Writing a Scene

What should you be thinking about when writing a scene for the first time?  What does this video have to say about this?  What should you be thinking about rewriting a scene?  What does this video have to say about that? 

    When writing a scene for the first time, there are two important questions that you should answer for the scene: 1) "What do my characters want, both in the scene and in the story?" and 2) "What happens in the scene that changes the story and moves it forwards?" Knowing what the characters want in the scene is very important because motivation is needed for a scene to actually have a purpose, helping to keep the story focused and moving forwards. It is important that the scene changes the story's trajectory in some way as it changes the characters and progresses the different types of conflict within the story. This can range from major moments, such as confrontations, to smaller moments, like characters debating.

    When rewriting a scene, you should being keeping in mind what the characters want, what the specific problem is in the scene, how the characters try to get what they want, and how does the scene change the overall story. These are good reminders of what is needed to make an effective scene in the first place, such as understanding the goals of the character(s) in the scene and knowing how it affects the story. Additionally, these guiding questions help hone the important details about the scene and make them more interesting. Including a source of conflict in the scene creates a more entertaining/engaging one as, without conflict, it would simply be exposition, which can bore the audience. Understanding the way that characters are trying to get what they want can reveal important characterization and show the lengths which the character may go to in order to achieve their goal.