Pacing gets talked about like mood lighting — subjective, ineffable.
It isn’t. It’s bandwidth management.
A story only works if the reader can process what you’re giving them.
Too much too fast, they drop packets. Too little, they disconnect.
Information Flow, Not Just Action
Pacing isn’t just about how many fights or kisses per chapter.
It’s about:
- How much new information the reader has to hold
- How quickly they can connect it to what they already know
- When you give them time to breathe before the next load
Good pacing balances cognitive load.
Bursts and Buffers
Every narrative needs bursts — high-intensity scenes with lots happening.
But bursts need buffers:
- Quiet scenes for context and processing
- Space for readers to infer rather than be told
- Slower beats where tension simmers instead of explodes
Without buffers, bursts turn into noise.
Bandwidth Throttling as Craft
Like a network, stories have limits:
- Dump too much exposition, readers choke
- Delay payoff too long, readers lose connection
Skilled authors throttle:
- They break info into smaller packets
- They stagger reveals so the reader always has capacity
- They pace tension and relief deliberately
Genre Affects Bandwidth
Different genres have different reader tolerances:
- Thrillers run hot, but still need breathers
- Literary fiction tolerates slower, denser packets
- Fantasy needs space to establish world schemas before action
Know your genre’s baseline bandwidth.
Pacing Is Infrastructure
Good pacing is invisible when it works.
The reader feels engaged without knowing why.
Like network engineers, writers who manage bandwidth well make the system feel seamless.
Get it wrong, and you feel the lag.