You’re on about page twenty in a story that you imagine becoming a full-length novel. You’ve introduced the protagonist and placed her in a sticky situation.

You feel as if the beginning is solid, but a scene comes to mind that you see happening much further ahead. It’s a compelling story, with lots of tension and drama.

You’ve framed it in your notes, but you want to write it now, not wait until you’ve written another one hundred pages.

What do you do?

Write it! Include all the details that have been haunting your thoughts.

Is there a reunion between former friends who parted ways when they went off to college? What do they say or do?

Maybe there’s an accident and the other driver is a former boyfriend who broke her heart when he declared that he loved another. Is he single? Divorced? Just recently out of a serious relationship? Are there sparks between him and the protagonist?

Or perhaps your character is the victim of a crime. He’s lying bloody and beaten on the sidewalk after a group of men stole his wallet.

Your task is to write that scene including as much detail as possible. Include realist dialogue and actions. Develop the scene as fully as possible.

When you are finished, reread it to see if there is drama, tension, intriguing pacing.

Have fun with this one.