Write Better Books – Storytelling: Filtered or Unfiltered?

Posted byDan Alatorre AUTHORPosted inUncategorized
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You get a note from a critique partner or editor friend that says, “Cut this filter.”

And you are like, Huh? What?

What’s a filter?

Filters are stuff you write that takes us out of the Main Character’s head for a nanosecond. Usually they aren’t needed. You don’t say to yourself, “I notice it’s raining.” It just rains.

EXAMPLE:

When I came out of the store, I noticed it was raining.

OR

When I came out of the store, the rain was coming down in sheets.

“I noticed” is the filter. We – the readers – are “I.” We notice whatever the MC notices, feels what she feels, etc. Saying I noticed in a story is like narrating to yourself in real life. Vagrants on New York City street corners do that, not your character.

I saw

I felt

I noticed

Your story is more reader-centric and immersing without as many filters.

Some are okay; most can go – and improve the reading experience.

It’s no big deal that you have a lot in a first or even second draft, but it’s worth learning what they are and spotting them, and coming up with ways to change them out. Next book, you’ll use a lot fewer – BUT if you need them to get the first draft out of your head and onto the page, fine.

Just make some to-do lists, so you can get the story down and THEN go back and fix it up.

  • Filter words to cut.

  • Adverbs to cut (as many as possible).

  • Dialogue tags (as many as possible).

  • Crutch words (Yeah, when you cut those tags, you used the same three words as replacements. Now you have another task to do. You’re welcome.)

How to not go insane doing all this: When you finish the first draft of a book, take a month off from it. Seriously. A whole month where you don’t even peek at your writing baby. If you peek, the 30-day timer starts over.

Then go through – a little each day – and take the list items out. If you waited a month, you’ll see LOTS of places to tweak the story and make it tighter. Stuff you’d never have seen if you didn’t let it rest for a month.

You’ll thank me.

A month from now.

Published by Dan Alatorre AUTHOR

USA Today bestselling author Dan Alatorre has 50+ titles published in more than 120 countries and over a dozen languages.

25 thoughts on “Write Better Books – Storytelling: Filtered or Unfiltered?”

  1. Seriously, very useful and good advice. Some truly useful pointers.
    I would never have thought of this (that’s my fault on account of having a sarcastic and ironic streak in me, so I literally do go around saying things like ‘Oh it’s raining’ in the midst of a downpour and my characters do pick up some of my bad habits).
    I’ll bear this in mind for the next book in my series, which might concentrate on more balanced characters.
    I done with re-writing this one.

    Incorrigibly yours
    Roger

    PS: A definite re-blog!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Simply put, a crutch word is any word you used too often.

      Mine is smile.

      Whenever I have a character say something and I don’t want to use a dialogue tag, I will say the character smile.

      “Sure!” Dan smiled.

      The problem is, I have everybody smiling. All the time. Constantly.

      That’s why it’s a crutch word.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    1. I will let you off the hook. You do it, I do it, everybody does it. Some people do it more than others. As I read all the stories for the anthology and in the contest, it became apparent to me that there were one or two things people needed to have pointed out to them as a group. This was one.

      Like

      Reply
  11. Pingback: Write Better Books – Storytelling: Filtered or Unfiltered? — Dan Alatorre – AUTHOR | firefly465

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