: Re: How do I avoid a “mid-story info dump?” I am revising the manuscript for a novel. About a third into the story, a major turning point occurs when the main character (through whom the reader

@Ogunnowo420

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Short answer:

Give hints along the book. Make the character notice stuff. It will make the "dump" shorter, even convert it into a short reference to scenes that happened.
Find a way to imbue feelings or actions in the section.

More on that:

Include at least some action. Surely there is something that sets off this train of thought. Try and be as brief as possible with the explanations, and make the realization go hand in hand with events that happen.

The character could have a moment of clarity while, for instance, riding on a horse. Or a donkey. Or watching the scenery from a really beautiful vantage point. Then they could reflect on some things, then notice something else in the scenery, maybe even link it with what they are thinking, and carry on.

It also helps to place the feelings in the right place, so it feels as if the character is evolving through the insight gained... outrage, envy, anger, shame... they could be feeling any or many of those while they have that moment of noticing what happened.

Of course, structuring it like thoughts of the character helps give it pace... you could transmit racing thoughts, or slow-boiling, raging machinations. Either way, the character can make the info dump an interesting part of the book.

Do avoid anything like the description of the vices Dorian Gray had fallen to. Those pages are a painful read to anyone, no matter how awesome the rest of the book may be. The mistake in there is nothing happens. You get the raw information; no emotion, no action. This is a perfect "how not to".

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