Sophia Nash: The Importance of The Reveal
I always love to visit you because I get to talk shop here (as opposed to telling revealing things about myself at other blogs.) Speaking of revealing, I’ve picked a tough subject today to stir everyone’s creative juices. I do hope you’ve all had your morning tea, coffee or Vitamonster drink. You’ll need it to ponder my latest musings (read pathological plotting thoughts).
Like many writers, I learned my strong vs. weak storytelling abilities fairly quickly. For me, characterization is more instinctual, and plotting is painful. During the latter, there is one area that flummoxes me every time. 
It’s the thing that drove me around the bend while writing my latest novel, Love With the Perfect Scoundrel. I consider “the reveal” the trickiest device in a writer’s toolbox.
Generally, but not always, a writer knows the key mystery points/plot points in their story although those can change in the course of the writing. When they fall delicately into a new plot pattern, a writer may experience one of the most delicious parts of the writing process: the famed “Ah ha!” moment. But the truly tricky question, IMHO, is figuring out the best moment to reveal plot points or character mysteries.
Let’s start with an example to show the complexities involved with a reveal. In Love With the Perfect Scoundrel, the hero is living a lie. I had to decide (a) how/when to reveal this to the reader, and (b) how/when to reveal this to the heroine. There are lots of other important reveals in the story but I won’t discuss them since I don’t want to ruin the book for readers.
I can’t tell you how many times I moved around passages regarding this key “reveal.” First I had the heroine (along with the reader) learning a key part of his back story near the beginning. Then I decided that wouldn’t work as well as dribbling hints first to the reader alone. I did this in the hero’s POV. Only much later was the key to the hero revealed to the heroine while in her POV. The question I always ask is: Which is the most powerful version? Which version causes the most tension in the reader’s mind? Sometimes in my stories both reader and characters find out key points at the same time, but often times not.
Well, I’ve laid out a small part of the plotting nightmare I put myself through with each story. But have you noticed I’ve not suggested a neat solution to the process? I keep waiting for someone to reveal the secrets of a perfect “reveal” to me. So I am turning it over to you, dear Vagabonds. Do you have any thoughts/tricks about a perfect “reveal?”
And one lucky commenter will receive a copy of the newest release Love with the Perfect Scoundrel! How perfect is that?!
Welcome, Sophia!!
It’s so fabulous to have you hanging out with us again today and I’m so excited that Love with the Perfect Scoundrel releases today. I’ve been dying to get my hands on this release.
As for the reveal question, I’m afraid I’m pretty useless on answering that one. LOL! I still am working up the perfect reveal in my own manuscript.
Glad you’re hanging out with us today!
Élodie
Hi Sophia!
I’m good with characters; bad with plotting–so I’m no help. I can only tell you what I like to read–and I like to be as shocked as the heroine. I like the little tipoffs throughout the story that don’t really read as tipoffs (stuff that the hero was doing that should have clued me in that he’s actually a spy, a nobleman, a cross dresser–whatever)–and then, when the heroine finds out, I’m like: WHAT? And then I remember all the tipoffs and I go: OHhhhhhhh. Now it makes sense.
Granted, I’m the DUMBEST mystery solver on the planet. Like in Guardian Angel by Julie Garwood, the hero is trying to find the pirate Pagan. He ends up rescuing this woman who witnessed a murder, et al; and chaos ensues–and by the time we get about 2/3 into the book, the hero finds out the heroine is PAGAN. I remember reading that the first time and going, “WHAT?”–and then realized all the tipoffs were supposed to be the “duh, obviously” tidbits of her PAGAN-ness.
Now I don’t mind being the dumbest mystery solver on the planet; it makes the Big Reveal that much more fun for me. For others who are smarter and want to solve it, they want tougher to pin reveals. I imagine we writers just write the kinds of reveals we like to read.
Thanks for hanging out at the gypsy wagon today! Your books are wonderful!
It’s SOPHIA NASH! hehehe
Got that out of the way. Now, I’m NO expert on anything writing, but something I heard at a workshop in NJ a couple years ago stuck with me. The presenter said (and I paraphrase) lead your reader to expect one thing, then give them the opposite. Her example was in a romantic suspense, you introduce the reader to the good guy who is seeking the bad guy. You lead the reader to expect him to be good through and through. Then you have him walk into the bad guys house and strike up a conversation as if they’ve been good friends since childhood. The reader now has to question if this guy is good after all.
For one, it keeps the pages turning. But two, it takes the reader by surprise. So that’s all I’ve got. Make them expect one thing, give them another. Just make sure the other is not going to tick them off. LOL! I can’t imagine walking the fine line between revealing enough so the reader smacks her forehead at the reveal thinking she should have seen this coming, and revealing too much so the reveal is no surprise at all.
