Hi all,
When a scene changes, instead of using ' * ' I would just say after a fortnight etc or have a bigger space before I begin the new scene. I much prefer the latter. Otherwise there will be too many ' * ' to show different location. Is this acceptable? What are the rules for this?
Grateful that if anyone of you can enlighten me on this.
Many thanks.
Melinda
Many thanks Lorraine and Adrian,
Excellent tips, this gives me great confidence. Space definitely sounds good and works well for me.
Your time is very much appreciated.
Cheers,
Melinda
I agree with Lorraine. White space is more commonly used in contemporary novels for a change of Time, Subject, Place, Viewpoint. Asterisks are used sparingly.
Skilful writers avoid the use of asterisks and white space.
A smooth transition between passages of text can be achieved with the use of a sign-post, to act as a bridge.
Joanne Harris uses symbols as sign-posts, between changes of scene.
You only need an extra line space, Melinda. In publishing, traditionally the asterisk is used when a scene break happens at the end of a page, where a line break wouldn't show up; but if you were publishing an ebook, that wouldn't apply because there are no pages as such. I have not used any asterisks in my own paperback book at scene breaks - just the space. It works perfectly well.
Lorraine