Tension in a story: what a character wants and what stops them
Tension makes a reader want to continue. To find it, ask three questions. What does the character want (the goal)? What stops her (the obstacle)? How does the writer make us wait? Writers use a deadline, short sentences, repeated attempts and details of time, for example 4:48 and then 4:53. A short sentence makes the pace faster; a long, slow description can make us wait. The writer often stops at a moment when we do not know what happens next. To explain tension, write: The writer builds tension by … because … In your reader, Chapter 3 is on pages 18 to 22. Read it and look for what the character wants and what stops him, but do not retell it here.
| Question | Example from our story |
|---|---|
| Goal | print the project before five o’clock |
| Obstacle | the printer stops; the paper tray is empty |
| Waiting | the time moves: 4:48, then 4:53 |
| Short sentences | “Then it stopped again.” |
The clock above the library door said 4:48. Laila pressed the green button again. The printer hummed, coughed and stopped. Her project was due at five o’clock, and her teacher never accepted late work. She opened the paper tray. It was empty. Behind her, Mr Hamdi, the librarian, began to turn off the lights, one row at a time. Laila ran to the next room, found a new pile of paper and ran back. 4:53. The printer woke up with a slow, tired sound, and the first page slid out. Then the second. Then it stopped again. Laila held her breath.
Tension notes. Choose a story or a film you know. Write the goal of the main character, two obstacles and two ways the writer makes you wait (time, short sentences, repeating). Then write two short sentences of your own that build tension in a scene at a bus stop. Do not retell the story.