Always write a short time span

Laura J · May 14, 2014

I've noticed that I tend to write stories that take place all within a few days. Everything happens quickly. Is my pacing off? Or is that normal for a MG book?

How long of a time span do most MG books cover?

rwm4768 · May 14, 2014

It covers however much time it needs to cover. Some books cover only a few days. Others can cover an entire year (Harry Potter).

Drachen Jager · May 14, 2014

Depends partly on the genre. I think a few days is a little short to show real character development though.

Samsonet · May 14, 2014

The only time I noticed how long a story took place over was when the narrator mentioned it happened in a week.

I don't really think there's a "time limit", so to speak. A story can take place over a hundred years if you want -- all you have to do is skip the boring parts. On the other hand, wasn't there a book that took place over an hour or so, or was that a YA?

GeekTells · May 15, 2014

Tell the story you want to tell, and do it well. Don't worry about artificially contriving a pace to match something you think it should, just tell your story.

For most people, stories (and pacing) will evolve with time.

Laura J · May 15, 2014

But it feels like an inability, on my part, to write longer spans of time. A lack of skill in some way. I just plotted and timelined my new story and it happens quick, within a week.

Seems like the span of time makes sense for this story. But I don't seem to be able to do it any other way. Any suggestions?

Laura J · May 15, 2014

I tend to write mysteries, even within the fantasy stories. Maybe that's why? Mysteries I've read seem to run shorter time spans.

LieForALiving · May 15, 2014

I just taught Romeo and Juliet to my 9th graders, and very few people realize that this immense, powerful (and teenage angst filled) story takes place over just a few days, and that R&J fall in love and get married within 12 hours. If Shakespeare was outlining it on a forum, people would probably say he needed to draw it out, allow for more character development... But the rapid pace was what made what happened realistic (the teenagers were being STUPID). I believe all stories should move fast, so you can get lost in the action, but the physical time of it can vary.

I also agree that you shouldn't try and contrive a story to fit a timeline... Just go with whatever timeline fits your story. It's not a lack of skill, it's the TYPE of story you like to tell.

Ferret · May 15, 2014

My novels usually take place over a month or two. I don't think this makes them any better or worse than novels that take place over a few days or an entire year. As others have said, I just use the timeline that works for the story. I create a timeline to make sure all my references to time make sense, but otherwise I don't worry about it.

I want to add that in children's fiction, novels usually take place over a year or less. There aren't very many children's novels that span a decade or more, and I think this is because children's books target a specific age, and aging the main character too much can be a problem. Similarly, if it's a series, shorter time periods can allow you to fit in more books before the character grows up. I can think of exceptions, though.

Sage · May 15, 2014

Some stories need a full year. Some have a much more immediate timespan. Look at some Disney movies to see how a short timespan works just fine. Look at Harry Potter to see how (and why) time jumps work in a longer novel. It just depends on the story you're telling.

Laura J · May 15, 2014

I think it may work well as a MG mystery series. So, maybe the span is right. I think the characters will develop well. I wrote the first 5k and now I'm redoing it all because I needed to do a better plan and plot. And the villain isn't who I thought it was.

This is my first detailed plotting, very detailed. I'm a plotter by nature, but this is really well planned. It started off as a pantsed book. And didn't work for me. I got lost in the middle.

maybe I'm noticing writing patterns more. The first novel, now trunked, took place in a few days too. My second one was a week. I do think it being a mystery lends well to a shorter book. The stakes are on a tight time line.

The YA book I am thinking about and beginning to work on, will be a longer time span book. Thanks for your thoughts everyone.

What do you all tend to do for time spans?

Tazlima · Jun 6, 2014

Lol, I guess I have the opposite problem. I'm gearing up to submit a 600 word PB that spans 80 million years.

Wow, I did the math, and that's over 130,000 years per word.

romancewriter · Jun 6, 2014

There's a series of books about Nicholas Flamel, I believe it's YA, at any rate there are like 7 maybe 8 books, and each book takes place in about a day. The books are pretty lengthy too, 400 plus pages. But there's a lot going on, and various char POVs are showcased. Overall I believe the entire series concludes in about a week. So time frame isn't really the issue. It just depends on what's appropriate to the story.

Smish · Jun 7, 2014

Some of my favorite books take place in a short time span. It's YA, but one of my favorites, Graffiti Moon takes place in one evening. Chapter books almost always take place in a small time period (Ivy & Bean, Clementine, Time Warp Trio, etc.).

Polenth · Jun 7, 2014

I also tend to have shorter time periods for mysteries. It's generally a faster-paced genre, so I don't see that as a problem.

Always write a short time span

Laura J

Odessa Quinn

rwm4768

practical experience, FTW

Drachen Jager

Professor of applied misanthropy

Samsonet

Just visiting

GeekTells

Tick tock...

Laura J

Odessa Quinn

Laura J

Odessa Quinn

LieForALiving

Dancing with unicorns.

Ferret

Dook!

Sage

Supreme Guessinator

Laura J

Odessa Quinn

Tazlima

romancewriter

Smish

Reads more than she writes.

Polenth

Mushroom