This post was originally published in February 2016 and updated in March 2024.
Whether you’re writing a short story or an epic novel series, fictional time is going to pass during it.
Obviously enough, fictional time is not the same thing as real time (unless you’re watching 24). Your novel might take four hours to read – and cover events that take place over the course of several months. (And it could well take years to write.)
Why Time in Fiction Can Be Problematic
In real life, time passes at a constant rate, even if
it feels like it’s slowing down or speeding up at times. We sadly don’t have the option to skip or fast-forward through the boring bits.
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