How to Build Scene Tension in Any Novel

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the only thing that keeps readers turning page after page of a novel is tension. Tension must be relieved eventually, and the only ways readers can relieve it is to keep reading or close the book. As important as tension is, it’s difficult to teach to new writers. So below are some tips on how to build scene tension in any novel.

Develop characters who add tension.

Creating characters who have conflicting qualities or personalities that don’t mesh is the easiest way to inject tension in a scene. Analyze your cast of characters. Is everyone of them kind, thoughtful, and unselfish? Are they all introverts or extroverts? Are they all neat or slobs? Are they same age or come from the same socio-economic, racial, or ethnic backgrounds? Differences automatically create tension.

If you find that too many of your characters act and talk the same, dig into how to make them different from each other. The mellow mom and her uptight daughter would conflict in certain situations. The outgoing brother and his reserve brother. The friend who’s a rule-follower and the friend who sees rules as suggestions. These characters with opposite qualities are the raw material from which to mine tension.

Develop internal conflict within your protagonists.

Let’s say I’m writing a teen novel. My main character is a seventeen-year-old girl in her senior year of high school. She dreams of going to college, but she takes care of her home and younger siblings since her mom was disabled in a car accident. She doesn’t want to ditch her family, but she doesn’t want to ditch college either.

When a protagonist has two desires that appear mutually exclusive, you have gold for adding tension to your novel.

Develop conflict with the setting.

Any setting or situation that is outside the comfort zone of the protagonist holds a lot of potential for creating tension in a scene. I write about using uncomfortable settings here.

Remember that not all tension is the same.

There’s a major difference in tension between a middle-aged woman losing patience with her elderly mother who keeps chatting with people on a shopping trip, and a cop who is furious at his rule-following superior because he believes the superior is allowing a criminal to escape justice.

Use a variety of tensions to keep readers hooked. I find this easy to do when I write mysteries. Some suspects my amateur sleuth talks to will be happy to share information. Other will be secretive–but is it because they are guilty or is something else going on in their lives? Some suspects will be plain hostile. Those differences in characters create different levels of tension, keeping the storytelling interesting.

Here are more tips on writing with tension.

What are some of the best tense scenes you’ve read?

August 20, 2026 0

How to Write Unforgettable Last Lines for a Novel (And Why It Matters)

After spending months or years crafting the novel of your dreams, you don’t want to undo all that hard work with a poor last scene or last lines that vanish from readers’ memories. These final components of your novel are just as important as your opening lines and chapter. So here’s how to write unforgettable last lines for a novel and why it matters.

Why do the last lines matter so much?

The last scene and lines of your novel are your last message to your readers. We writers want our stories to stick with our readers. We gift them these final parts of the novel as a reward for reaching the last page. The last lines should also encourage readers to look up our previous novels and look forward to our future ones.

3 tips for writing unforgettable last lines

Your final scene and lines are like the final arguments lawyers present to a jury. They can’t introduce new evidence. That part of the trial is over. They can only sum up what the jury has already heard, but they can put their own spin on that evidence. That’s what writers do in the last scene.

Echo the major plot, relationship, or theme you set up earlier in the book. The final scene must deal with the point or purpose of the novel. All subplots should have been wrapped up by now. The final scene and lines should round off and amplify what your novel has been about. In my second novel, A Storm of Doubts, Rae wrestles with doubts that she may be calling the wrong man Dad as she tries to solve a mystery that involves questions of paternity concerning a family friend. The final scene and lines wrap up this theme of fathers and family.
Set the mood you want to leave with your readers. When readers close your book, what mood do you want to linger with them? I want my readers to feel like they’ve had a satisfying meal, and the last lines are those last bites of an excellent desert. To give them this feeling, I end on an upbeat note that fits with solving a mystery that revolves around the strength of faith and family. This upbeat note must be earned and make sense with the story that’s preceded it. If my amateur sleuth’s best friend has betrayed her during the course of the mystery, then my upbeat note will be very different from the one I’d use if her friend has saved her life during the climax.
Use final lines that let readers think over the novel. If your final lines do a great job of summing up your novel, it should give reader points that linger in their mind. In A Storm of Doubts, the final lines will make readers consider the nature of fatherhood, aspects like what makes a good father.