Kudos to you for walking that line with perfection.
Welcome back to the caravan, Sophia! It’s lovely to have you visiting us. I just received my shipping notice from Amazon this morning, so I hope to be reading Love with the Proper Scoundrel and Mary Balogh’s First Comes Marriage this weekend.
I’m currently revising my first book, and the two things requiring most attention are my lamentable tendency to write too much and the need to strengthen the plot. I think it might be easier if I added a serial killer or an evil ghost.
Hi Hellion (love the name…)
You’ve hit it– You “want to be just as shocked as the heroine.” As a writer, don’t you think one of the best moments while writing is when all of a sudden you realize that something you hadn’t planned–is revealed to you? This happened when I was writing The Kiss and the hero’s daughter’s “truths” were revealed…
Hi Terrio!
SO great to hear from you! Will you be at RWA?
I love what you said: lead your reader to expect one thing, then give them the opposite. I have something similar taped to my computer. But here is how my contrary thinking comes into play. This is what I always look for as a reader. So now I’m beginning to think in a double negative fashion, as in: lead your reader to expect one thing, then just as you’re about to give them the opposite, change to a completely new direction .
Hey, I’m not sure I walk the line with any sort of perfection, but I am at least attempting to walk the line without falling off…just like all of you!
Hi, Janga.
Hmmm… “a lamentable tendency to write too much and the need to strengthen the plot.” Well, you sound like a writer to me! I’ve seen versions of your self-editing comment from published and unpublished writers everywhere. But here’s the great thing: if you see it yourself then you can fix it. Slash, burn, and edit until you cry. That’s what I do. I think I’ve rewritten the first 2 chapters in my next story about, um 8 times in two months. The only way I can do it is to save the original versions (kind of like keeping my “old blankie” in a box in case the “new blankie” doesn’t smell right)–and then I try again. Now most writers don’t do this. They write a really scary first draft all the way through–and then edit. I try and write about 100 pages and then edit–and then keep going, etc.
What is your style of writing?
I adore reveal stories, especially when I am as clueless (read not stupid) as the hero or heroine. Your reveal about ‘Love With A Perfect Scoundrel’ has been hooked – like I wasn’t going to go out and devour this book anyway but still.
One of the best reveals I’ve ever read – to date – was Teresa Mederios’ ‘Yours Until Dawn’. I won’t ‘reveal’ here but I do remember my jaw dropping.
Yay! Sophia is here! So glad you are visiting us today
I cannot wait to dive into LWTPS
Very interesting topic. And I’m always interested to hear writers talk about their process. I am one of those terrible first draft people, though I am trying desperately to become a plotter. It takes a lot of the mystery out of it for me though so I think I’m going to cut back a bit on the plotting.
I LOVE being surprised while I’m reading. (Well, within reason–I don’t want something truly surprising like having h/h die or anything.) And it is very hard to read my writing as a reader and make sure that the reader isn’t figuring out the secret too early. I definitely think sprinkling clues along the way that don’t seem like clues is a good way to go. And I love your double negative formula. I’m going to have to try that–it’s so simple but it’s something I haven’t seen spelled out like that before.
Hi Sophia,
Congratulations on your release! And, may I say, your cover is both hot and beautiful!
I’m one of those readers who likes to know EVERYTHING before all is revealed to the h/h. I guess it makes me feel like I’m in the know! Part of the enjoyment for me comes in anticipating when the reveal will happen, and how the h/h will react. Weird, huh?
As a writer, I struggle with this, too, although I think I tend to keep my h/h in the dark quite a bit more than I do the reader. I really do like building the sense of the impending train wreck.
Sophia – Yes, ma’am. I’ll be at RWA, stalking you, as usual. LOL!
That’s so true about the double negative thing. My kiddo and I watch Bones and she’s already figured out that whoever the character is that the evidence points to in the beginning is never really the killer. So make the reader expect one thing, then take a hard right. LOL! Got it!
Terrio–
The show that really drove me around the bend was “Lost.” I was SO certain the island was purgatory–half way between heaven and hell. The place where the 50 percenters had to untangle their past and find redemption before they could leave. But about 1 season ago I realized this was completely off the mark… I’ve decided the island IS hell.
Manda–
I feel for you. The hardest part of the writing process for me is drafting the synopsis for my editor. When I read the synopsis after the book is finished, I really laugh for only about 50% is the same. Whole subplots disappear. And I will have spent WEEKS crafting the plot. I’ll never forget Nora Roberts telling me that she detested writing synopses so much that she would quickly write the book, THEN write the synopsis, and send the latter in to her editor!
