How do you balance showing and telling when writing in the third person omniscient?

If you feel compelled to change focal character within the same chapter, scene breaks (the skipped line) often work the same as chapter breaks, so long as you make it clear that the viewpoint has changed and whose viewpoint it is. This can be done via tags ("Flora said,"), action, or clearly attributed internal monologue.

Show important moments with vivid details and dialogue, while using telling for transitions, summaries, and internal thoughts. Blend showing and telling strategically to maintain a balanced narrative. Trust readers' imagination and provide enough information without overwhelming every scene. Practice finding the right balance to create an engaging and immersive story.

One approach is to use the device of an unreliable 3rd person omniscient narrator -- someone who is misleading to the reader/ audience deliberately or simply by accident. How is that possible given the omniscience of the narrator? Because at the end of the day, it's a human voice, and the voice of the narrator can mislead on purpose because they have an axe to grind or something to hide -- or they can simply muck up the narrative because they are flawed by a simple human lack-of-objectivity.

Details are key to balancing out a scene that involves telling. This refers to whether it is an invisible narrator relating information to the reader or one character relating information to another. Sensory details in particular are valuable. Don't forget where the scene takes place. There are sounds your characters hear, odors they smell, and physical responses they have, both to the information they are receiving and the world around them. They wince at sirens and wave away cigar smoke. Their heartbeat chills at bad news. These responses and 'bits of business' provide a break from the telling and put your reader in the scene.

It is always important to know whose perspective is guiding the narrative and revealing the actions. But an engaging and challenging story does not always stay attached to that perspective throughout the story. A great story can shift perspectives and points of views, but the writer just needs to be actively aware when they are doing it, and make sure it is clear to the reader.

Show is always the most entertaining and engaging way to push forward the story. But 'tell' can be helpful to move the story along faster, especially when showing could drag down the pacing. Tell if it gets one to the juicy bits faster.

Sensory details can really do the heavy lifting in terms of explanation or exposition. For example, the light shifting in a room or the hands moving on a clock can illustrate the passage of time. However, when writing in third person omni, it's important that writers be meticulous about which details they choose to include. Focus on the details that help you accomplish what you are trying to do in the scene.