Exposition: What Is It? What To Do With It?

In the book Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell , he talks about exposition, otherwise known as The Information Dump!

Bell has three rules for handling exposition.

1. Act first, explain later. Get the character moving at the beginning of your story. A reader will follow a character without demanding to know more if they are engaged with the character and what the character is doing. You can divulge information bit by bit as you go along.


2. When you explain, do the iceberg. Don't tell everything you know right away. Give 10%, just enough to help the reader know what is going on and then save the 90% for later on in the story. Reveal the rest a little at a time.


3. Setting information inside confrontation. Sometimes the best way to reveal information is to set it in the midst of great conflict. A character's thoughts or even dialogue are great ways to toss information to the reader.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is full of excellent information, told in a way that I can understand and grasp. It is definitely one of my go-to books!

Bell's iceberg rule is a favorite of mine. Icebergs are deceptive and reveal little of the true nature of the beast. Catastrophe happens before you know it and you find yourself sinking fast.This could prove invaluable to our characters. We should keep much of the back story hidden, giving just enough to hint at something mysterious and quite possibly dangerous. I feel an evil laugh coming on.

Strangely enough, I find that I am like an iceberg at times. Just letting a little of the real me show, because I am afraid of what others might really think if they see what's below the surface. I wonder how many of us are like that. I wonder how many of our characters are like that.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing for us to only let the real us show? How about for our characters? What do you think?

p.s. I just realized I totally took off on a tangent with the Iceberg theory. We were talking about backstory, weren't we? ;)

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This post is brought to you by

 Sherrinda Ketchersid

Sherrinda is a minister's wife and mother to three giant sons and one gorgeous daughter. A born and bred Texan, she writes historical romance filled with fun, faith, and forever love.

What is Your Novel Missing? A Sense of Time, A Sense of Place

Hey there! This is the final installment of this series, one that I still struggle with and have since I started writing. Fortunately, I recognize the problem more readily now, and can fix it before I get out of control. (If you missed any other posts in this series, you can check out Senses, Deep POV, Hooks, and Strong Verbs/Unique Words.)

Today we're talking about what I like to call Grounding Your Characters in the Scene. This is basically giving your reader a foundation for the scene, aka, the setting.

There are two areas where this can be an issue. At the beginning of a scene or during a scene. Yep, simple.

Pretend I just started a new scene in my story, and you're the reader:

Harper knew it was her fault. She might bat her long lashes and flash that coy smile but anyone with half a brain could see she was behind the whole thing.

So fine, if she wanted to play her game, he would play one of his own.

First, he'd steal the colorful little gnome from her front garden. Yep, sneak it off one night never to be seen again. Then he'd...

All right, I could go on with all of Harper's thoughts about how to get back at this mystery woman. But the point here is that this scene has been started in Harper's head and hasn't ventured out once. Sure, it's fine to start off a scene with a character's thoughts or dialogue. But don't take too long to ground your characters in this setting. Without that, you leave your readers hanging.

They don't know where your characters are or when they're there (how much time after the previous scene).

It can be a simple change, like:

Harper knew it was her fault. She might bat her long lashes and flash that coy smile but anyone with half a brain could see she was behind the whole thing.

He peered through the kitchen curtains at his neighbor, grinding his teeth. She pruned her roses with delicate snips that mocked him, like she had no idea what she'd done this morning.

Fine, if she wanted to play her game, he would play one of his own...

See? We're giving the reader a sense of where Harper is, and even when, so they have a foundation for this scene.

Now, this can also be a problem when there's too much exposition, or during a scene when you either have several paragraphs of character thought or even a long run of dialogue. If your characters are sitting at a restaurant eating and bantering back and forth, give them a break here and there. Like:

"Putting your elbows on the table is so rude," Maggie mentioned, mischief in her eyes.

"No ruder than chewing with your mouth open," Shawn countered.

"I don't chew with my mouth open!"

"Yes, you do." He reached for his napkin, lowering his voice when a quick glance around the room showed several customers glaring at him.

This isn't the most amazing example, but the point is, every once in awhile, you need to ground the characters in their setting. Make them part of their setting, even have them interacting with their setting. There will be scenes where your characters will be walking together or driving together, some kind of movement and you need to keep your reader updated. You don't want your readers to say, "How did they get from the mall to her house?"

Okay, so when you're doing your edits, make sure you're not in your character's head for too many paragraphs at once, and make sure your readers know where your characters are here and there, especially if they're doing a lot of moving around. Simple as that!

How about you? Are you like me and start off a scene with a whole lot of character thought before grounding your character in the setting? I'd love to know I'm not the only one!


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Cindy is a Colorado native, living near the mountains with her husband and three beautiful daughters. She writes contemporary Christian romance, seeking to enrich lives with her stories of faith, love, and a touch of humor.

To learn more about Cindy, visit her at her personal blog, www.cindyrwilson.blogspot.com