all write - fiction advice_ february 2012

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GettingthePaceRightPaceisliketheheartbeatofyourstorysometimesitssteadyandrelaxed,sometimesitracesatbreakneckspeed.

Pacedictatesthespeedatwhichyourreadermovesthroughyourstory.Skilfullydone,itcanspeedthingsupandslowthemdownwithequalmeasure,allwithoutthereaderreallynoticing,sogettingthepacingrightreallyisafineart.Doitcorrectlyanditcouldheightenyourreadersexperience,butifyougetitwrong,yourreaderwontwanttoreadanyfurther.

Paceisntjustabouttherateatwhichyourstoryistold,butitsalsoacleverwayofblendingaction,emotionandtension.Andthewaytoachievethatistochoosetherightwordsfortherightscene.

Paceisallaboutmomentumwhetherfast,sloworsteady.Whicheverway,yourreaderwantstofeelthatrate,tofeelsweptalongortofeelagentlelull.Theideaistovarythatmomentum,tomovealongsteadily,thenrampuptheactionandpace,thenslowthingsdowntoallowthereadertoreflect,andsoon.Withoutthispacing,astorymightfallintothetrapofbecomingtheclappedoutoldbangerchuggingalongabarrenroadatasteady35mphuntiltheveryend.Thereisariskthatthemonotonywillsendyourreadertosleep.

TheElasticBandmethod

Thebestwaytogettogripswithpaceisbythinkingofyour

A LL WR IT E F I C T IONADVICE

IsBackstoryNecessary?CreatingLastingImagesTrustYourMemoriesReadingYourMSSOutLoudSortingFactfromFiction

WE LCOME T O A L L WR IT E

Soyou'veembarkedonyourfictionwritingjourney.

It'soneofthehardestthingstodocreateawhole,believableworldforotherpeopletoenjoy,especiallyifyou'renewtowriting.It'salsooneoftheloneliestjobs,especiallywhenthereisnohelporadviceorsupport...sorightheretherewillbehandyarticles,examplesandsimplestepbystepguidestohelpmakethecreativeprocessthatmucheasier.

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A L L WR I T E F I C T I ON ADV I C EA D V I C E O N C R E A T I V E WR I T I NG

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storyasanelasticband.Ifyoustretchanelasticband,itbecomestautandtense,butifyouslackenit,itbecomesrelaxedandsoft.Thisisexactlyhowyournarrativeshouldbe.

Theimportantelementsofyourstorycrisispoints,actionscenesandconflictscenesshouldbetautened,andthepacealteredtoreflectthat.Thismeansthewritingaccelerates.

Softer,reflectivescenesorgentleemotionalorromanticscenesetc,representaslowerpace(andaslackenedelasticband).Thismeansthewritingismoredescriptiveandfullwithflourishes,whichdeceleratesthespeedofthenarrative.

Byalternatingthefastersceneswithslowerones,yourreaderwillenjoytheexcitementandthrillsoftheaction,buttheywillalsogetmuchneededrespiteinsoftermomentsandthereforetheyareabletosharethosemomentswiththecharactersthroughtheuseofempathy.

MilkthePotential

Nevermisstheopportunitytokickthepaceintoanothergearwhereitpresentsitself,otherwise,youwillhavemissedtheopportunitytomilkthereadersattentionandinterestatkeymoments,butdontforcethepaceifyouthinkyournarrativeislagging,otherwiseyouwillendupwithsomethingcontrivedandstilted.Lettheactiondevelopandgrownaturally.

Ifthenarrativeislagging,gobackandfindoutwhyitmightbeinneedofsomebrutalediting.

Choiceofwords

Choiceofwordsalsoaffectsthepaceofthenarrative.Whereactionisconcerned,bebriskandtothepoint.Ifyouhaveafightscene,dontspendsevenparagraphsbeautifullydescribingthenuancesofeachcharactersmovements.Instead,getintothethickofitandusesharp,staccatoorabruptwords,likepunch,hit,shock,thrust,whacketc.Brevityisthekeytoactionscenes.

Longerdescriptivewordsslowthepacewordslikestroll,amble,meanderetc,orsofterwords.Thenarrativewillimmediatelyreflectthatmood.

measure.Iamprivilegedtohaveeightshortstories/poemspublishedinthisbook,soifyoulikeyourdamesalittledarkanddangerous,thisisthebookforyou.

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WISE WORDS . . .

Writingislikebeingmarriedyouhavetoworkhardatmaintaininghappinessandequilibrium,butinvariablyonealwaysendsupinthedoghouse.

A BOUT ME

AJHUMPAGE

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I'vebeenwritingforover25yearsandstartedoutinthe

publishingindustry.I'vepublishedarticles,studyguides,poems,flashfiction,shortstoriesandanovel.IalsoworkfulltimesoI'mALWAYSworking.

