Distance; Emotional and Time

Hey, it’s me again, and for this post, I’ll be discussing the distance displayed in writing.

So, what do I mean by distance?

Well, there are two types of distance in writing, emotional and time, each represented separately. And now, I will explain them to you.

What is Emotional Distance?

Emotional distance refers to how close the narrator, reader, and character are to the events in the story. The closer it is, the more active the story’s voice will be.

Much like TV shows and movies, with how the scenes zoom in and out, emotional distance can be imagined as a camera coming in different shot lengths.

Here are examples of each:

Long shot: They hurried through the cold night.

Medium shot: They hurried through the night, squinting against the cold.

Close shot: As they hurried through the night, the cold bitter air nipped at their skin.

See how, unlike with the long or medium shot, the close shot made you feel what the character did. The description of the scene created a vivid picture and engaged your senses, which made it feel real.

That’s what I mean by emotional distance. Yes, the name is a little misleading, but you get the…