| Author | Message | ||
     Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
In February 2010, Franzen (along with writers including Richard Ford, Zadie Smith and Anne Enright) was asked by The Guardian to contribute what he believed were ten serious rules to abide by for aspiring writers.[42] Franzen's rules ran as follows: The reader is a friend, not an adversary, not a spectator. Fiction that isn't an author's personal adventure into the frightening or the unknown isn't worth writing for anything but money. Never use the word "then" as a conjunction – we have "and" for this purpose. Substituting "then" is the lazy or tone-deaf writer's non-solution to the problem of too many "ands" on the page. Write in the third person unless a really distinctive first-person voice offers itself irresistibly. When information becomes free and universally accessible, voluminous research for a novel is devalued along with it. The most purely autobiographical fiction requires pure invention. Nobody ever wrote a more autobiographical story than "The Metamorphosis". You see more sitting still than chasing after. It's doubtful that anyone with an internet connection at his workplace is writing good fiction [the TIME magazine cover story detailed how Franzen physically disables the Net portal on his writing laptop]. Interesting verbs are seldom very interesting. You have to love before you can be relentless.[42] | ||
| Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey) Username: Ramsey Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 92.8.16.70 |
"Then" - Lord, I recently found I'd used it as a conjunction all the way through The Hungry Moon. I changed that in the Samhain reprint. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Ha ha ha...scouring my recent work would mean I'd have to omit 99% of my prose (: | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
the TIME magazine cover story detailed how Franzen physically disables the Net portal on his writing laptop Wow, does he lack the discipline, to, like, just not go on the Net? This always amazes me, when writers struggle not to be distracted by going online. When I'm writing, I write. I never go on the Internet during a writing session. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.157.26.5 |
Possibly because of... When information becomes free and universally accessible, voluminous research for a novel is devalued along with it | ||
| Paul_finch (Paul_finch) Username: Paul_finch Registered: 11-2009 Posted From: 92.5.38.38 |
Here are my five rules ... Never write when you’re totally pissed. It may look great when you go to bed, but you’ll only have to rewrite it all in the morning. Never write when you’re gagging for sex. It will colour the way your male and female characters are interacting very inappropriately. Never write when the real reason you’re doing it is to avoid helping your wife with the housework on a Saturday afternoon. You won’t want to do it and will sit there, staring at an empty screen, plus she won't be fooled. Never write when your pet Labrador is wrapped around your feet. You may get too absorbed and accidentally run the coasters of your chair over her ears. Never read others writers’ rules on writing. It will leave you feeling very inadequate. | ||
| Weber (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 109.150.142.245 |
I love your rule 4 paul. I must admit I find I need to switch off the router if I'm planning to sit and write. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
I'm with Pual - good rules, mate.  Really, Weber? I'm extremely disciplined when I write - it's the only way I can get things done. Lots of writers I know say they drink lots of tea or coffee, and do all sorts of other things when they're writing. I just write. I stop when I'm tired or suffering from a lack of fluids, or if the words dry up. I like the Net on for reasearch purposes, though - checking spellings, or to help me when I'm trying to visualise an object I haven't seen for ages (Google images is a great writing tool). | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.29.56.240 |
Rule 1. Always keep your writing tips to yourself. It's taken you 20 years to develop them. Anyone looking for shortcuts can fuck off. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
The one rule I remember sticking with me, is that using "said" is perfectly okay, over and over, and even preferred to any other kind of spoken action ("shouted," "whispered," and God help us "ejaculated"). It's basically invisible to the reader, and like grease helps you move smoothly along the prose piece. "Use 'said,' or nothing at all," he ejaculated. Another, cribbed from Vonnegut, was to use only periods and commas, whenever possible - and avoid all other punctuation marks, like that one I just put there. And never ever ever allow characters to speak using ; or : or ( or / and so on, because people don't speak using ; or :, etc. It's basically impossible; and: looks (terribly) clunky/messy. ... oh yeah, and one other thing. Don't write shit. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.29.56.240 |
Said, asked, added, replied. That's all I ever use. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
... Gary breathlessly animadverted.  | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
because people don't speak using ; or :, etc. Of course they do. Real dialogue contains every single kind of punctuation in existence - as well as a few that aren't. People don't speak - in clean sentences; they use fractured...gramma. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.29.56.240 |
You mean, punctuation was invented to capture any and all speech patterns. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
No, that's not what I mean at all. But you already know that.  | ||
| Simon Strantzas (Nomis) Username: Nomis Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 99.244.133.208 |
Christ, I speak with ; and : and — all the time. But I agree most with listening to other people's writing advice. It's a waste of time. However, giving writing advice? That's something I could do all day, every day. Lastly, I'm with Zed about the internet. I subscribe to the notion that if writing is that important to you, it will be your first priority over those other temptations. That said, you need to turn off any internet notifications you might have. It's one thing to not be tempted to check your email, it's another to have you computer "ping" everything you get an email, interrupting your flow and demanding to be address. Temptations vs distractions. Only control the one you can. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
I agree with Paul that reading another writer/author's top ten tips for writing are not really helpful, but I do find it interesting to read what they think. Besides, if a writer of Franzen and King's and Ramsey's stature give advice, or merely explain how they work, and the rules they adhere to, who's not to say these are rules and 'ways' we shouldn't incorporate into our own writing. Just take a look at the response to King's On Writing to understand the impact that precise and clear writing instruction can offer. That's not to say a lot of aspiring writers didn't already know this, or in fact were stalwarts and practitioners already, but I believe his advice and instruction was invaluable to many people/writers. The problem with established/famous/successful/gifted writers giving advice about what not to do, is that sometimes 'we' recognize something we ourselves might be guilty of doing in our writing, and feeling threatened, we admit its purpose but decry it's relevance. |