Don't Explain, Don't Explain, Don't Explain

As you all know I get wonderful, insightful and mind probing emails about writing or how to.

And this week I have got a couple of good ones I'd love to share with you all.

The first is from  Fiction Editor, Beth  Hill and it's titled, Don't Explain, Don't Explain, Don't Explain.

A wonderful piece of writing and great tips on what we should and shouldn't explain. That whole premise of Show and Tell for us fully fledged authors or like me - budding ones. 

I love this little saying: Readers are smart. They don’t need what amounts to author notes in order to follow the path of a fictional story.

Readers understand cause and effect, action and reaction. They know that emotions and honor and reputation, demand responses from characters. They know that characters, like living people, respond when something unusual or unnerving or wild happens right in front of them.

Readers don’t need to have reasons for character behavior laid out with because and so that phrases. They simply need to follow the cause-and-effect events that you’ve logically laid out.

The second article, albeit small speaks volumes. It's written by a favorite blogger with WD, Brian Klems and this is his short but sweet insight as to, How long should Novel chapters be? I think Brian has nailed it with his words - and I second that, go with our gut. 

I hope you enjoy reading these articles as much as I have, and now enough procrastinating for me, I must get back to actually working on my book!