Advice for a First Time Author

It's a thin little book with some grammar and usage rules, and virtually nothing to say about the art and craft of writing fiction. And it's WAAAY overrated. It's just a book for non-writers who find themselves having to write something, like an essay for school. If you're trying to write good prose fiction, you might as well leave "Elements of Style" on the shelf.

 

'Strunk and White' is great about the technicalities on writing a readable sentence. Next to it on my bookshelve above my desk is 'Spunk and Bite' Which covers, in a much less dry tone, how to give your language the punch and umami it deserves.

There's also of course 'On Writing' which has been mentioned. Which really just helped me come to terms with my own short stack of rejection letters.

Here's my advice from an unfamous writer. Me.

At first you will suck.

Write when you feel like writing. The better you get the more you'll like it. Do other things when you feel like doing other things.

Listen to people talk and come to understand what motivates us. Knowing people helps you breath life into imaginary ones.

Learning about everything else in world will give you a wider perspective on, lets say.... a war vet coming home from iraq and
adjusting to civilian life. Or, what it's like to do soft core porn.

Watch old movies to pin down dialouge flow.

Travel as much as possible.

Never miss a chance to argue about something you care about.

Stay hydrated.

Never run from pain, sorrow, anger, joy, or anything other emotion that might enrich the texture of your conditioning.

Learn the meaning of poetic acceptance.

Start with what you know, research what you don't.

Oh and the first paragraph should be the anchor of a piece. It should tell the reader everything he needs to know about the tone of the story. Don't be afraid to start with dialouge, or right in the middle of your MC being beaten to a pulp. Setting can be added as needed.

Caffine is your friend.

Don't over describe a character. Leave out the color of his shoes unless they are important to the story.

And never start a sentence with 'and' unless it serves some sort of pacing function.

 

Hehe, thanks Cluster! I especially liked the caffeine advice! I'll embrace that one in many fields. But you forgot about the sunscreen!

The late Christopher Hitchens talked about smoking and drinking once, and said something like "I love writing, so why would I stop doing things that help me write?"

Anyway, I think that two of the three advices there in the beginning (maybe all three) are pretty good.

Let's analyze them one by one:

-Get a routine. Consistancy is key. Write every day. Don't give up.

Okay, we all right, and sometimes we procrastinate or we're jaded, etc. We need to work on ourselves. That advice works, I think, if you actually work on implementing it. I should read that line every single day, probably, to become a better writer.

-Avoid cliche's. Don't be boring. Be unique.

Not sure about that one. Maybe it is a good example of a really bad advice. But I guess you could take it to mean that you should not be afraid to write something that is your own style, your own signature. A writer can flinch from something if it seems like it's not the way the craft is being done. I once criticized a friend for the way he writes, and offered him two different ways he could write in a style that better fits what we see in books, because his style was so different. Then, a couple of years later, I started reading Coben's novels. The exact same unique style, of combining an ensamble novel with multiple points of views on the one hand, with a central protagonist that speaks in first person. I'm glad Harlan Coben didn't have a friend like me. And if he did, I'm glad he didn't listen to those jerks, and went on uniting two different writing styles.

-Read a lot. Know your subjects.

When you write about a character you don't truly know, or even a bunch of characters with different life stories and backgrounds, you should know about things in their lives, about their hobbies, political stance, etc. When Ralph Reed, formerly of the Christian Coalition, wrote a political novel about US elections, he needed to understand what both sides truly believe, in order to portray each side in a believable way. The funny thing, I think that this republican author portrayed the democrats in a much more interesting and humane light than the republican characters. In my own case, I have dug up information about restorative justice simply because one of my characters knows a lot about that subject, a lot more than me. And even though I disagree with that character's stance of abolishing the prison system, I do think that when I watch a movie like "Felon" with Stephen Dorff, that helps me to "be" the guy who opposes the existence of prisons. I'm not a pacifist, also, and not a marxist, but reading about pacifism and marxism might help me write such characters in a believable way, because I don't want to create cardboard characters of those people.

Also, if one has a lesbian character, maybe one should read and watch stuff about that, even though it's one minor character.
And what does a character feel when he's told his spouse is pregnant? I don't know, I've never been there. But maybe reading about it would help me, since I have such a character.

