Suspense vs. dramatic irony

[SwallowFeather]

So, in a nutshell, it's like this. John and Jane are in love but currently severely estranged. Jane broke up with John b/c of something he did, which he believed at the time to be the right thing. John has a genuine change of heart, makes some preparations, and when the time is right for the final showdown, takes some public and quasi-heroic risks in hopes of reversing what he's done. Thus does he win Jane's heart back and the romance ends happily.

Jane doesn't know about John's change of heart till the climax of the final showdown, because, well, this is a novel and that is a climactic scene. This is also justified on a practical level b/c they're estranged and don't see each other, and he believes she'll never forgive him and doesn't even expect her to be present at the showdown, etc etc.

So here's the question: should the reader know?

I could go with suspense: the reader doesn't know. The reader receives hints: we get some of the scenes that spark John's change of heart, but not enough to know what decisions and actions he's taking. And from Jane's POV we hear about the enormous forces in his life that weigh against his changing course. Then, in Jane's POV, we walk into the showdown and see him alone and scared and brave, taking his stand with no idea she's watching, and we feel the joyful surprise with her and that's the big moment.

Or I could go with dramatic irony: the reader knows everything Jane doesn't know, as John makes his preparations. Then a moment comes, before the showdown, where she encounters John in a chance, unstable situation and has to decide in a split-second whether to trust him, having no idea that her choice might make or break what he's preparing to attempt. (Full disclosure, I'm still working on how to make this precise dynamic happen. But there are reasons he can't tell her everything in that moment.) This, then, is the big moment, as we fear that her assumption that he can't change might still sabotage everything, and then her buried love & trust for him tips the balance and spurs the story on toward its good ending.

(Either of these could be made to work fine with POV btw; he's got maybe 20% of POV and she has the rest.)

Which do you like better? What usually tips the balance for you, between suspense and dramatic irony?

 

[TheKingsWit]

While I think that either could work in general, for me the tipping point would be based on how important is John's story is on it's own. If we get to see a lot of him and his internal struggles, then I, as a reader, would want to get to see his change of heart as it happens, not just in hints and after the fact. If, otherwise, it's primarily Jane's story, then leaving the reader in the dark along with Jane shifts the focus of the climax onto her actions and decisions.

 

[SwallowFeather]

While I think that either could work in general, for me the tipping point would be based on how important is John's story is on it's own. If we get to see a lot of him and his internal struggles, then I, as a reader, would want to get to see his change of heart as it happens, not just in hints and after the fact.

This is a really, really good point and a good question--one I'm going to have to answer for myself as I haven't yet. Exactly how important is his story?... it's important, which is why I even gave him a POV, and his change of heart has a whole structure of family secrets revealed to support it (those revelations would be given to the reader in real time, just not the whole sum of his reactions), so it might warrant prioritizing. But I'm not quite sure yet...

If, otherwise, it's primarily Jane's story, then leaving the reader in the dark along with Jane shifts the focus of the climax onto her actions and decisions.

... because this is important too. I think part of what worries me is that I feel she doesn't have enough to do. He changes and takes action; she forgives him. (She does take some action in the showdown too, but it doesn't fall to her to tip the balance.) It's especially the big moment of character choice & change that I feel she's missing, which is why I'm trying to engineer a way for her to make or break his mission at the last minute. Her big issue is trust, which is why I'm trying to make the outcome dependent on whether she chooses to trust him (when given good but scanty reason to do so.) Maybe my decision will end up depending on how well I can construct that particular scene...

 

[Sinuka]

Of course, this is partially a question of personal preference.
I would prefer the suspense version, since I am easily bored by 'everyday' perspectives and writing styles you already read hundreds of times. If you do it right, it can be really mind-blowing including the final revelation and explanation of the prior hints.
However this might turn out to be more difficult to write since those hints shouldn't be too difficult to understand/remember but also not too shallow to give everything away before.

In the very end, you should choose what feels more comfortable to you. Sure, the opinion of your readers are important but in the end you can only write good, if you feel good with writing it.