Vanessa,
Your comments about wanting to know everything before the H/H–to build suspense– are intriguing. Do all of the rest of you feel that way? Or only about, let’s say, the identity of the villian in a story?
Hmmmm, can you tell I’m trying to figure out reveal in the next story?
Santa,
OK, you hooked me. Off to find Teresa’s book…
Hope you are doing well!
I think I prefer to find out along with the character. I like when I can say, “I didn’t see that coming.” Or I yell, “NO WAY!” Those are the best reveals. Much better than, “I knew it!”
Sophia, you are correct: LOST is Hell. *LOL* You guessed it!
Santa, I agree: Yours Until Dawn was a jaw-dropping reveal. I did not see that one coming. *LOL*
Hee hee. I always love reading about everyone’s responses to Lost, especially given that I’m not a Lost follower. The writers certainly do a good job of balancing what to hold back and what to reveal.
Hellion–I absolutely love the reveal in Yours Until Dawn. It’s one of my favourite parts of the book. And although I was yelling “I knew it! I knew it!” when I first read it, I still love that tweak of surprise.
Smiles,
Élodie
The revelation of the heroine’s secret in Jo Beverley’s A Lady’s Secret caught me totally unprepared. I loved the surprise, but I don’t know that I have a preference for being surprised. I think everything depends upon the nature of the surprise and the skill of the storyteller. So often I have said I dislike X in a story, only to have some gifted writer prove that I like X when it is shaped by the right writer.
Sophia, you asked about my style. I’m writing a contemporary, community-centered trilogy. I received some very encouraging feedback in a contest recently, so I am newly energized and hoping to start the query process in the spring. But I am a non-linear writer, and the stitch-together scenes are sometimes a real struggle. Realistically, I will probably be querying with one complete mss and two pieces.
In my case it probably is a matter of personal taste. In romantic suspense, I like books that have a fair amount of story-telling from the villain’s POV. Watching him stalk or plan to do something bad to the h/h really rachets up the tension for me – in a different way, of course than the surprise of the reveal. For me it’s a slow build and a DON’T GO DOWN IN THE CELLAR! kind of thing. Mabye it’s more of a visual/movie style, with multiple points of view.
But, you know, I’m not somebody who likes surprises in my life, so it could be an extension of that. And I think Janga is bang-on: it all depends on the skill of the writer.
Welcome, Sophia! So exciting to have you join us today. Congrats on your release -I can’t wait to read it.
(And to anyone wanting to get a taste for Sophia’s new book, you can get a sneak peek at the Love Gives back site)
Super topic! And one I spend a lot of time thinking about. I think it’s sometimes tempting to share a lot about characters up front, to show what makes them compelling. But when you meet a person for the first time, they don’t generally share all their secrets and vulnerabilities with you, so it can also be too much too soon. For heroes in particular, I think there’s the fantasy that the heroine (and the reader along with her) is the first person to truly understand him, and for that reason it makes more sense for him to withhold until he trusts her enough to open up to her.
Though I think Vanessa does make a great argument for revealing info early. In the right context, it does build suspense and create conflict. I think knowing what to reveal when is definitely an acquired skill for most people!
Lindsey,
When you said: when you meet a person for the first time, they don’t generally share all their secrets and vulnerabilities with you–that is EXACTLY what I think about when I introduce the hero and heroine in a story. It’s like Donkey says to Shrek: “I get it, onions have LAYERS.” The best introduction/getting-to-know-each-other is a slow peel, don’t you think?
Hurray, I made it. I actually had to get Manda’s very quick and very helpful help in figuring out how to comment.
Hi Sophia and all the Vagabonds. *waving* I’m having a problem with ‘revealing’ in my story. My hero has amnesia, so I’m trying to figure out the best time to reveal to the reader, the heroine and the hero who the hero’s identity is. Then of course, there are the repercussions – ie. the secrets he had – and when to reveal those to the reader and heroine.
On editing, a friend of mine, Marion Lennox who write Mills & Boon Medicals, has told me very sternly to ‘write forward’. As I’m at the beginning of my writing apprenticeship, my goal is to finish the book first, then worry about editing and revisions.
On Lost, I thought they had travelled forward in time. I remember one scene when someone was travelling around the island on a boat and they saw a massive cement foot which looked like it could have been the foot of the Statue of Liberty or some other large statue like that, but it was severed at the ankle. So I figured they had travelled forward in time to a time after some great war in America.
Love the topic and would love to read more about other people’s insights into the big ‘reveal’. I’m a bit like Vanessa in some ways. I do like to know some of the secrets (sometimes I like to skip ahead and read the last page), but usually I love the shock value of not seeing it coming. I think it’s better having the shock value.
