One Critical Problem You’ll Find in Boring Scenes (And How to Fix It)

Your Next Draft

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2y ago 16:54

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Your characters MUST take action in every scene. Look out for scenes where they don’t.
I’ve edited hundreds of scenes. (In fact, editing scenes is one of my favorite things to do!)
In all that editing, I’ve picked up on some patterns. Things that work really well in scene after scene—and common pitfalls that many scenes fall into.
And in this episode, I’m sharing one common scene mistake I often see.
If your scenes get this wrong, they’ll be . . . boring. And no one wants to read a boring scene!
But not to worry—in today’s episode, I’ll show you how to spot this common error and fix it.
You’ll learn:

The very first question I ask when I’m editing a scene
Why your characters must DO something in every scene
One critical mistake I see in scenes (is this happening in your scenes?)
5 prompts you can use to fix that problem anywhere you find it
And more!

Plus, in the episode, I’ll tell you how you can download my most popular editing resource, the Scene Analysis Worksheet.
It includes all the questions I ask when I’m editing a scene so you can polish your scenes like a pro.
Listen to the episode, grab the worksheet, and go master editing scenes!
Links mentioned in the episode:

Get my feedback on your scene: alicesudlow.com/scene-critique
Get the Scene Analysis Worksheet: alicesudlow.com/sceneworksheet
Ep. 23: 3 Simple Steps to Edit Absolutely Anything in Your Novel

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