What’s your opinion on what makes unforgettable last lines for a novel?

Here are all the tips and prompts this month on writing endings for novels.

July 30, 2026 0

How to Write Your Novel Resolution Right

Denouement or wrap-up is another critical component of the ending to any novel. These are the scenes following the climax, in which you resolve all the remaining loose ends of the plot. Below are my tips on how to write your novel resolution right.

Why is the denouement so critical?

This resolution part of your novel is another reward for your readers. The intensity of the climax and how well you pull it off is the first one. Once readers have enjoyed that, they get the extra treat of sitting back and enjoying how you resolve the other plot points that have contributed to the novel.

Pacing is the key element of the resolution

You don’t want a resolution that’s too fast or too slow. If you resolve the loose ends too quickly, readers will close the book dissatisfied because they didn’t get enough time to enjoy saying good-bye to the characters and the story. If you’re too slow, your resolution will come across like a houseguest who won’t take hints from the host that it’s time to leave.

How to write the correct pacing for the resolution

First, reread your manuscript and make sure you’ve caught all the plot points and loose ends of your novel.

Second vary how you tie up your loose ends. Since I write mysteries, readers expect a detailed resolution of all the plot points. So I tie up those points in various ways. A few I resolve before the climax, if it doesn’t hurt the intensity of it. For example, my amateur sleuth discovers one of the suspects has an iron-clad alibi before the climax, taking that character out of contention as the culprit. After the climax, I decide how much page space I should devote to a loose end depending on its importance. For example, if my teen sleuth and her dad have been at odds throughout the whole novel, then the resolution of their conflict should have a lot of space. But if the loose end is who moved the murder weapon after the murder, and it turns out the maid did because she did’t realize it was the the murder weapon at the time, then that resolution only needs a brief conversation.

Third, have someone who enjoys reading and understands your genre read your manuscript. I guarantee you will have overlooked at least one minor point that needs wrapped up. An author is so familiar with her manuscript that it’s easy to miss a loose end.

Fourth, you should also ask this reader about the pacing. If he or she feels the resolution is rushed or dragging, review your resolution to discover if you can add depth or tighten your writing.

What novels have you read which have a perfectly paced resolution?

Just wanted to let you know there won’t be a tip next week but I’ll be back two weeks from today.

July 16, 2026 0

How to Write the Middle of a Novel Without Losing Momentum

When writing the middle of your novel, you can run into two common problems with momentum: it’s either too short or too long. Here are my tips for how to write the middle of a novel without losing momentum.

If the middle of your novel is too long

By too long, I mean you exceed your word count for a novel in the particular genre you write, you find it boring, or you’ve lost your plot, your point, your protagonist, or all three. Since the middle of your novel is the largest part of it, it’s easy to overwrite this section or lose your way. To trim it or drastically reduce it, try these techniques.

Write a one to three sentence paragraph that sums up your novel. It sounds impossible, but you should be able to describe who your protagonist is, what the problem of the novel is, and how the protagonist intends to solve the problem in just a few lines. Post those sentences where you can see them while you edit. Cut the subplots that don’t support the problem listed in those sentences. For example, my amateur sleuth’s young half-brother always invents some device during each of my novels. But I only include his invention because I can use it to effect the course of Rae’s investigation to solve the mystery.
Is your protagonist the active agent? It’s easy to let secondary characters take over in the middle. But your protagonist(s) should be front and center of most scenes. If the novel is written from 1st person POV, then the protagonist is the mover and shaker of every scene. Cut those scenes where the protagonist isn’t actively involved.

If the middle of your novel is too short

By too short, I mean you are way under your word count, the middle isn’t the longest part of your novel, or your novel feels rushed or boring.

