Timelines

One consequence of writing in scenes is that most of the story is happening right now. I mean, in theory this is a good thing, right?

But I'm finding that by purposely inserting narrative into the latest story that it gives me the option of adding time. That is, I can in a narrative way talk about how the days pass, and where the character goes, and what he's thinking.

It extends the timeline, which makes the story feel a little more grounded in the real world, allows for the action and conversation beats to rise above the narrative.

It also allows more of an author's voice, and I've always felt my author's voice is pretty good. For some reason I got away from it. In the attempt to really visualize the story--and again, that's probably not a bad thing--I stopped using narrative techniques to advance the story.

Narrative is great for transitions, obviously, but it is also possible to flesh the thoughts and actions of the characters. By definition, almost, it is telling not showing. But that isn't always a bad thing, I think. It telegraphs a lot of information that can add texture to the story. It might be a bit of a blunt instrument, but a handy instrument for all that.