craft of story telling

i know i writer who likes to be satisfied as a reader. everything should be laid out for her, explained in detail, every scene closing neatly and completely.

i guess i'm a bit more chaotic. for me, the art of writing, the style and the craft of telling the story is yet another opportunity to manipulate the reader. if a scene feels unfinished sometimes it's because, yeah, i was sloppy, but other times it's because i want the reader to feel unsettled and unnerved. i don't want to break the pace of the arc by lingering too long at the end. and yes, i could have slowed the pace to linger in that moment, the most crucial moment of the chapter, but i don't want to becuase for the characters, it's unsatisfying.

my writing buddy has also been urging me to put more emotion into my characters. i realize sometimes they are rather distant, but other times, i like them that way. to a certain extent, the reader has to call upon their own experience to empathize. everyone has been jilted by a lover, an many have experienced that moment where they know their partner has cheated on them. sure, i'll show you how my character gets angry and sad or whatever, but to a certain extent, if the reader has sympathy for the character, they are going to feel it, anyway.

i've also noticed that people create rules about writing. show, don't tell, stay in one perspective, avoid adjectives and adverbs, etc. etc. but many of the great books i know break this rule constantly. tolkein, for starters. and tom wolfe, even john irving. in other words, it's okay. it's all about the art and craft of story telling.