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BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R

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Remembertheelasticbandsojustwhentheactionscenesreachacrescendo,bringthereaderbackdownandslowthenarrative.Thisisthemosteffectivemethodofvaryingpaceandtension.Andjustasthereadergetscomfortable,yankthatrugawayandbringintheactionagain.

Astoryshouldbelikeridingarollercoaster.Itcanbedeceptive,itmayseemgentle,thenitrushesyouovertheedge,sweepsyoudown,racesalong,thenlullsmomentarilybeforerushingyouupandoveronceagain...

Rememberthatbothconflictandemotionplayanimportantpartwithpacing.Whereverthereisconflicttherewillalwaysbeaslightincreaseinpace.Whereverthereisemotion,thenarrativebecomessofterandslower.

Thekeyistovarythepace.Takeyourreaderonthatrollercoaster,anddon'tforgetthatelasticband...

Nextweek:Turningpointscriticalmomentsinanovelexplained.

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WritingbynumbersNotunlikepaintingbynumbers,writingbynumberswritingtospecialcreativewritingprogramsisjustoneofthewaystohelpwriterspentheirbestsellingblockbusters,butthereinliesaproblem,becausemanyofthesesoftwareprogramsoftenclaimitsasurefirewaytopublicationandsuccess.

Thereality,however,canbequitedifferent.Writingexperience,andthequalityofthatwritinggetsyoupublished,notacomputerprogram.

Itsbettertodotheworkyourselfbecauseyoullfeelmuchbetteraboutyouraccomplishments,andyoulllearnsomuchmoreaboutthewritingprocesses.

Butdoescreativewritingsoftwareactuallywork?

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Itcanbeusefultoadegreetheyprovideanoverviewofnovelwritingmethodsandtheyhelpwritersunderstandsomeofthewritingprocesses.Theirsellingpointisthattheyoffertheframeworkforwhichtocreateyournovelhowever,notoneofthemwilltellyouhowyouapplysomeofthemostimportantaspectswhenitcomestowritingsheerhardwork,determinationandtheabilitytowrite.

Noneofthemwilltellyouhowtoactuallywriteanovel.

Thatsbecausethereisnocorrectway,norightorwrong.Youapproachwritinginthewayyouwantto.Writingreallyisthatunique.

Andtheironicthingisthattheresourcesandformatsthatsomeoftheseprogramsofferarealreadyonyourcomputer.Youdontneedanyfancyinterfacesorprettyscreenstoorganiseyourselforwriteyourwork,youdontneedspecialindexesorahundredwaystoorganiseyourscenes.Infact,bythetimeyouvemessedaboutinputtingnamesofcharactersandclickingonvariousbuttonsandsoon,youcouldhavehandwrittenafullcharacteranalysisandmovedontothenextcharacter.

Takeacloselookatthemajorityofprogramsandyoullfindtheyareaboutorganisingorganisingchapters,indexingcharacters,creatingsceneandchapterslistsetc.Someprogramshavenameandtitlegenerators,sotheyevenremovethatcreativeprocessfromthewriter.

Onefamouswritingsoftwareprogramevenhasamenusoyoucanlistallyourscenes.Butyoudontneedthat.Thescenesarealreadythere,inyourstory.Youareonlycreatingmoreworkforyourselfinanalreadylongwritingprocess.

Ifyouhavesomethingthatdoesmostoftheworkforyou,isthereanypointintryingtobeawriterwhenyouarenotactuallylearninganythingintheprocess?

Justwrite.Readandedit,thenrewriteetc.Thatsit.Thetrueheartofnovelwritingisnothingmorethanthat.

Becausesofewoftheseprogramsactuallygettothetechnicalgraftofwriting,novelwritingsoftwareisabitofamisnomer.Realistically,novelorganisingsoftwareismoreaccurate.Andinthetimeyouvespentorganisingallthemenusandlistsandindexesandscreens,youcouldhavewritten10chaptersofyournovel.

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Despitethedrawbacks,peopledousethesesoftwarepackages,andarehappywiththemandthatsfineitswhatworksforthewriter.Writingisapersonal,individualactivity,aspersonalasthewritingitself.

Forthemostpart,buyingagoodfictionwritingguideisamuchbetteridea(andcostsless),andwillhelpwritersestablishafamiliaritywithwriting,withrelevantadviceonwhatmatters.Theycanofferwriterswaystoimprove,theycanofferguidesonthekindoftechnicalaspectswritersshouldknowaboutwhenstructuringtheirwriting.Moreimportantly,theyshowwritershowtowrite.

Doyoureallyneednovelwritingsoftwaretohelpyouwritebynumbers?

Well,intruth,no.Sometimes,thebestwaytofindyourownsuccessistotreadyourownpathandnotrelyontheonesomeonehaspavedforyou.

