I have written an outline for a story, and I need some help on making a certain aspect of it interesting. The story will follow a suspenseful criminal investigation, while also following the races/championship of a Formula 1 style racing series. I'm not sure how to make the "racing chapters" interesting. "Driver 1 passed Driver 2 going into the turn. Driver 2 passed Driver 1 coming out of the turn." doesn't sound that interesting, and I also think a sportscaster commentary style of writing would make those parts of the story very repetitive and uninteresting. Does anyone have any ideas or know of any stories/authors that would provide a good reference of writing about races? Thank you.
Instead of making it like a commentary, have the character be part of the experience. Show what is happening. For example: Joe was in pieces. A big fat expensive ticket, and for what? His favourite racer was losing. He slammed his camera under his seat with no care for the damage caused and frowned. Why was Hamilton doing so badly today? First the tyre blowout, then the near crash. What was next, him finishing last place? It would probably happen knowing his poor effort today. "Annoyed at someone, huh?" He looked up to see a smiling woman with flowing blonde hair sitting down next to him. Joe's frown lessened. "Kinda. Who'd have thought the British suck donkey ass?" The woman laughed. "Hey, not so harsh! I'm British you know," she said, wagging her finger, "so be careful what you say." Joe grinned. "So what's your name?" he asked. "Molly. And you?" "It's Joe. Joe Jones." "Well it's nice to meet you, Joe...oh man, really?" Molly stood up furiously, shouting a flurry of curses. Joe was startled at first, then fixed his gaze to where she was looking. It was no wonder she was so angry - Nico Rosberg had caused a three-car crash, resulting in several bits of metal and other such things to fly onto the track. "Was Hamilton in the crash?" Joe asked hurriedly. "I can't see from where I'm sitting." She looked at him. "Stand up then!" She grimaced as soon as she said that. "And yeah, Hamilton is in there." Joe shrugged. "I guess it's more than just the British who suck donkey ass." Sorry that you had to read such a long piece; I got a little carried away. But can you see where I'm coming from? Can you see how I'm slowly feeding details of the race into the dialogue between Joe and Molly without being too burdensome (hopefully)? Don't just talk about the race; talk about the people there, the smells, the things you can taste, the things you can hear. Try and wrap a story around the race itself, otherwise the reader will get bored and switch off, especially if they hate sports! Hope this helps you on your way.
