Saturday, April 23, 2011

T is for ... Time-frame

Another important aspect of writing is determining how long the story will last. It could be a day, a week, a month, a year, or several years. Writing for young kids, though, I think the time-frame should be not longer than a year. Most of the stories I write take place from one week to several months. Most important, though, is that the time-frame should match the storyline. Can a young boy save an entire world in one day? I'm not sure if that's physically possible depending upon what needs to be done. But if the writer makes the events and text seemless, then the reader will believe anything.

What sort of time-frame do you write or like to read?

8 comments:

  1. If the story is interesting, the time frame doesn't matter to me.

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  2. I enjoy a short time-frame; less than a month. It adds to the suspense when things wrap up quickly. You can throw in flashbacks to build characters.

    Jack Bauer saves the world in 24 hours... over and over again. Blech!

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  3. Luana~ That's a good point.

    Kris~ I think, for kids, the time-frame is important to be short. For adults, no big deal.

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  4. Great post. This is something I'm struggling with in my WIP. It's a historical and in order to have a happy ending, it should normally take place or a period of ten years. There's not way to start later or end earlier.So I'm either going to have to sacrifice historical accuracy or do some really big time jumps :( I'm hoping it won't matter so much in a story for adults.

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  5. Hmmm, since I'm a reader not a writer I can't say I've ever thought much about it. As long as the story is great I don't think it would matter.

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  6. I think a matter of a few days to a couple of weeks works the best for me on both kid and adult fronts. I just like it when the action keeps going, needing only the occasional pause to catch my breath from the last major event in the story.

    It's a pleasure to meet you via the A-Z Challenge!

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  7. you bring up a great point. i think shorter time frames often tend to make the story's pace seem faster.
    Great meeting you through the A-Z!

    nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  8. Clarissa~ I think it's easier for adults to deal with large time jumps than kids. I'm sure you'll be fine. :)

    Martha~ That's a great point. The story does matter the most.

    Jeff & Nutschell~ I agree. I like shorter time frames as well. Nice to meet you both!

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