Speed and Pacing
PACING is how fast or slow you tell different parts of the story. Different moments need different speeds:
SLOW PACING for:
Scary moments: She... opened... the... creaky... door... slowly...
Sad moments: The little bird looked up at the empty sky... and waited... and waited.
Important descriptions: The castle was enormous. Its towers reached all the way up into the clouds.
Big reveals: And standing right behind the tree was... (pause)... a DRAGON!
FAST PACING for:
Chase scenes: She ran down the hall, turned the corner, jumped over the table, slid under the gate!
Exciting action: The sword clashed! Sparks flew! The knight ducked and rolled!
Funny moments: And then the pie hit him in the face and the dog ate his homework and his mom walked in!
Building energy: They climbed higher and higher and higher and HIGHER until...
MEDIUM PACING for:
Regular narration and dialogue.
Transitions between scenes.
Introducing new characters or settings.
Think of pacing like a roller coaster: slow climbing up (building suspense), fast zooming down (exciting action), then settling into the next climb.