On Coherence, Cohesion and show don´t tell

Hello, class. Today, we’re having another “the teacher rambles day,” so feel free to relax, though probably not much… Yes, Neophyte, I know you won’t. Just do yourself a favor and try not to take this one too seriously. Why? Because this is something that you will grasp only through intensive study and an obsession with details. Not many can reach that level of thoroughness when they start out.

And as for you, Timmy, for today, just pay attention. The conversation about boundaries was more complicated than I expected, and you still seem a bit bothered by it from the looks of it.

So now, let me begin discussing two things that are crucial but often neglected by us writers.

Let’s start with a preface on exactly what coherence and cohesion are.

Cohesion refers to the degree of unity, consistency, and logical connection among various elements such as plot, characters, themes, and style within a story. It ensures that all parts of the narrative work together harmoniously to create a seamless and engaging reading experience for the audience. Essentially, if you have a grounded story set in Japan at the turn of the 20th century, and suddenly, a holographic display appears out of nowhere and for no reason, then you are breaking cohesion.

On the other side, coherence refers to the clarity and logical organization of ideas, themes, and narrative elements within a story. It ensures that the plot unfolds logically, characters’ actions are consistent, and themes are developed cohesively, allowing readers to easily understand and follow the story without confusion.

In a nutshell, both terms refer to maintaining consistency throughout the narrative. While I’m making a distinction, truth be told, you need both sides to keep the story alive. In other words, break one, and you end up breaking the other, making the entire thing you are working on fall apart.

To grasp these two concepts, you have to pay close attention to detail, building not just the characters but also the world as you go along. You have to tell your story as you show it with your characters and narrative. The golden rule “Show, don’t tell” is built this way.

The level of complication rises with the complexity of your story. There’s a reason why simple stories often seem like they came from an assembly line; they use tried and true patterns without any change. The important thing to remember is that you need to be mindful of every layer of the narrative, how the characters act, react, and simply exist. I’m not saying that complex stories are better than simple ones, nor that simple ones are better than complex ones. Each has its place.

Take trashy stories, for instance; I can’t get enough of those, mainly because they tend to break every rule in such an overwhelming way that my internal critic just crashes and burns, leaving me able to actually enjoy what I’m reading or watching.

However, there’s a big “but” in this story class, and for once, I’m thankful that you are both silent in this. You can’t do that forever during a narrative. There’s a limit to how much information you can load onto the page before the reader loses interest.

Case in point: adding a new character, almost out of the blue, at the end of the last book of a trilogy is not only hard but ill-advised. It can cause a massive whiplash on the readers. It can still be done, however.

What I mean with all of this is that as you progress with your narrative, you can build things up to a logical point. There’s only so much information that can be realistically used or that matters for the readers. Therefore, if you are still introducing characters by the end of the second act, then you are, most likely, doing something wrong.

This point varies between authors, but there’s a point of no return in every narrative, every tale, where you have to stop introducing new things to build your world or story and start wrapping up every thread that you left hanging.

Why? Because your story is but a self-contained slice of a larger whole. And if you can get that point across, extra points for being subtle, then you have a great story in your hands.

Don’t believe me? Try the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, for one. The Grand Master Tolkien built that as a tail end of a greater, grander narrative encompassing the entire history of Middle Earth. Sadly, if the rumors that I heard are to be believed, there was supposed to be another tale after that. But as far as I know, that is hearsay, so don’t quote me on that.

So, coherence, cohesion, and show don’t tell. The first two make up the latter. It’s really fascinating to think about.