I think Bridges are very important for stories, you can't just have a big scene of action then just end it like that, you have something to lead into the scene and you have to have something that moves the story to next part. I hope I'm making some scents for you. I'm not a teacher.
You're making perfect sense, Stephanie. Bridges are very important. It's sort of like falling asleep in Wyoming and waking up in New York City with no idea how you got there. Even if it isn't that extreme, the only reader who doesn't need bridges is the author. And the author better put them in because memory isn't perfect.
One of the most important things for all writers to have is clarity. If your reader reads a sentence and then says huh. You've made a mistake. You have to ask yourself a few things when you're writing, first and foremost who will be reading it. If you writing for school age readers don't write on a college level. They are not on a college level yet, also you need to also ask yourself who is your main character cause its not clear if you're jumping from person to person. It becomes confusing and you don't have clarity when its confusing.
Other important C's in writing are Climax which is the high point in your plot. You need a strong climax that catches the reader's attention. The climax should be the best part of a book for once it happens the plot begins to calm down to an ending of story.
Since I've been writing mysteries off and on for around 50 years, the word Clues comes to mind.
Personally, I like my clues floating gently over (or under) the details in the story. If they poke up like flags, I like them to be false clues - red herrings. But then, sometimes not. ;-)
I'd say the most important C is Character. All stories are aboutt people-even plot driven stories are about people in situations. Even if your character doesn't "grow" or change as part of your story, the character still needs to be believable, relatable and interesting to your readers. There are many different ways to develop characters, the best way is the one that you find helps you understand your character best.
