From Edie: PeggySue shares how to revive flat scenes by shifting POV. Discover how choosing the character with the most at stake adds suspense, tension, and depth to your story.
Struggling with a Weak Chapter? Try Rewriting from Another POV
by PeggySue Wells @PeggySueWells
The plot is fueled by conflict, and conflict is often a matter of point of view. If your chapter lacks suspense and when a story is not working, try changing the POV.
In The Patent, I took the weakest chapter out of the hero’s view. This scene only had two characters – the good guy and the not good guy. This was the point of no return, the event that launched everything that came after until the final resolution 400 pages later. This was the moment when the bad guy made his move against our protagonist.
From the good guy’s POV, he just had to be there and get got. The passive victim.
But the villain became three-dimensional as I scoped out the landscape from his calculating eye. Our friendly friends and neighbors were suddenly dangerous if they noticed him. Every movement was orchestrated to get the dirty deed done without a witness. To commit the witnessless crime.
This chapter became one of my favorites when I shifted the point of view. Surprisingly, the person with the most to lose for this snapshot in time was not the one being kidnapped, but the kidnapper. Looking much different from the locals, the bad guy had to do what he came to do without raising suspicion or being noticed. If he were caught, he would spend his life in prison.
The Patent
Seated on a bench outside the local diner, Mr. Spencer adjusted the newspaper he pretended to read.
Wheeling around the corner, Marc Wayne came into view on his bicycle. Squeezing squeaky handlebar brakes, the inventor stopped in front of his office. As he unlocked the front door, an old man appeared from next door. He carried a rabbit in his arms.
Spencer watched the two men exchange animated pleasantries. Then each one retreated into his place of business, closing doors behind them. Instinctively, Spencer remained behind the newspaper for a while longer. Then he carefully folded and left the news on the bench. Grasping his umbrella, he crossed the street and entered the front door of the patent attorney’s office.
In moments, Marc met him in the entryway. His expression showed a wariness. “Perhaps,” Spencer began, “we can continue from where we left off?”
Marc cleared his throat. “I don’t think I can help you.”
“On the contrary.” Mr. Spencer tilted the umbrella in Marc’s direction. “You are exactly the one who can help me.”
Marc shifted his weight. “Then you better explain exactly what it is you want me to do for you, Mr. Spencer.”
“Of course.”
With a sigh, Marc waved his guest ahead of him toward his office.
Mr. Spencer pointed the umbrella, this time toward the hallway. “After you.”
Mr. Wayne shrugged and led the way.
Mr. Spencer fell into step behind him. Just as the pony-tailed attorney reached his office, Mr. Spencer aimed the umbrella at the back of Marc’s right knee. He pressed a hidden trigger, and a small dart shot from the tip and found its target. In seconds, the man in front of him crumbled to the floor.
Perfect. Everything looked to be going according to plan.
Valuable Change
Changing the POV in this chapter provided the suspense that keeps readers turning pages.
When a chapter lacks that page-turning depth, rewrite from the POV of another character. When a story or chapter is flat, reconsider who truly has the most at risk.
Plot is enhanced when each chapter is written from the point of view of the character who has the most to lose.
TWEETABLE
Action and adventure, romantic suspense, military romance, and cozy mystery are the page-turning novels by P.S. Wells including Chasing Sunrise, Homeless for the Holidays, and The Patent. How to live better, easier, and simpler is the focus of her nonfiction including The Ten Best Decisions A Single Mom Can Make.
PeggySue is a frequent guest with media including Focus On The Family, Family Life Today, and Christian Product Expo. She regularly teaches at conferences including Write To Publish, Taylor University Writers Conference, Kentucky Christian Writers Conference, and the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association. Collaborator on multiple titles including books with Dr. Benjamin Hardy, Shemane Nugent, Pat Palau, and Pam Farrel, PeggySue is a writing coach. When not writing, she parasails, skydives, snorkels, scuba dives, rides horses, and has taken (but not passed) pilot training. Founder of SingleMomCircle.com, connect with PS Wells at WWW.PEGGYSUEWELLS.COM, on Facebook at PeggySue Wells, and LinkedIn at LINKEDIN.COM/IN/PEGGYSUEWELLS
Great tip, Peggy Sue. Thank you.
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