Good luck! ^w^ ~♫

 

[TheKingsWit]

... because this is important too. I think part of what worries me is that I feel she doesn't have enough to do. He changes and takes action; she forgives him. (She does take some action in the showdown too, but it doesn't fall to her to tip the balance.) It's especially the big moment of character choice & change that I feel she's missing, which is why I'm trying to engineer a way for her to make or break his mission at the last minute. Her big issue is trust, which is why I'm trying to make the outcome dependent on whether she chooses to trust him (when given good but scanty reason to do so.) Maybe my decision will end up depending on how well I can construct that particular scene...

If this is Janes story, and you don't have any big development moments for her, then I'd recommend either going for suspense or creating another big character moment for her (or both). If we the reader know what the right decision is, that he's a good guy and trusting him is a good thing, then that can take impact away from her story. We know she has nothing to fear, nothing to lose by facing her flaw and trusting him.

 

[ldlago]

Jane broke up with John b/c of something he did

If the reader knows, but Jane doesn't, why John did what he did to cause the breakup, dramatic irony and a revelation could wrap this whole misunderstanding up nicely.

 

[ValerieJane]

This is a really interesting question. For your story, I think it depends on what effect you want to have on the reader.

I agree with TheKingsWit that it's important to determine how much of this story is John's. If we regularly see the story through his eyes, I would say it would be strange NOT to show the reader his plan. That would seem like a dirty trick that you'd try to pull on the reader. We can see most of the rest of what John's doing but you conveniently leave this part out for dramatic effect? Suspicious.

My gut reaction is to side with Jane. As a reader, I would prefer to experience exactly what Jane is experiencing in the moment. If given the same information and placed in the same climactic position, not giving the reader all the information that John has allows the reader to decide what THEY would do in Jane's shoes. For me, that's a more engaging experience as a reader. (You can always have John reveal his intentions during the falling action.) Especially since you say that Jane has most of the POV in the story, it would make the most sense for you to go with the suspense option.

 

[SwallowFeather]

Jane broke up with John b/c of something he did

If the reader knows, but Jane doesn't, why John did what he did to cause the breakup, dramatic irony and a revelation could wrap this whole misunderstanding up nicely.

It's a good thought, but she totally knows. I'm not really into the romantic misunderstanding trope, so these kids have a very serious conflict going on. He did it because his family believes in revenge therefore he believes in revenge, and she's utterly furious about that.

If this is Janes story, and you don't have any big development moments for her, then I'd recommend either going for suspense or creating another big character moment for her (or both). If we the reader know what the right decision is, that he's a good guy and trusting him is a good thing, then that can take impact away from her story. We know she has nothing to fear, nothing to lose by facing her flaw and trusting him.

Yeah, I'd been meaning to say, it really is Jane's story--I added John's POV in during revision, so it used to be entirely hers, but he became too interesting not to have a POV. My trouble with her is, she has great character-development moments in the first half, especially at the midpoint, but her character climax is still kind of eluding me. But I thought it over and it's a good point--I felt like we (the reader) could fear her not facing her flaw and screwing everything up because of it, but a really good dramatic choice should have something to fear on both sides, or it's not interesting enough to be climactic. At least not for the main character. Because it has to change them irreversibly, even if subtly. I wish I could put my finger on exactly how she needs to change.

We can see most of the rest of what John's doing but you conveniently leave this part out for dramatic effect? Suspicious.

Yeah, this is a very good point, but John's scenes are scattered enough that luckily I don't think it would have that effect. There's maybe one in every other chapter most of the time, but irregularly & with gaps. I will have to see how it goes when I get there, because it's still a little tricky getting this kind of thing right.

My gut reaction is to side with Jane. As a reader, I would prefer to experience exactly what Jane is experiencing in the moment. If given the same information and placed in the same climactic position, not giving the reader all the information that John has allows the reader to decide what THEY would do in Jane's shoes. For me, that's a more engaging experience as a reader. (You can always have John reveal his intentions during the falling action.) Especially since you say that Jane has most of the POV in the story, it would make the most sense for you to go with the suspense option.

Yeah, that's a point for sure. We probably want to identify with Jane all the more because this is not just a romantic subplot but an actual romance. Dramatic irony is conducive to detachment, isn't it? I've been leaning toward suspense, and I definitely think I'm leaning further.