Fictionguidesandwebsitesaremuchbetterbecausemanyarewrittenbywriterswiththeexperienceandthesuccesstoknowwhattheyretalkingabout.

Primarily,writingisaboutwriting,notorganising.

Haveyoueverpaintedbynumbers?Theresultisabitforcedandflat,butintheend,itdoesntteachyouhowtopaint.Itsthesamewritingbynumbers.

Ofcourse,youshouldgainasmuchguidanceandinformationaboutwritingwhereverpossible,bywhatmeansyoufeelcomfortablewith,butthebestwaytofindoutyourownwritingworthistoworkhardanddoityourself.

Nextweek:Pacinggettingitright

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Part2PositivewaystoemulateyourfavouriteauthorsAspreviouslymentioned,ourfavouriteauthorsplayanimportantpartinourdevelopmentaswriters,especiallyforthosewhoarejuststartingout.

Everyoneisdifferenteveryonehassomethingdifferenttooffer.Byreadingdifferentauthorsandgenres,youwillgetafeelforthekindofwritingthatisestablishedandsuccessful,sobyreflectondifferingstylesofwritinghelpsustonurtureourownstyleofwriting.

Wevepreviouslytouchedonthereasonswhyweshouldntcopyotherauthors,butwecanlearnagreatdealfromthembyfindinganddevelopingourowninspirationandcreativity.

Studyingotherwritersallowsustoseehowtheydevelopthestructureoftheirstories.Inotherwords,theyshowushowabalanceofdescription,narrativeanddialogueisused,howtheybringinconflictandresolution,howtheyquickenandshortenthepace,howtheydrawoutouremotions.

Italsoallowsustoseethevoiceofdifferentwritersitcouldbesoftandliterary,urbanandgritty,laidback,laconic...etc.Andtheyalsoteachusaboutthedifferentviewpointsandhowtheyreusedtobesteffect.

Establishedauthorscanshowushowtheyhavedevelopedplotandthemesthroughouttheirstories,aswellassubplots,andwecanseehowthesedifferentstrandsallcometogethercohesivelyinsuchawaythatitproducesaseamlesstale.

Wecanstudyhowauthorscreatemoodandatmospherewithintheirstoriesandhowtheycreatetensionaroundthestoryandtheircharacters.Wecanseehowwelldevelopedthecharactersare,howtheymakeusfeel,whethertheycreateempathyandemotion.Iftheydid,howdidtheyaccomplishthat?Ifnot,whynot?

Theuniquethingaboutdifferentauthorsistheirtakeonhowtheyuselanguagetocommunicatetheirstoriestotheirreaders.Thisrelatesdirectlytothatuniquesenseofvoiceandstyle,butthewayinwhichawriterexpresseshimorherselfisvitallyimportanttheuseoflanguageisperhapsthemostexclusiveaspectofawriter.

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Bystudyingthewaytheyuselanguageeffectively,writerscanlearnhowtobetterexpressthemselves.

Theonethingwritersalwaysworryaboutisbeginningsandendings,sobylookingatthewayyourfavouriteauthorsdoitmightalsohelpyouformulatehowyoubeginandendyourstories.Therearenospecificrules,butlookathowtheyachievethis.

Moreimportantly,readingyourfavouriteauthorsactsasamotivationalcatalystitcreatesadesiretowriteitmotivatescreativityandinspiresustobethebestwecanbe.

Theyteachussomanythingsanditshowweputthatknowledgetogoodusethatmatters.Writersshouldtakepositiveaspectsfromtheirfavouriteauthorsanduseittobolsterthecreativeframeworkforwriting.

SummaryWhatcanwelearnfromotherauthors?

WritingStructureWritingStyleWritingvoiceViewpointsCreationofmoodandatmosphereCreationoftensionandconflictsDevelopmentofcharactersUseoflanguageDevelopmentofplotandthemeBeginningandEnding

Becominginfluencedbyotherwritersisinescapable,butratherthancopyhowtheywrite,andcheatingonyourownlimitations,insteadexpandonyourownstyleofwritingandyoullfindyourselfbecomingabetterwriterwhodiscoverstheirownstyleandvoiceandsenseoflanguageintheprocess.

Byallmeans,learnfromotherwriters,bemotivatedandlettheminspireyoutobethebestwriteryoucanbe,butdontcopythem.

Nextweek:Writingbynumbersdoesitwork?

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EmulatebutdontcopyPart1Weallhavefavouriteauthorsandpoets.Weallenjoythewaytheycreateandweavetheirliterarymagic.Theyinspireus,motivateusandhelpusgrowaswritershowever,thatswherewritersshoulddrawalinebecauseitseasywhenyoustartoutfreshtowritingtowanttobejustlikeyourfavouriteauthors,andthatcanleadtoallsortsofproblems.

