What Is Narrative Density and Why Does It Matter?

Are you Packing your prose, or just Stringing information?

Photo by Jacalyn Beales on Unsplash

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The job of the literary author is to pack the story in such a way that the full significance of each element expands according to the author’s design.

Hello Loreates!

I want to dedicate this post to

Amy Brown

, whose “Take 5” packet got me thinking about the role of narrative density in prose and the importance of packing details strategically at different points and for different purposes within a story. That’s the subject of this post for paid subscribers, which includes a companion exercise at the end.

I also want to thank Amy for her incredibly generous endorsement of my “Take 5” packet offering:

“Your work on my pages was astoundingly helpful. Your commentary was the most incisive, deep, and layered critique I have ever received on a set of pages. I felt you saw me as the writer as well as the fictional characters and world I was creating, an act of true literary guidance and generosity. You shared your excitement for what worked but you were also honest and incredibly helpful in the advice you shared to help me dig deeper and make the writing and story really come alive. Thank you for being the light to steer me in the right direction.”

I am humbled by these kind words and honored by the privilege of helping writers better see their work.

If you, too, would like an MFA-level response to your work, just become a Premium Member of the MFA Lore community! That upgrade will entitle you to my written feedback on 5 pages (1250 words) of your creative work, as well as on your query. My “Take 5 Packet Letter” back to you will highlight both the Strengths and the Opportunities in your work, helping you determine whether it’s time to “press send” to agents or reorient your revision. Price will go up next month, so upgrade today!

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Packing: this is the process that builds and orchestrates narrative density through curation of the words and details that carry the most associative weight and that signify more than their literal meaning.

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How Tightly Should You Pack Your Prose?

“The enemy of fictional density is the one-thing-at-a-time scene that simply shows you, the reader, one of the facets of the story, whether it be something about the characters or about the action or the setting.” —Thomas McCormack, The Fiction Editor