Cathy and I have had a quiet day as we prepare for her second chemotherapy treatment on Tuesday. We went out for breakfast. I returned some books to the library. Then we drove out to our favorite produce stand and got some sweet corn, potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, green beans, and (we couldn’t resist) a couple of fry pies, peach for Cathy and blackberry for me. I did a little work in our garden when we got home. Cathy wrote some thank you notes. I watched a baseball game. Cathy took a nap. It was the sort of Sunday that didn’t ask anything from us, and we consider that a blessing. We’re thankful for this day of rest.

When we tell stories, we sometimes forget the value of pauses in the narrative. Well-timed breaks–sections between scenes of action—can benefit the plot. They can take us deeper into the interior of our main characters to illustrate how the action is affecting them. These breaks can also prepare us for the next thing the characters might do. Storytelling often requires a causal chain of events. Because something happens, our main characters decide to do or to say this, and because they do or say this, a consequence occurs. Knowing what our characters are feeling after the initial actions helps us understand why they do what they do.

Such pauses can also contribute to the suspense of a story. If one scene leaves the readers at a high moment of interest, they’ll be eager to know what happens next. Slowing down for interiority or maybe description can hold the readers on an edge, eager for the next part of the plot. The problem is we must know that our pauses are doing more work than merely showing our characters’ thoughts or offering description. Each story is moving toward a resolution, and these passages of rest must be contributing to the story’s landing place.

We should also be aware of our timing as we move a story along its rising line of action. We need to know when to pause and when to keep pressing ahead. In general, once we reach the two-third point of a narrative, we need to speed on to its end. By this time, we know the characters, and we understand what motivates them and how they respond to the complications of their own choices. At this point, our job is to increase the pressure on them as one scene leads to another until we reach the climax of the story.

These are some of the things I’m thinking about on this day of rest, this pause, before Cathy and my story takes another step forward. Wish us luck.