The Power of Micro Tension

We've talked a lot about how we need to care about the characters in order to be invested in them. That is a perfect match with the concept of micro tension. If you give your character enough texture that they have a hobby or a job or something that they love outside of the plot, then suddenly you've given them something they can be working on in the background of a scene. Our thing of the week this week is Mark Oshiro's new young adult novel Into the Light. It is a very twisty thriller told in a nonlinear way.