…but the big question is when?
When do I reveal what Lyra is hiding? What David is hiding? What Annie is hiding?
Most characters have secrets; it drives the conflict, increases tension and builds suspense. But what makes the conflicts interesting, the tension tense and the suspense, well, suspenseful, is that the secrets are parcelled out strategically to the reader in small, enticing pieces. If you knew who the murderer was at the beginning of a murder mystery, why bother reading? If you have no hint of a secret until the very end when all you get is one large information dump, what’s the point?
So, my characters have secrets.
You’ll know most of Lyra’s–she’s our narrator, our guide in this strange new world, but David, well, David’s another complex, complicated story. It’s not surprising; my timeline is short: Lyra and David meet Saturday and the turning point leading to the climax is Wednesday. A lot happens in the meantime, of course; there’s an intensity that drives them together, that makes Lyra feel like she knows David.
She doesn’t.
But she’ll learn. She’ll learn two important pieces of information that both explain a lot and complicate the plot.
In my first (dozen) draft(s), I have David’s two secrets revealed all at once. By someone else. He’s “outed”, if you will, and that, naturally, undermines Lyra’s trust in him.
That’s good in one way–don’t want to make anything too easy on my characters, especially Lyra (killing off her family wasn’t enough…), but David has been her ally in her new world; she still needs friends and she still needs help defeating the villain.
So in my latest draft, I broke it up. David is the one who confesses one secret. It helps Lyra better understand David’s choices and build a closer rapport. But David still holds back (so much for honesty in a relationship) and his last, biggest secret comes out at the worst possible moment by the worst possible character.
Or not.
Not sure if that’s the best approach or if I should dole out smaller pieces of David’s puzzle sooner… Or later? What would build the most tension? Create the most suspense? Affect Lyra most dramatically?
Wish I could ask you for your opinion, but, well, you know, the revelations are a secret (David made me promise) and well, cat or no cat, my lips are sealed. 🙂