Examine your beginning. The beginning introduces and establishes characters and plots for the novel. The middle complicates and explores those introductions and establishments. Have you explored relationships you set up at the beginning? Have you complicated the path your protagonist is following to solve the main problem of the story? Don’t be afraid to put serious obstacles in the way of your protagonist as he tries to solve the problem of the novel. The more challenging the obstacles, the more satisfying the resolution.
Are there subplots you’d like to add? Maybe you thought of some subplots but didn’t think you had the space to include them. Now that you see that you do, add them and see if they support your one-to-three sentence synopsis. For example, in my third Rae Riley novel, A Riddle in the Lonesome October, I introduce Rae’s cousin Claire. It may look like she’s just an extra in the ticket booth at the Halloween attraction where Rae has a temporary job. But that would be silly to introduce her if I can’t give her a pivotal role in solving the problem of the novel, which is discovering a lost inheritance.

Here are my other posts this month on writing the middle of a novel.

What have your learned about the middle if you’ve written a novel?

June 25, 2026 0

How to Write a Set Piece for Your Novel

This is a revised post from a couple of years ago. If you find that the middle of your novel isn’t as compelling as the beginning, your story might need a set piece. Below are my tips for how to write a set piece for your novel.

What’s a Set Piece?

I’ve heard this term in connection with movies, specifically the thrillers by Alfred Hitchcock, so I looked it up. According to Wikipedia, the term originated when a movie needed the production team to build a new set instead of reusing sets leftover from other movies at the studio. To make such an expense worthwhile, the filmmaker made the setting part of an important scene. Now the term means a critical or jaw-dropping scene or sequence within a movie.

The rescue of Princess Leia and the escape from the trash compactor is a set piece in the middle of Star Wars: A New Hope. Foreign Correspondent by Alfred Hitchcock has several set pieces: an assassination on the steps of a large building during a rainstorm, the hero sneaking through a windmill in Holland as he eavesdrops on Nazi spies, and a murder attempt at the top of Winchester Cathedral in London.

So How Do I Use a Set Piece in a Novel?

Use a set piece when you want your story to take a dramatic or unexpected turn that will affect the rest of the story. You can use more than one, depending upon the genre and kind of story you are telling.

In my teen cozy mystery, A Shadow on the Snow, I have set piece smack in the middle of my novel because the plot takes a dramatic turn from that point on. Like in the old days of the movies when the director built scenes around an expensive set, I want my readers to have the time to appreciate what’s happening in the set piece, so I slow the narrative down. The set-up, actual set piece, and wrap up play over three chapters. The set piece itself has a shadowy figure chase my protagonist, amateur sleuth Rae Riley, through her small hometown in a snowstorm on the night of Valentine’s Day. This chase leads to a pivotal scene with her newly found father. In that scene, I let the dialogue take over, which also slows the story down.

If your protagonist uncovers a traitor, take the time to make this revelation in a meaningful setting and a dramatic way. If your protagonist goes against her moral code with disastrous results, slow the pace enough for readers to get the full impact of this dramatic change in the story.

Two Warnings

I said to slow your story, not stop it. Your story is a glider. If you slow it too much, it will crash. Only had descriptions and dialogue that are needed to highlight this major change in the plot. Good writing rules still apply to a set piece–slowing down does not mean getting wordy.

My other warning is that any set piece can’t be more exciting than your climax. If your set piece in the middle of your novel has the heroine save London from certain destruction, she’d better be saving the world from that same fate at the end. In the climax of Foreign Correspondent, the heroes’s plane is shot out of the sky. They are forced to make a crash landing and then cling to the wreckage while they wait for rescue. If you find your set piece is overshadowing your climax, you either need to tone down the set piece or amp up your climax.

I’d love to hear from you. In your writing, had you ever had to add a set piece to your novel? Readers, what’s a memorable set piece?

Here are more tips on writing the middle of your novel.

June 18, 2026 0

Tag: How to write a novel