Do You Write in Layers

When it comes to the classics, I am sure many would agree that we tend to go back from time to time and read them again.

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A great story reveals layers rather than a single plot line.

Characters have depth and they interact in ways that can surprise us when we read the story a second or third time. You could say that is what makes them classics.

But what if you wanted your readers to go back and read your story again? How would you make that a goal?

When I say Layers, you may think I am talking about Subtext. Subtext is a type of layering, where the characters hide what they mean behind their words.

For example, a character could be talking about the weather when he really means there is trouble brewing on the horizon.

That is subtext. Layering is including an object or a reference to something that the reader could easily overlook on the first pass, but upon rereaading the story, it becomes clear as day.

It’s as if every story is also a mystery, something Agatha Christie could have written or read.

When an object has meaning from an earlier chapter, and it appears again later, it carries that earlier meaning with it. The reader may be the first one to see it, if the character doesn’t and that makes the reader want to go back and see if there is anything else they may have missed.

If you plant seeds, clues, Easter Eggs, throughout your story, you can refer to them again later, within the same book or even in a later book in the series.

You are going to go over your drafts many times, so why not give it a thought. What can you plant that can add a layer of meaning to a later scene when it is referenced again?

I mentioned before that one of my readers told me she wanted to go back and reread an earlier book in the series to see what she missed. I planted a family tree in book 1, and then introduced those ancestors in book 2, going back in time. So, knowing the family tree would tell you who is who and something about what might happen to them.

When writing a series, you might want each book to function as a stand-alone book for the reader who starts with that book. If you include enough backstory to satisfy the current storyline, but imply that there is more, the reader already has the source. They can go back and reread it, or they could buy it if they don’t have it.

This is one form of marketing as structure.

Plan ahead and reference backward. Give the reader a second perspective on a prevously read story, while treating them to a new storyline. It’s a lot of fun to write this way. If you haven’t read my series, you might want to give it a try. Or not.

Stay tuned for more Marketing as Structure in planning spin-offs and merchandise.

Thanks for reading…

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