The Stepping-Stone Scene

We are exposed to a variety of influences in this media-driven age, and one form of expression can naturally influence another. One way that film has affected novels is the use of a very short scene in which a character or two set up an event that will happen later. This sort of device works on the screen, because viewers are used to frequent jump-cutting among micro scenes. On paper, however, such scenes can clog up a novel. That’s because each time a reader starts a new scene, they are expecting it to advance either a character arc or a plot line. When nothing happens except an announcement that such-and-such is about to do something, the reader can understandably feel let down. So, that means I have to wait?

This prefatory device is what I call a stepping-stone scene. It’s a scene on the way to the scene in which the story is advanced. The problem is, unless the upcoming event is so dramatic that you think the reader will grow tense with anticipation, they don’t need such a scene. For example, take a six-line interaction in which Harry calls Beth to set up a meeting. Why can’t we go directly to the meeting? If you want to provide a link to the previous scene, you can explain in a passing sentence at the beginning of the meeting that Harry had called Beth. Mission accomplished, without the need for an extra scene.

The most frequent event in a stepping-stone scene is a phone call, but another culprit is the micro scene set in a car. For instance, Ryan is depicted taking Rosey from the police station to her house. The conversation consists of his asking where she’d like to go, and she says her house. Could the next chapter just start at Rosey’s? We assume that people use a motor vehicle to get from a police station to somebody’s house. 

Your scenes need to do the work of moving the story forward. So don’t bother with the announcements. Take us straight to the scene that is going to further our interest in what your characters are doing. Anticipation is okay, but how many times, really, do you think your reader is excited about an upcoming plot event?

Exercise: Thumb through the manuscript. Do you have any very short scenes that are merely connective devices to a later scene? Thumb ahead to the scene that the stepping-stone scene has announced. Look for a good place to drop in a sentence or two that summarizes the connective scene. You’ll usually find it within the first narrative paragraph (not dialogue). Then cut the stepping-stone scene and see how the story reads. What will happen is your story current will run more strongly.

“The wastebasket is the writer's best friend.”  —Isaac Bashevis Singer

Copyright @ 2026, John Paine