As a coach, when someone makes a mistake, my initial response is to correct them immediately.
When a white belt reaches for a collar and they get the angle wrong or their fingers are late, I can see the sweep coming before they do. My instinct is to stop the action, reposition their hands, and catch them before their mistake is fully realized.
Occasionally I do, but most times I hold back.
Because the lesson isn’t in the grip they almost got. It’s in the half-second after they miss it — the scramble, the choice, the decision to try again with better timing. Catch them every time and they learn my hands. Let them miss, and they start building their own.
Writing works the same way. And I catch my characters more often than I want to admit.
The rescue reflex
Writers are soft coaches with a keyboard. We know the potential of our characters, the ability they have to overcome their challenges. So we want to help them solve their conflicts quickly, providing a quick solution for them. As authors we often shy away from letting our characters sit with the consequences of their bad choices.
On the mats that’s over-coaching, trying to solve their mistakes too quickly or provide a thorough explanation for any wrong choice they’ve made, showing in another circumstance they would’ve made the perfect choice. But that doesn’t help our character learn and grow at their core.
What “missing the grip” looks like on the page
Information they almost got. A relationship that fell apart. A power that costs too much or arrives too late. The point is letting them feel the consequences of each choice, making them feel their next move is theirs.
When I wrote Malcolm and Isabelle in Blood Memories, the temptation was always there to explain everything, providing all the answers to the reader, destroying all the tension in the novel, making any new discovery land with a thud.
Instead, for Malcolm and Isabelle, each struggle, each shard of information was given bit by bit, making the characters bleed and sweat for every revelation, bringing the reader deeper and deeper into their progression.
So I try to let Malcolm and Isabelle miss. Reach for the wrong thing. Then watch what they choose when their consequences strike back. That’s when they stop being names on a page and starts to feel like a real people.
Three places writers catch too early
1. Info dump disguised as help
2. Ally who arrives on cue
3. Power that tidies the scene
Competence is built in the struggle. Let them miss the grip. Then get out of the way and watch who they become.
— KC
Originally published on Substack.
Leave a Reply