Every fiction writer has on occasion watched their pages increase at steroidal speed, while for some reason, their story itself is taking forever to get to first base. This can happen whether you’re writing a short story or novel.
One of the most common causes is using a first person main-character voice to narrate a story dense with action, settings, and events. What to do, what to do? Try a switch to 3rd person. John Irving (who, um, writes awfully long) has obviously grappled with the length problem, and talks about it very nicely here, on the Daily Show (along with some intriguing things to say about Kurt Vonnegut at Iowa, sex at 11, and trying to “Heimlich” a six-foot, five-inch man (Vonnegut) when you’re only five-seven (Irving).
|
|
|
|
|
 |
