Sunday Writing Tip: Add More Internalization to Your Scenes

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Each week, I’ll offer a tip you can take and apply to your WIP to help improve it. They’ll be easy to do and shouldn’t take long, so they’ll be tips you can do without taking up your Sunday. Though I do reserve the right to offer a good tip now and then that will take longer—but only because it would apply to the entire manuscript.

This week, check each scene for internalization. Are your characters sharing enough of their thoughts?

Last week, you added more emotion to your scenes. Emotion and internalization are often found together, so let’s build on that this week. Check your scenes and make sure you have enough internalization to show what the characters are thinking and feeling.

Aim for a good balance between thoughts that illustrate the character and how they feel about the situation, and the action and dialogue of the scene. While you don’t want a character who never shares their thoughts, you also don’t want one who’s too much in their head.

For more on writing internalization in your novel, try these articles:

• Thinking to Myself: Internalization 101
• What You Need to Know About Internalization
• Internal Medicine: How Much Internalization is Too Much?
• Living in My Head: Crafting Natural-Sounding Internal Thoughts
• Bob and Weave: How to Mix Character Actions and Internal Thoughts
• How to Write First-Person Internalization
• Avoiding Awkward (or Unnecessary) Internal Questions
• Getting the Best Response From Your Characters
• Choosing Which Thoughts to Italicize
• Are You Showing or Telling Your Internalization?