Surprise versus Suspense, and Withholding Information

Copyright © 2020, Steven E. Houchin. All rights reserved.

As I mentioned in my last couple of blog postings, I've watched several excellent online lectures on fiction writing while on virus lockdown. One involved the complexity of plotting, which introduced a particularly intriguing concept: the contrast between surprise and suspense in a story's plot.

First of all, the instructor discussed the definition of plot versus story. A story is a series of events linked by a chronology. Told that way, the reader is led to ask, "And then …?" A plot is how a story is structured. Its events are linked by cause and effect, and are not necessarily chronological. The reader may then ask, "Why?"

In fiction, a fundamental principle of plotting is the withholding of information. At the beginning, you want the reader to know very little. At the end, the reader should know everything. In essence, the ending is withheld from the reader.

As the plot unfolds, withholding is used throughout so the reader keeps reading. The question to consider: what is withheld from whom? This is where surprise versus suspense comes in.

Surprise

In certain works of fiction, details are withheld from the reader in the beginning, and revealed bit by bit as the plot unfolds. In literary fiction, it's often details of the main character's life that are vague at first, but become clearer as the story progresses. In a mystery, the crime it known right away, with the possibilities of "whodunnit" slowly revealed. In these situations, withholding information from the reader is intended to result in the classic surprise ending, where the reader finally knows everything.

Suspense

For other works of fiction, the author tells the reader everything that is going on, but withholds details from the main characters. The reader knows the terrorist is building a bomb, then is told the target is a world leader, then is told where and when. The reader also knows the government intelligence agent has clues about the terrorist, who then figures out there's a bomb, then figures out the target, then where and when. The plot is like a slow-motion chase, where the antagonists spiral closer to an inevitable (and often predictable) confrontation. This sort of plot - with the reader knowing all, but the characters wandering in the dark and unaware of each other - is intended to create a feeling of suspense throughout the story. The reader is mostly along for the ride, with an omniscient view of everyone's movements.

So, the contrast between a story intended to surprise, versus one intended for suspense, depends upon who has been denied the crucial information. It's the reader versus the characters.

The Five W's of Fiction Writing

Copyright © 2020, Steven E. Houchin. All rights reserved.

In a video course on fiction writing I recently viewed, one episode was all about how to get started with a new story.

One technique it discussed comes from journalism, which the instructor called the Five W's of fiction. To get started, you'll need to think through each of these.

1. WHO - Decide who are the main characters. Decide who is the narrator, or if many narrators are used.
2. WHAT - What is the story about, overall? Does it have a theme? What happens in the story, as in a sequence of events? What is the desired effect on the reader? For example, to surprise, teach a moral lesson, cause an epiphany of some kind?
3. WHERE - What is the setting? How important is it? Is it tied to a time and place? Sometimes the setting itself can be like a character. It may be crucial to the story, such as with historical fiction. It can set a mood. Or, it may be relatively unimportant.
4. WHEN - When in history does it take place? When in the lifetime of the main character? Is the narrator past or present tense? How is the story told: from start to end chronologically, backward from the end, from middle with flashbacks?
5. WHY - Why do characters do what they do? What does each character want? What is their motivation or causation for what they do?

The instructor also discussed the idea of outlining your story. This involves writing, in advance, a plot-point by plot-point summary of how the story unfolds. While it can be incredibly useful, many successful authors don't do it at all. Others make highly detailed outlines before writing the first word of the story. An outline can provide consistent forward momentum to the writing process. However, it can also stifle the suprise element of writing. Often, without knowing where the story is going, new characters suddenly appear, or the plot veers in an unexpected directon that wouldn't have occurred while outlining. Ultimately, the writer must decide on a case by case basis whether an outline works for her or not.

The instructor mentioned the concept of In Medias Res. It is Latin for "in the midst of things." In the case of literature, it means the story starts in the middle and is told forward from there with flashbacks to fill in what happened before. This relates to the "When" of the Five W's above, and is a common technique allowing the author to open the story with a climactic incident, and fill in the details afterward.

Overall, the course and the instructor are excellent, in my opinion.  At 24 episodes, it is well worth the investment.

Characters, Flat Or Round, Oh My!

Copyright © 2020, Steven E. Houchin. All rights reserved.

I recently viewed a video course on fiction writing, and was fascinated by a concept regarding characters in a story: Flat characters vs Round characters. The idea comes from E.M. Forster in his 1927 book Aspects of the Novel.

First, all characters fulfill a purpose. Any minor character has, in theory, the potential to be a major character if the story is told from a different perspective. But Flat versus Round goes beyond major versus minor.

Flat Characters

Flat characters are often humorous or caricatures with just one distinguishing purpose or attribute. They are simple, predictable and vivid. They're easily recognized when they appear on stage or in the scene. But, Flats are not the same as a minor character; they can be quite important to the story.

The description of a Flat may be simple, such as, "he was a mean drunk." That character, when on stage, always predictably behaves in that way.

Sitcom characters are often Flats. For example, Cosmo Kramer in the TV show Seinfeld. His character predictably bursts into Jerry's apartment and makes some outrageous announcement, or performs some comical pratfall. Another example is Sherlock Holmes, who is, of course, a main character. But he is always predictable. What he wants is simply to solve the mystery and bask in the glow of his genius in doing so.

Round Characters

Round characters are capable of surprising in a convincing way. They are more mysterious and unpredictable. They can surprise, delight and disappoint the reader. But, any surprising outcome from them must be seen by the reader, when it occurs, as inevitable, and thus convincing.  The kindly Sister of the Blessed Poor won't be convincing if she suddenly grabs a knife and goes on a killing spree, unless a copious amount of psychological setup has been done beforehand.

A Round had the potential to change during the story, even if they miss that opportunity and fail to change. A Round can be defined by their psychology or by their circumstance.

Summary

All characters want something, and have something at stake. Flats want just one thing. Rounds are conflicted about what they want.