Using Subtext: a Writer’s Magic Trick

Editor Teresa Crumpton is not a magician, but her insights and suggestion for punching up our writing with subtext could make us feel like we just pulled a rabbit out of a hat. “I know it when I see it, but—” Subtext can be hard to define, but it’s worth the effort. For the purposes of this short article, let’s think of subtext as the part of a scene the intelligent reader brings to the story. Of course the expertise of the clever-and-confident author sparks the reader’s contribution. Characters often use subtext when blurting out the plain truth would be Read More