Avoid Predictable Situations

When I am following a story, whether it be a book or a movie, I can't help from wondering what will happen next. But the surest way to break me out of the story is to create a very predictable situation. At that point, I'm no longer wondering what happens next, so I just wait for the obvious conclusion to occur.

For a classic example, consider a story where the main character is sneaking into or out of a building. There is the quintessential scene where the protagonist is hiding and a guard is inches away. This is supposed to be a very tense situation, but to me it is boring. People are normally gripped with wondering if the person they've been rooting for is going to make it or not. But to me, there are only two possible options: the guard spots the hero or the guard doesn't spot the hero. So the only thing I wonder is which one the writer chose.

A classic argument to this dichotomy is the introduction of a third party. What if the protagonist's friend shows up out of nowhere and incapacitates the guard in question? Well, then it is still a case of the hero didn't get caught. And if that friend screwed up the rescue event and alerted the guards, then the hero got noticed (or at least was not completely successful in not causing a stir).

Now, one might make the argument that I am oversimplifying, that any situation can be broken down into simple paths of which one must be chosen. To that, I respond, only if you are a boring writer. These choices are easy to create because they seem so dramatic. The problem is that all of these situations have been done, usually to death. If you create situations with more possibilities, it makes it more difficult for the reader to guess what is going to happen.

Travel to new locations. Meet new people. Have large groups of people in the same area. In these situations, anything is possible. A new location may be very similar or vastly different, but it may also be a blend of the two (perhaps certain customs or phrases exist in both places, but they have different meanings). New people are always unpredictable until we learn who they are (unless you are a very flat and obvious writer). Putting several people all in the same area allows them to feed off each other. If there is an intense dialogue, another person can chime in to change directions. There can also be two different conversations going on which can merge over time. For example, if the hero is discussing a plan to sneak into a building and some kid is talking about how good he is at paddle ball until the string snaps and the ball flies everywhere, the hero could overhear that story and get an idea to create a diversion.

These are but a few examples and situations that can work. I admit that it is difficult to avoid predictable situations, but it is worth it. The point of writing for others is to entertain, so avoid predictable situations, and you will be far better at entertaining.