However, sagginess is not the only flaw one can find in the middle of a book. A book can also have a bulging middle. I'm not talking about the glorious, fertile curves of a novel that is, for lack of a better word, pregnant with description and epic grandeur. I'm talking about a book that's pudgier than it has to be, rounded in spots that don't call for quite as much rounding, soft in places fashion decrees should be hard. While certain eras of storytelling appreciated some padding in a novel, a nice, plush cushion for one's reading pleasure, current literary trends favor lean, mean fighting machines, and that means bulge is bad.
Worse is when the book not only curves and ripples but expands over the edges of its containment field, right out of the plot! This literary excess tends to create the dreaded "narrative muffin top" of unnecessary subplots and meanderings and can occur for a variety of reasons. The author might be trying to stuff his or her natural prose style into a faddish, low-slung, hip genre. Then again, the author might just have eaten, I mean, written so many words in the past several years there's just no hiding the abundance, even in winter clothes.
However, don't let your fear of sags, bulges and literary muffins drive you to the other extreme: the freakishly toned and somewhat robotic six pack that requires constant maintenance. Lean and a little mean are one thing, but when the central portion of your novel mimics a gym bunny and jogs around dressed in spandex and oiling itself up for the ladies (or gents), readers might get the impression something else is...lacking. Whyever is the middle of this book so sparse and hard? Is the author overcompensating for the small size of his or her...grand finale?
Every book needs a little flavor, a little imagination, and few interesting verbs and adjectives sprinkled on top. Now sit back and enjoy this delicious muffin with your fresh, hot coffee. It's our special today. Our baker just pulled them out of the oven, and she was generous with the chocolate sprinkles!
Jody W.
http://www.jodywallace.com/
Now available: SURVIVAL OF THE FAIREST from Samhain Publishing
Middles of books, that is.
The last 2 weeks at the Diner, we discussed various approaches to beginning a book -- first lines, worst lines, best lines, panty lines. Ok, not panty lines. This biweek, we're going to forge ahead to the middle and share our theories about the bulk of the novel writing process.
If you've been in the publishing world for very long, most likely you've heard the term "saggy middle". This refers to a book which has a snazzy and polished beginning and perhaps an action-packed and appropriately climactic ending but whose middle portion lags in pacing, its flesh draping down like the skin of an elephant who just endured 2 years of a strict hay, bark and watermelon diet. The plot slows to a crawl, and a reader might put the book down for fear that the end may never arrive.
However, sagginess is not the only flaw one can find in the middle of a book. A book can also have a bulging middle. I'm not talking about the glorious, fertile curves of a novel that is, for lack of a better word, pregnant with description and epic grandeur. I'm talking about a book that's pudgier than it has to be, rounded in spots that don't call for quite as much rounding, soft in places fashion decrees should be hard. While certain eras of storytelling appreciated some padding in a novel, a nice, plush cushion for one's reading pleasure, current literary trends favor lean, mean fighting machines, and that means bulge is bad.
Worse is when the book not only curves and ripples but expands over the edges of its containment field, right out of the plot! This literary excess tends to create the dreaded "narrative muffin top" of unnecessary subplots and meanderings and can occur for a variety of reasons. The author might be trying to stuff his or her natural prose style into a faddish, low-slung, hip genre. Then again, the author might just have eaten, I mean, written so many words in the past several years there's just no hiding the abundance, even in winter clothes.
However, don't let your fear of sags, bulges and literary muffins drive you to the other extreme: the freakishly toned and somewhat robotic six pack that requires constant maintenance. Lean and a little mean are one thing, but when the central portion of your novel mimics a gym bunny and jogs around dressed in spandex and oiling itself up for the ladies (or gents), readers might get the impression something else is...lacking. Whyever is the middle of this book so sparse and hard? Is the author overcompensating for the small size of his or her...grand finale?
Every book needs a little flavor, a little imagination, and few interesting verbs and adjectives sprinkled on top. Now sit back and enjoy this delicious muffin with your fresh, hot coffee. It's our special today. Our baker just pulled them out of the oven, and she was generous with the chocolate sprinkles!
Jody W.
http://www.jodywallace.com/
Now available: SURVIVAL OF THE FAIREST from Samhain Publishing
Posts
Funny post, Jody. I love the descriptions of middles in need of help!
ReplyDeleteGreat beginning for the next two weeks!
ReplyDeleteThey're not necessarily in need of help, maybe just out of style :). I like a nice soft middle that's plush with subplots and secondary characters myself :)
ReplyDeleteJW