Oh, I’ve also just ordered Yours Until Dawn. It has me intrigued.
Hi Sophia!!!!
I love your books, I ordered this one last night!
I like to be surprised by the big reveal. I love the oh! you mean that was here because of… and you did that there because of… oh how did I not pick up on it!
Sophie I love your books
Sophia,
I am fighting my own issues with the reveal in my manuscript. I’m thinking that the time for the reveal should give the most emotional impact. I’m hoping in my manuscript that this will not only unveil the secret, but also give us a glimpse of the strength of the two characters involved.
As a reader, I like the emotional cost the reveal gives. I like it when it forces the character to question motives, trust, etc. It is an internal challenge to the many other external things going on in the plot. It helps build the tension towards the dark moment.
I love your books and can’t wait to pick this one up to read this weekend.
Amy
Hi, Kirralee.
Now you have me curious. What does “write forward” mean? Does that mean to keep plowing ahead in the first draft and never look back or edit a word? Or does it have something to do with not withholding a “reveal” from the reader? Re the amnesia storyline, I remember Mary Balogh wrote a good one in the “Slightly” series about one of the Bedwyn brothers. He goes off to war and suffers amnesia while a woman cares for him and eventually falls in love with her.
Tiffany and Beth R!
Great to “see” you here. I’ll be curious to hear what you think of the one or two reveals in Love With the Perfect Scoundrel… So far the advance reviews have been very kind. My favorite included this line: “This book is a gift of emotion wrapped in sensuousness and tied with a bow of hope.” That took my breath away…It was exactly how I would wish for someone to feel while reading this book!
Hi, Amy.
I think you’ve got it when you said: “As a reader, I like the emotional cost the reveal gives. I like it when it forces the character to question motives, trust, etc.”
What I love is when a character finally has the courage to reveal something deeply important about him/herself–something that could make the other character walk away — and yet he/she doesn’t.
So delighted you enjoy my books. Thank you!
Hi Sophia! I’m experiencing a reveal problem in my current manuscript, too. It’s nice to know I’m not alone in having this issue. Although I’m crushed you don’t have the magical answer.
Sophia, ‘write forward’ means plow on with your story, ignoring any corrections you are tempted to make (just make notes for yourself so you don’t forget important parts you may want to add, change or delete) and keep going until you have finished the entire first draft. Once you have done this, you can give yourself permission to critique your own work and make those changes you were itching to do.
However, I’m like you. I have re-written my first chapter dozens of times and I’m still only up to chapter 5. I just keep thinking of new and wonderful ways I could jazz up my opening scene to make it fresh. Because I have been working on the same story for about 6 months and I’ve only reached Chap 5, it’s lost that new car smell.
Sophia, what do you do to keep your interest and excitement going with the story you’re working on?
Hi Sophia! I enjoyed your blog today – sorry to get here so late. I was actually getting a lot of writing done today, and then President Obama’s speech.
To answer your question, I think it depends on the book. Sometimes the author does such a good job of building the tension and mystery, that I love the surprise of finding out. But for the most part, I think I like the villain’s pov or clues that build up the tension throughout the book. So I can yell at the hero and heroine to “WATCH OUT” or “DON’T GO THERE”. lol.
Fun blog! And great site, Vagabonds!
Laurie
Kirralee,
How do I keep my interest/excitement going when I’m making the everyday mistake of going back and editing instead of pushing forward? Two things: First, never underestimate the power of a deadline. I give myself 3 to 4 months to craft a complete first draft (i.e. 5 to 7 pages a day Mon-Fri). So even if I want to fritter away half the day on editing back portions, at some point during the day I HAVE to craft 5 to 7 new pages. I remember the goal for my first story was entering the Golden Heart contest because it had a firm deadline date. Second–for me, the worst thing I can do is leave a ms to molder for a few days. It starts to smell if I don’t keep poking it. The worst thing I ever did was go away on vaca for a week once and when I came back it was really hard to get back into the rythm of the story.
Tracey–
I feel for you. Good luck on your “reveal” — and re that elusive magical answer, maybe this will help: Mary Jo Putney says it take a little arrogance to be a good writer. So sometimes when I’m really stuck I gulp down a triple shot of expresso and pretend that that adrenaline rush is really an infusion of Putneyesque arrogance which forces me to pull up my big girl panties and pretend I know what I’m doing–for at least 30 minutes .
Hi Laurie–
Thanks for stopping by.
And thank you to everyone on the Romance Vagabonds site for inviting me here!
Hi Sophia, I love your books! I cannot wait to read this one!
Well, the first thing ‘revealed’ in this post is that the cover heroine looks like the author! Imagine the double-dipping potential for people who can collect royalties on the words and model fees on the cover art.