I'm a big fan of setup when it comes to writing a story. Sometimes, when a major plot point occurs, I might inform the audience of previous events that led up to the current predicament, or events the audience may have been previously unaware of. The problem is, I feel this can lead to a lot of problems, such as repetition, and even unnecessary exposition. Does anyone know where these "recaps" should be used, and how?
How do you do them? Willing to post an example?
How do you do them? Willing to post an example?
I will not post a direct example because I don't want anything spoiled, but here's a scene without spoilers I wrote just for this chat:
He looked at his Father in shock of what had just been said. He was unsure what he was; repulsed, disgusted, angered, terrified, saddened. It seemed he was only a piece in this infinite puzzle. He had no clue where he was, what he looked like, or if he even mattered. He wanted to vomit across the room, he wanted to jump off the nearest ledge. But here he was, with his Father in that tiny little room he had called a kitchen/ dining room all his life, with hundreds of dishes buried beneath hundreds of other dishes, all oozing out grime. His past as a miner felt shattered at that very moment. Everything was together, in a state of completion, but it had taken a sledgehammer and broken to millions of pieces. He didn't know where to start, he just looked at all the shards and crouched with tears running down his face. Before this, he thought of his Father as just another figure in his life. A quiet figure who called him by his last name like everyone else, like an essence of greatness was to automatically carry itself through his senses and possess him with a sense of pride and confidence. He was a businessman in the sense he was consistently weighed with constant troubles, and his breaks from it all inconsistent.
He had interpreted everything wrong. All this time his Father had lounged around the house as Rose fought for his life, he had been fighting against his own urges, his own temptations. He never wanted to look his son in the face because he was imbibed with the knowledge that for the rest of his life he would be a single man with a kid whose eyes glistened like a rare gemstone, just as his wife's had. It looked like Rose had broken into the underworld and stole his Mother's eyes like a sacred treasure. They shared the same hair, the same skin tone, the same smile, Rose even sounded like her every now and then.
It was here Rose realized how inescapable his own bloodline was. He could let as much out on the floor but it still stained him, still knowing it was there.
I see. It is a bit much. Cut it down slightly and add what you can before hand so as not to clog it up and slow the pace.
Thank you!
Tips hat Happy to serve.