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Too slow, and you lose your reader. Too fast, and they’re left confused, flipping back pages like, Wait—how did we get here?

Let’s fix your pacing.

Pacing is one of the most under-discussed, but absolutely vital, parts of story craft. You can have gorgeous prose, complex characters, and high stakes, but if the story drags in the wrong places (or barrels ahead without giving your reader time to breathe) your audience won’t stay hooked.

Think of pacing like music. A good song balances slow verses with energetic choruses. Stories do the same. You want variation, rhythm, and intentional flow. That’s what keeps your readers turning pages.

Hi, I’m C. Sloan Lewis, your virtual writing coach. My goal is to help you not just improve your writing, but to support you as a writer. Welcome to my channel!

Scene vs. Summary

One of the most powerful pacing tools you have is knowing when to write a scene and when to use summary.

• Scene puts the reader in the moment. Think dialogue, action, sensory detail—something unfolding in real time.
• Summary compresses time and moves the story along. Instead of showing every step of a road trip, you can write: “Two days later, exhausted but determined, they reached the city gates.”

Here’s an example:

• Scene: “She stormed into the kitchen, slammed the pan onto the stove, and glared at him like he’d burned her house down.”
• Summary: “They argued through dinner.”

Scenes are for moments that matter emotionally or dramatically. Summary is for connecting those moments without bogging down the story. These work much in the same way as show vs. tell, which you can learn about more in my last video.

Varying Sentence Length and Structure

Your sentence rhythm is another sneaky way pacing controls how a scene feels.

• Short, punchy sentences speed things up. Great for action, arguments, or suspense.
• Longer, flowing sentences slow the pace and give readers room to sink into the atmosphere. Perfect for description, reflection, or softer moments.

For example:

• Fast: “He ran. He slipped. He scrambled to his feet, heart pounding.”
• Slow: “The sunlight spilled across the field in golden sheets, warming the earth and casting long shadows that stretched toward the horizon.”

By mixing these rhythms, you control the reader’s experience like a director controlling camera cuts.

Using Dialogue, Action, and Chapter Breaks for Rhythm

Dialogue naturally speeds things up. It’s quick, back-and-forth, and keeps the story moving. Action does the same, especially when written in short bursts.

But description or long passages of internal thought? That slows the reader down.

Here’s a trick: If your scene feels sluggish, try breaking up paragraphs with dialogue. If it feels rushed, add a beat of reflection or description to let the reader catch up.

And don’t underestimate the power of chapter breaks. A cliffhanger at the end of a chapter is like saying: “Okay, you have to read one more page.” That rhythm of tension-release is what fuels binge reading.

Now, a few things to watch out for:

• Beware of info dumps. Nothing kills pacing faster than dropping three pages of backstory in the middle of an action scene. If readers need that info, weave it in gradually.
• Avoid meandering scenes. If nothing changes—no decision made, no tension increased, no new information—cut or condense it.
• Use tension as fuel. Even in slower, reflective scenes, there should be a question pulling the reader forward. It doesn’t have to be life-or-death. Sometimes it’s as simple as “Will she finally admit how she feels?”

So here’s your challenge: find one scene in your current draft that drags. Ask yourself: does this need to be a full scene, or could it be summarized in a sentence or two? Then cut the fat, keep the meat and bones, and see how much stronger your pacing feels.

And if you want more practical revision strategies, hit the like button, subscribe, and stick around for more videos about the craft of writing that support you both through knowledge and encouragement.

But that’s all from me today! You’ve got some writing to do, so I’ll see you in the next video. Ta-ta!