chewy explanations

I'm at the end stretch of Thistleswitch, which means I'm at the point where I have to wrap up all of the little bits of the story. And, of course, one of the more major bits is the thistleswitch itself. I've just finished writing The Chapter in Which the Witch Explains the Switch, and I can't quite decide if I did a good job on it or not.

On the one hand, I think I explained everything that needed explaining. Why the Shift happens, how it happens, what the Whisperers have to do with it...all of that is in there. But, as with any situation where things are being explained to the reader, I can't tell if I got the pacing down or not. I feel like I shoved it all down the readers' throat in a couple of chewy paragraphs, which doesn't sound good at all. Then again, I don't really know another way to go about it.

And then there's the characters' reactions, which are important for obvious reasons. Sometimes I really have trouble balancing Aries, Merry and Niko, and making sure they're all present in a scene. Looking back, this bit is more like a conversation between Grandma Anine and Merry, with Niko and Aries apparently standing in the background and staring at their shoes.

I don't think I'm going to rewrite this chapter right now, because it's doing its job. This'll be one for the rewrite - finding out a way to explain everything that needs explaining, and include everyone that needs including, without making the chapter the most wordy thing in existence.

Do people ever stop learning how to write? Because I never have.