Uncategorized
Action Beat Imbalance
Flags scenes where over 80% of dialogue paragraphs include a micro-action beat (nodded, sighed, shrugged).
What It Does
Counts dialogue paragraphs in a scene that contain micro-action beat verbs. When more than 80% of dialogue is accompanied by a physical tic, the diagnostic fires.
Why It Matters
Action beats provide grounding and characterization, but when every single line of dialogue is followed by a nod, sigh, or shrug, characters become twitchy marionettes. Let some dialogue breathe on its own.
What Gets Flagged
| Severity | Example | Why | Suggested Revision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information | 8/10 dialogue paragraphs have beats (80%) | Excessive beat saturation | Remove beats from 3-4 lines; trust the dialogue alone |
Configuration
No configuration options. Requires minimum 5 dialogue paragraphs per scene.
Technical Details
- Source:
prose-craft - Scope: Scene-level
- Method: ParagraphKind::Dialogue filtering + micro-beat verb lookup