Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Kathi Macias | Slowing Down the Pace
Author Guest / May 19, 2013

I hear a lot about the need to “slow down the pace” of our writing, and I know that especially applies to me. I am definitely not one of those who spends too much time on descriptions and backgrounds. Anyone who’s read my books knows I like to throw the reader right smack-dab into the action from the opening page. As a result, I get a lot of drama going on, which is great for the reader—to a point. But readers can get worn out with too much action and need a break on occasion. And so I’ve learned to slow things down and intersperse my heavy-action scenes with breathers, enabling the reader’s adrenaline to return to normal…until the next action scene, of course. Recently, however, I had an interesting writing experience that took me beyond the occasional breather to an entirely new dimension of slower-paced writing. That doesn’t mean I took a lot longer to complete my manuscript; it does mean that I realized we authors can create character depth and compelling stories without run-for-your-life chase scenes and near-death experiences on every other page. A couple of years ago my agent, Tamela Hancock Murray, suggested that some of her…