I call the law of cause and effect a “secret power” because many writers have never stopped to think about it. |
But I guarantee that each time you pick up a book, your
reading experience is dramatically influenced by this one natural law.
We’ve all read books where the writing doesn’t seem to flow.
Often you can’t put your finger on why. All you know is, the writing feels
choppy, the phrasing awkward. You struggle to maintain your focus. Your mind
continually wanders away from the page.
When you pick up a different book, however, the author
engages your attention from the first page. The words flow so naturally and
smoothly that you cease to think about the author’s voice at all. The story
becomes an unstoppable current and you let yourself be swept along for the
ride, fully immersed in the fictional world.
As authors, we all desire this second experience for our
readers. And so we study diligently about how to hook our readers from the
first line, how to escalate conflict, how to deepen characterization.
All of which are good, and immensely important.
But the whole shebang falls apart – and the reader will be
wrenched from your storyworld without even knowing why – if you ignore the law
of cause and effect.
You may have heard this concept discussed in different
terms. Dwight Swain, in his classic craft book “Techniques of the Selling
Writer”, coined the term “Motivation Reaction Units”, or MRU’s.
We’re both talking about the same thing. And the concept is
simpler than you might think.
In short, cause must
always precede effect.
Every event in your story must be caused by the motivation or action that preceded
it.
If that statement made you knot your forehead and chew your
nails, take a look at some examples with me, and you’ll quickly see how simple
and essential this concept really is.
Example One
Kate hit the door lock and slumped down in the passenger
seat, her heart thumping in her chest. She was sure she’d seen a black-masked
face in the shadows of the parking lot.
Okay. Hold it right there, and let’s have a think about what
goes through a reader’s mind as they read this sequence. First, we see the
character doing something – hitting the door lock and slumping down in the
seat. (Effect). As a reader, we pause
for a split second to wonder – why on earth is she doing that? The result is
that we’re pulled from the story, however briefly. In the next breath, the
author answers our question. (Cause). But it’s too late – the flow has already been interrupted.
All of this occurs on a subconscious level, but it’s enough
to disengage the reader.
Do this enough times and you’ll destroy narrative flow, and
the reader will find it harder and harder to re-engage with the story.
Let’s try that segment again, this time paying attention to
the secret power of cause and effect.
Something moved in the shadows at the edge of the parking
lot. Kate squinted through the windshield, and the darkness resolved into a
solid form.
A black-masked face.
Kate hit the door lock and slumped down in the passenger
seat, her heart thumping in her chest.
Cause? Kate saw the
face. Effect? An instant
physical and physiological reaction.
Structuring the sentences so cause precedes effect creates a
natural, logical flow. An astute observer will note that in this improved
version, the writer shows what happens
as it occurs. When cause and effect become muddled, as in the first example,
the writer is reduced to telling – giving
an after-the-fact explanation for an effect that has already taken place.
Example Two
Brenda jumped from the edge of the roof after taking one
last look at the open-mouthed stares of the people beneath.
Instead of building to a climax and ending on a strong note,
this sentence fizzles. Why? Because it’s written in reverse chronological
order. The strength of the action (“She jumped from the edge of the roof”) is diminished by the author’s immediate backtracking
to what happened a split-second before the action. A story should flow continuously forward, never backward.
The sentence should read:
Brenda took one last look at the open-mouthed stares of
the people beneath. Then she jumped.
Continuous forward motion creates momentum. That’s what you
want. The momentum for a reader to keep flipping the pages. When an author
unconsciously uses reversals like this one, the effect is like repeatedly
tapping the brakes. It makes for a jerky ride. Enough of that, and the reader
is going to bail out of the vehicle.
An exception
Of course, there’s always an exception to the rule. In this
case, your opening hook is that exception. It’s fine to launch a book, chapter
or scene with an event (effect) for which we’ve not yet been given a cause.
This creates curiosity in the reader. The term for this literary device is in
medias res, or “in the middle of the
action.”
When you do this in the middle of a scene, on the other
hand, your writing seems clumsy, and the natural flow of your book is
interrupted.
Let’s talk nuts and bolts. Have you ever considered
cause and effect in your own writing? Do you have any further questions in
order to clarify what’s been discussed here? Why not take a look at your rough
draft and see if you can find some instances where you’ve muddled cause and
effect? Feel free to throw in a sentence or two for us to critique together.
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalpPhotos.net
Karen Schravemade lives in Australia. When she's not chasing after two small boys or gazing at her brand-new baby girl, she spends her spare minutes daydreaming about the intricate lives of characters who don't actually exist. Find her on her website, on Twitter or getting creative over at her mummy blog.
EXCELLENT post, Karen! I love having examples for me to actually see the point being made!
ReplyDeleteI have never read any of D. Swain's books, but I hear they are excellent!
I am always grateful for a wonderful blog.
ReplyDeleteFavorite season is autumn now Japanese.
For me it is the season for reading.
I like poetry and fiction and advice.
I also present and writer Yasunari Kawabata and Masaoka Shiki and Soseki Natsume, a lot of foreign.
I'm sorry I was wrong spelling.
From Japan.
Ryoma Sakamto.A
Thanks, Sherrinda! So glad that made sense! LOL
ReplyDeleteRyoma Sakamto, welcome! So pleased you found our blog! I hope you stop by again. And don't worry - your English is about ten thousand times better than my Japanese. :)
Karen, awesome points. I think I've known this but never really thought about WHY it needed to be this way. I love examples, so thanks for those. They help so much!
ReplyDeleteKaren, this is super. I've worked on this in my own writing, but I'll have to look through my wip to see if I still have places where I've written revesals. Your examples were most helpful!
ReplyDeleteI hadn't realized that writing the effect before the cause would make the flow so choppy. Thanks for sharing this today!
Brilliant! I sat in a class earlier this spring taught by Steven James--he taught the same thing. Great stuff, Karen!
ReplyDeleteI've heard about the MRU's but you put this very clearly. Definitely something to think about as I pursue my edits. Great post, Karen!
ReplyDeleteI love Dwight Swain's book, but your examples and explanations made MRU's easier to understand. Thanks, Karen!
ReplyDeleteLindsay, yes, the "why" is so important, isn't it? When you get a grasp on the reason for something the whole thing makes a lot more sense.
ReplyDeleteJeanne, it's cool that you've already given this conscious thought in your MS! I'm with you - I need to go back through and have another look for places I may have gotten this mixed up. It's so easy to make a slip.
Melissa, that's encouraging! I'm glad to know I'm on the right track! :)
Julia and Jill, I'm glad that was helpful. I was a little worried I might confuse everyone, so it's good to hear my meaning came across clearly. :)
ReplyDeleteKaren,
ReplyDeleteI appreciated the examples you gave. So clear. Sometimes we don't realize our mistakes, we just know the section doesn't sound right. I'll keep a watch in my work and make sure I have a cause and effect...in that order.
Great post Karen. You explain it so much more simply than the mru thing. And the examples you give are spot on.
ReplyDelete