There are a few ways to think about scene types. One is to think in terms of their significance to the story. This can refer to their role in the story arc or to their core story function or description such as protagonist meets love interest.
Another way is to think about scenes in terms of the mood they convey. This second way of thinking about scene types and functions can be helpful when fleshing out your novel beyond those few crucial storytelling elements that make up the story arc.
Action Scenes
These are scenes that are fast paced and (obviously) have action. Action doesn’t have to mean hand to hand combat or shoot outs and explosions. It simply means physical movement must occur, and a sense of being in the moment is conveyed.
Because things happen quickly in an action scene, the protagonist often has to make snap decisions which may have unforeseen consequences.
Contemplative Scenes
These scenes are slower and more reflective as the protagonist grapples or comes to terms with whatever came before. They tend to be made up of more internal monologue than any other type of scene.
Contemplative scenes allow the reader a break from high intensity emotions or action while the protagonist focuses their attention inwards.
Dramatic Scenes
These scenes are exactly how they sound: dramatic. They deal with the protagonist’s emotional state of being often focusing on relationships. The aim of a dramatic scene is to push the protagonist to make a decision or change in some way.
A well written dramatic scene will make the reader feel as much as the protagonist does.
Suspense Scenes
Suspense scenes create a sense of uncertainty and anxiety. They place the protagonist in jeopardy, have high stakes, and pressure the protagonist to act or change.
Well written suspense scenes rely on pacing. Slowing down the pace to draw out the tension provides more time for the reader to become anxious about what will happen next.
There is no hierarchy to these scene types. One isn’t better than the other. They are all valuable and should be used as needed depending on what sort of story you are telling. It is worth noting that too many of any one scene type in a row can become exhausting for the reader. So mix them up and get creative!
Did I miss any types of mood scenes? Let me know in the comments.
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Genevieve, I enjoyed your “Types of Scenes” post!
Previously, I had divided stories into “Dramatic Scenes” and “Exposition”. Your taxonomy improves my ability to outline/reveal the structure of stories and understand more about different authors’ approaches.
Question: In your description of “Action” scenes vs “Dramatic” scenes, you establish a clear marker that distinguishes them — physical movement. Is there a similar marker that distinguishes “Contemplative” scenes from “Suspense” scenes? I’m currently analyzing Robert A. Heinlein’s “Blowups Happen” and having trouble deciding whether to call the 2nd scene “Contemplative” or “Suspense”. The scene has a character (waiting for his relief) mentally reviewing the circumstances (human and technology-caused) that could cause the “Atomic Reactor” (the story’s central technology) to trigger a humanity-ending disaster. The scene begins to build the technological background the reader needs to understand the story (expositive), reveals the character’s anxiety (contemplative), and by graphically describing what can happen, builds the story’s “suspense”. How would you label something like this — or is it just the case of a “hybrid” scene?
An excellent question, Glenn. The defining marker between contemplative scenes and suspense scenes is where the source of conflict is coming from: is it internal or external? I’ve defined contemplative scenes as more reflective as the viewpoint character comes to terms with something. This means the conflict is internal. The viewpoint character is thinking about their situation, perhaps trying to decide what to do, wondering if they did the right thing, or wondering if whatever’s going on is their fault. Contemplative scenes are often an internal debate. Suspense scenes however tend to have an external source of conflict. The viewpoint character is actively engaging with someone or something, but the outcome is uncertain, the pacing is slower (than an action scene), and there is a heavier reliance on tension that keeps the reader hooked.
While hybrid scenes do exist, I would argue that one of the defined scene types will always stand out as more prominent. The Heinlein scene you are describing sounds like it is a contemplative scene because the conflict of the scene is internal. Yes, it has suspenseful elements, but those elements are building suspense for the broader story not this specific scene.