by Zena Dell Lowe @ZenaDellLowe
If your character spends most of your novel thinking, your readers will stop feeling.
The problem is, many novelists don’t know how to tell a story without overly relying on their characters’ thoughts. That’s understandable—because in a novel, everything the reader learns is filtered through a character’s point of view. We’re always inside someone’s head, seeing the world through their lens.
In screenwriting, though, the information comes through a literal lens—the camera. It's all about what we see on the screen. Screenwriters can't tell us what a character is thinking or feeling. Their job is to show us, using action, behavior, and visual imagery that gives the audience clues. Then it’s up to the audience to interpret those clues and draw their own conclusions.
So yes, novelists have the luxury of internal thought—and the medium demands it—but too many lean on it like a crutch. They forget that fiction is also a visual art. The key is strategic introspection, supported by storytelling that the reader can see and feel.
