A scene is a unit of emotional information

[intim8]

I heard a great piece of writing advice yesterday. Just that, the title, one line:

"A scene is a unit of emotional information."

If a scene doesn't convey that information, it doesn't belong there. I was tempted to broaden it slightly, to say that there are other kinds of information, like something necessary to the plot. But I thougth better of it.

Even a small detail, like the MC going grocery shopping, should still add something that makes the reader that little bit more invested, to care more about what is happening, to worry just a little bit more about what the bad guy is up to, or that the MC is headed for trouble. Or that something he cares about is in trouble. Or that he's the kind of person worth caring about. If it doesn't do that, is it really necessary to the plot?

I think that that one sentence really nails it.

 

[OffNSFW]

That's a good point. I'd like to add something that (love him or hate him) Quentin Tarantino once argued, which is that a scene might be perfectly charming on its own, but stick out like a sore thumb in the context of the whole narrative. It may reveal character, but what it's adding might not be necessary and might even be getting in the way of something more important down the line.

 

[intim8]

To contextualize it, the screenwriter who said this said that a typical movie might have 50-70 scenes in it. And a scene is not a place. Several scenes, by this definition, might happen in what is generally considered one "scene", a string of events that take place continuously in some specific place.

 

[MrPixel]

Even a small detail, like the MC going grocery shopping, should still add something that makes the reader that little bit more invested, to care more about what is happening, to worry just a little bit more about what the bad guy is up to, or that the MC is headed for trouble.

Yeah. Like in my story arc where the impish FMC is prone to do things like pants the MMC in the potato chips aisle.

 

[desecration]

In my mind, scenes are part of how the story is told, and the emotion comes from the contrast and resolution in the story.

 

[samhasstories]

I think it's absolutely worthwhile to ask yourself what a scene is doing for a story. For that matter, a character, a description, a sentence, a word. Everything can be scrutinized with the question "What work is this doing for the story?"

I share your initial impulse to broaden it. Not all pertinent information is necessarily emotional information. But I wouldn't fight too hard for that - if the ultimate point is emotional resonance, then that should suffuse everything to some extent.

 

[desecration]

Everything can be scrutinized with the question "What work is this doing for the story?"

Heartily agreed. Back to the outline: all parts have to relate to each other and to where the story goes. This is true in my view of all writing. Even in a technical document, the first sentence of every paragraph must relate to the content of that paragraph and its conclusion, and all of the paragraphs must in some way serve the thesis or purpose.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

I heard a great piece of writing advice yesterday. Just that, the title, one line:

"A scene is a unit of emotional information."

Bah, this is one of those lines that at first glance seem deep and thoughtful, but after some consideration, you realize it's just cleverly said bollocks.

 

[NotWise]

Does the author describe what he/she means by "emotional information?" Without that, I think it's one of those authorly statements that might not mean very much when you try to use it.

A scene might be a unit of emotional information (however you define that) if you make it one. You can make it something else.

 

[desecration]

cleverly said bollocks.

That's most of creative writing classes. That industry depends not on producing winners, but on selling dreams to people who are going nowhere while the MFAs get all the accolades.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"A scene is a unit of emotional information."

I like that. Never quite thought of it that way but it does make sense. Certainly every line that I write serves some purpose. I don't think that I would take that philosophy rigidly (always want to avoid being formulaic) but as a guide I think that it can help a writer understand what they're putting down rather than just blindly plunking down words.