Editing Subtext (section)

==About subtext==

Subtext is content "sub" i.e. "under" (with the sense of "hidden beneath") the verbatim wording; readers or audience must "gather" subtext "reading between the lines" or [[Inference|inferring meaning]], a process needed for a clear and complete understanding of the text.  A meaning stated explicitly is, by definition not subtext (for lack of hiding), and writers may be criticized for failure artfully to create and use subtext;{{Citation needed|date=December 2020}} such works may be faulted as too "on the nose", with the characters  meaning  what they literally have said, undermining [[dramatic tension]], and leaving the work too prosaic.<ref>{{cite book |last=Seger |first=Linda |date=November 1, 2011 |title=Writing Subtext|location=Studio City, CA |publisher=Michael Wiese Production |chapter=Chapter 1: Subtext: Definition and Exploration |isbn=978-1-932907-96-4 | author-link=Linda Seger }}</ref>

Subtext also may be included in the action of [[narrative]]s, with secondary themes expressed in order to appeal to a general audience. Such approaches to sexual or otherwise more adult story-content, in works accessible to the young, often fails to "register" for the young reader, though adults will catch the child-invisible nuances.