Creating Atmosphere and Tension

Atmosphere is the overall mood or feeling of a piece of writing. Tension is the sense that something important, dangerous, or uncertain is about to happen. Together, they are the engines of compelling creative writing. This lesson teaches you how to build atmosphere and tension through language, structure, and pacing.

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What Is Atmosphere?

Atmosphere is the emotional quality of your writing — the feeling the reader experiences as they read. It is created through a combination of:

• Setting — Where and when the scene takes place
• Language choices — The words, images, and figurative language you select
• Sentence structure — Long or short, flowing or fragmented
• Pacing — How quickly or slowly events unfold
• Sound — The sounds present (or absent) in the scene