Themaindrawbackisthatmanywriterstendtocopyfavouriteauthorsthinkingthatthiswillbringpublishedsuccess.Butiscopyingthemsuchabadthing?

Thereareseveralproblemswithcopying,ortryingtobetoomuchliketheauthorsweadmire.Herearesomeofthepitfalls:

LackofvoiceLackofstyleNothingislearnedTheirmistakesbecomeyourmistakesBadwritinghabits

ManynewwritersreadthelikesofStephenKingorJKRowlingorDavidBaldaccietal,andareimmediatelypredisposedtothatstyleofwriting,theywanttobelikethosewriters,buttheyforgetthatforyears,theseauthorshavedevelopedtheirownuniquevoiceandstyleandliterarynuance,butthisissomethingthatallwritersmustfindwhiledevelopingtheirownwayofwriting.

Lackofvoice

Borrowingsomeoneelsesvoicejustdoesntwork.Establishedauthorshavetheirowndistincttoneandstyletheyvespentyearsperfectingtheircraft,tohonethatuniquesoundintheirwork.Sowhensomeonetriestowritelikethat,itbecomesforcedandcontrived.Also,therecanbeadistinctlackofcreativitywithinthework,simplybecausethewriterhasnttakenthetimetogrowanddevelophisor

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herownvoice.

Thevoiceislikeafingerprint.Itsexclusivetothewriterandshould,oncedeveloped,distinguishyoufromotherwriters.Itsapowerfuldevicepeoplewillgettoknowyourwritingbecauseofyourwritingvoicealone.

Lackofstyle

Thisbringsustostyle,orlackofit.Tryingtowritethewayafamouswriterdoesmaymeanyoucantdevelopyourownstyle.

Likevoice,writersmustalsodeveloptheirownstyle.Thiscouldbelushanddescriptive,itcouldbesparse,itcouldbegritty,itcouldbeliteraryetc.Whateverthestyle,itshouldspeaktothereaderititsownwayonethatthewriterhascultivatedanddevelopedthemselvesthroughpractice.

Ifyouarewritingtoomuchlikeotherauthors,takingtheirtoneandtechniqueandapproach,youwillfindthatyoudontactuallylearnanythingasawriter.Writingisalwaysalearningprocess.Themorewewrite,thebetterwebecome.

Tryingtoohardtowriteinastylethatisntreallyyouwillcomeacrossasfalseanddull.Yourstyleisyoursalone,nooneelses.

Nothingislearned

Aspreviouslymentioned,writingisallaboutlearning.Beingpublisheddoesntmeanawriterstopslearning.Writingdevelopmentneverstops.Relyingtoomuchonthewayyourfavouritewriterdoesitmeansthatyoubypassthatlearningprocessnothingislearned.

Writingthewaywedo,withourownvoice,ourownstyle,meanswelearnaboutthecraft,welearnaboutourselvesaswriterswhatweregoodat,whatwerenotsogoodat,andthroughthatprocess,wecreateourownpathtoimprovement.

Beinspiredbyothers,practice,learn,butdontcopy.

Theirmistakesbecomeyourmistakes

Establishedauthorsmakemistakes,somefamousonesarenotbeyonddroppingafewhowlerstoo,sowhennewwriters

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findthemselvescopyingthewaytheirfavouriteauthorswrite,theyalsoassimilatethekindofmistakesthatallwritersshouldavoid,thingsliketenses,poorsentencestructuring,tellingbutnoshowingetc.

Makeyourownmistakesandlearnfromthem,butdontcopyothersmistakesbecauseultimatelyyouwillbecomeignoranttobecomingabetterwriter.

Badwritinghabits

Thatbringsustobadhabits.Everhaddrivinglessonsfromyourparents,thenwhenyougetadrivinginstructor,youregivencontraryadviceandtoldhowtodothingsproperly?Thatsbecauseyouvepickedupyourparentsbadhabits.Thesameistrueofwriters.Nowriterisimmuneweallhavebadhabits.

Theproblemhereisthatbeginnersbecomesofocusedontryingtobeawriterthattheyabsorbeverythingfromtheirfavouriteauthor,andthatincludesbadwritinghabits(thingslikehangingparticiples,fragmentedsentences,alternatingtenses,lackofobservationetc)andtheyusethemintheirownwork,thinkingitwillimmediatelygetthempublished.

Byallmeansletotherwritersinfluencethewayyoumightliketowrite,butdontcopythem,otherwiseyouendupambushingthelegitimacyofyourownwork.

Thereisnothingwrongisemulatingotherwriters,theirinfluencesarehugelyimportanttofellowwriters,butdontbeapoorimitation.Beyourownwriter.

NextweekinPart2,welllookatpositivewaystoemulateyourfavouriteotherswithouttheneedtocopythem.

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