WRITING CRAFT: STACKING
Build momentum, deepen emotion, shape rhythm, let the feeling land before the logic
A stack in writing is a sequence of short phrases or sentences that pile up to build emotional weight and momentum. Instead of explaining an idea or feeling in a single statement, a stack layers one beat after another.
The effect is almost physical. The reader feels each phrase like breaths quickening. A well-crafted stack can feel meditative, even hypnotic, because the rhythm carries you along. It’s less about logic, more about accumulation: emotion by accretion.
This is #3 of WRITING TOOLS. The goal is to get you to write and introduce you to a variety of writing techniques that I researched. Keep reading or explore the previous ones:
Create intensity through stacking
This tool invites you to build emotion not through explanation, but through rhythm until the feeling speaks for itself. Below, I’ll explain why this works on both a psychological and stylistic level. Then I’ll share how to spot stacks in the wild, when to use them, and how to create your own.