#109: 5 Common Scene Issues (And How to Fix Them)

Fiction Writing Made Easy

Savannah Gilbo

Education, Fiction, Writing Tips, Arts, Bestseller, Writing, How To, Author, Writing Community, Books, Novel, How To Write Fiction, Writing Fiction, Writer, How To Write A Book

4.9 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 20 September 2023

⏱️ 14 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In today’s episode, I’m sharing 5 of the most common “scene level” issues to look for when editing your draft. Here’s a preview of what’s included:

[02:44] Issue #1: The scene isn’t properly structured and it feels flat.

[03:59] Issue #2: The POV character doesn’t have enough agency.

[05:57] Issue #3: There’s too much extra stuff crowding the scene.

[07:50] Issue #4: There’s not enough interiority on the page.

[09:35] Issue #5: The POV is inconsistent (aka there's head hopping)

[11:22] Final thoughts and episode recap.

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Links mentioned in this episode:

The 5-Day Unlock Your Story: A LIVE challenge designed to help you get your ideas out of your head and onto the page.
Ep. 40 - How to Write a Well-Structured Scene
Ep. 43 - 10 Tips For Writing Better Scenes
Ep. 63 - Don’t Start A Scene Without These 3 Things
Ep. 74 - When Should You Write in Scene vs. Summary?
Ep. 94 - How to Reveal Your Character’s Inner Life on the Page

Join the LIVE 5-Day Unlock Your Story Challenge here! Let me help you develop the 4 foundational elements of a working story idea—a plot that hooks interest, a protagonist with a compelling goal, conflict with high stakes, and a theme with heart—for only $47!

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey there, I'm hosting a brand new 5-day challenge to help you get your ideas out of your
0:04.3	head and onto the page.
0:05.9	It's called Unlock Your Story, and during the challenge, I'll walk you through how to
0:09.4	develop the four foundational elements of a working story idea.
0:12.9	A plot that hooks interest, a protagonist with a compelling goal, conflict with high stakes,
0:17.2	and a theme with heart.
0:18.2	I've taken everything I've learned from coaching hundreds of writers and channeled it into
0:21.6	this 5-day challenge to help you take action.
0:23.9	By the end of our 5 days together, you'll have three important things, an engaging
0:28.0	log line, a supportive community, and the confidence to start writing.
0:32.1	So whether you're an aspiring writer looking for clarity around how to get started, or
0:36.1	a more seasoned author looking for a more efficient way to develop your next idea, I want you
0:40.8	to come join me in this challenge.
0:42.6	It runs from September 28th through October 4th, and it only costs $47.
0:47.2	Yep, that's right, $47.
0:49.5	So if you want to join me or learn more, head over to savannagilbo.com forward slash challenge,
0:54.7	or DM me the word challenge on Instagram at savanna.gilbo, and I'll send you the link.
0:59.9	Hope to see you there.
1:01.2	The more you dig into your scenes and the more that you learn about the intricacies
1:05.0	of your plot and your characters and your world, the more clarity you're going to get
1:09.0	about the big picture, and then you can take all of that work you've done on the big picture
1:12.9	and apply it to each one of your scenes and repeat the process as needed, and that's
	...

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