Good pace and tension are essential for engaging storytelling, especially during the highest stakes scenes. If we want people to stay engaged, the tension has to be pulled taut and held there during action scenes, giving the reader excitement and danger while maintaining the suspension of disbelief. In this workshop we’ll look at what makes a good action scene, why they’re powerful, where to put them in a story, and how to craft a scene for maximum impact.

Alan Baxter is a multi-award-winning author of horror, supernatural thrillers and dark fantasy liberally mixed with crime, mystery and noir. This Is Horror podcast calls him “Australia’s master of literary darkness” and the Talking Scared podcast dubbed him “The Lord of Weird Australia.” He’s also a martial artist, a whisky-soaked swear monkey, and dog lover. He creates dark, weird stories among dairy paddocks on the beautiful south coast of NSW, Australia, where he lives with his family and other animals. Find him online at www.alanbaxter.com.au.

Contact the host of Pace, Tension, Action! with Alan Baxter