Fillers. Fillers. Fillers.
You're guilty, or at least you were, just like me. I know that it's very tempting to write stuff in your stories that are totally random just to probably add some kilig or humor. But is that scene really necessary, or does that at least support your plot? Speaking of plot, do you have one, or you're not the kind of writer who does an outline? I'll talk about outline in my next chapter.
If a scene can be erased nang hindi naaapektuhan o may nababawas sa plot mo, well my friend, that's a filler. "Just get to the point already!" Oh, I'm sorry, that's the voice in my head talking every time I read a story that's full of cliche scenes that I've read from countless of stories here in Wattpad na, na alam ko namang hindi rin magkakaroon ng connection whatsoever sa plot ng kwento. It's just there because... well, it's there.
Not every scene or dialogue must be so impactful or talagang pasabog, but every scene must have a purpose. Every scene must help your story get to where it should get to, kahit maliit lang na detail yang maitutulong ng scene na yan.
For example, you write a scene about the protagonist going to a church with her family. Is that scene just all about small talks and a little humor? Na kapag tinanggal mo ang scene na yun ay hindi naman maaapektuhan ang takbo ng kwento mo? Or is that meant to introduce the character's stubbornness and disrespectful language? Add a little foreshadowing in there, na parang mapapaisip kang yang ganiyang ugali niya ang pwedeng maging isa sa factors ng magiging conflict sa buhay niya.
Every scene must have a purpose. If it doesn't have one, then delete mo na, or summarize mo in a paragraph. Remember, you can write happenings in the whole year in just few sentences, and you can write a one-hour scene using a whole chapter. It's up to whether it needs to be emphasized or not. Let's not bore our readers, please.
Keep in mind though, it's fine to insert some short fillers from time to time as a breather in your story, or para makapagpahinga naman ang magbabasa mo, pero wag mong paikutin ang kwento mo sa fillers lang.
Main point is if you want to improve in writing your novel, then stay away from depending on fillers. It's easy to bombard your story with random chapters just so you can quickly finish the story (I did this. I'm not gonna lie.) and say "Ganto na karami ng finished stories ko.", but I mean when that's full of fillers, what's the point?
Good luck, co-writers! 🌼✍🏻
BINABASA MO ANG
Writing Thoughts
Random"We writers write our own pain even if that means piercing our own feet by walking on the same broken pieces again." -Krisu-rin Just my realizations, thoughts, and learnings, through my writing journey and exploration that I'd like to share with you...