Anyway, any advice can help if you truly analyze it. But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. Now time for coffee.

 

Oh, and lastly: Someone recently started a thread about how one writes a bad guy character. I gave the example of Stephen J. Cannell and his protagonist, a sociopath named "Chick Best" who is a 55 year old man who would do anything to be with a beautiful 30 year old he is infatuated with. You need to understand the perspective of another person to rationalize what a character like Chick does. Remember, every single character, just like every single person, believes he/she is justified. If you want to write the inside thoughts of someone like Usama Bin Laden, in a first person, you have to portray that sack of garbage as the good guy, because he believed he was. Same goes for Vic Mackey, Dexter, whoever.

 

First of all, to answer the original post, the reason writers don't give away "secrets" or any advice about actually writing is that there are no secrets. There's no one way to write, and if anyone tells you different, they're just being condescending and trying to act superior. You have to write the way that works for you. That's why you get such good advice as keeping a routine and writing every day. Because keeping a routine makes it easier for you to develop your literary voice.

As for On Writing, it's not Stephen King's "excuse" to just write an autobiography. It's about his life which has been centred on writing since he was very young. It tells about how he threw his first draft of Carrie in the trash before his wife pulled it out and convinced him to finish it. That right there says volumes about not second-guessing your own writing. If you want the "secrets" and the tricks of the trade, reading about how someone else did it is a good way to find them.

I've been to a couple of writer's conventions and festivals and stuff, and some dicks (excuse my profanity) actually go on about "formulas" to writing a story, which is absolute bull. There's no formula to it. Anyone who says different is selling something.

 

Not really, but perhaps I've read more books on writing and I don't need help on some of the issues you need help with.

It's a work-ethic thing, that's right. But then, most beginners approach writing as 'fun' and stop when writing gets hard. However, if you want to be a published writer, you'll have to work at it. And that requires that you have to write every day, not just when you feel like it. A lot of writing is like work, so an advice on work ethic makes sense. At least, to me.

As Elmore Leonard said, 'Drama is life with the boring stuff removed'. If you read his books, he'll skip the boring stuff. No descriptions of flights or car rides, just departure and arrival, unless something interesting happens during the flight or the ride. And even then, you don't have to write about being welcomed by the flight attendant, strapping yourself in, getting a refreshment, relieving yourself in the tiny toilet, etcetera. That stuff makes a reader's eyes glaze over.
With unique, they mean you shouldn't copy other [successfull] writer, but find your own voice.

If you try writing a mystery while you're not a mystery fan, you're likely to think you're being unique and original while you're hashing out worn-out plots and cardboard characters>the cynical private eye, the weary cop, blahblah.

Maybe you read the wrong books? Have you checked out 'characters and viewpoint' by Orson Scott Card? Or 'the first five pages' by Noah Lukeman? 'Stein on Writing' by Sol Stein.

Or you have questions that are not answered by the books you've consulted. If a book covers 'everything' about writing, it tends to talk in generalities unless it's a huge book, so you'd need to check out books that deal with specific issues - plot problems, writing dialogue...

At the end of On Writing, he shows an unedited short story, how he edited it, and the polished version... And he is a former English teacher, so I don't doubt that he writes and edits his own work.

Indeed. It's a perfect guide for essays - 'Omit Needless Words' - and has some good points on redundancy, but it is too restrictive for fiction writers.

 

As far as plot points, etc, I don't really think writers can tell anyone things they can't pick up in any high school or college creative writing book, and from plain old reading. What they can tell you is how they begin, proceed, and finish. Reading what various authors do gives you new methods to try, to see if they work for you. And yes, a lot of what they talk about is 'work ethic' - because that's exactly what will get someone from a wannabe to a gonnabe.

 

Reading and writing are just about the best advice anyone can give someone that wants to improve their skills.

This is why "famous authors" say that.

 

So how do you explain the role of a college english professor? I mean, if such topical advice as "read and write a lot" are enough, then surely an english professors are giving their students inferior advice.

(I'm saying author's advice should be more like a college english professor's)

 

Story telling ability and English mechanics are two completely different beasts.

 

As far as I know, a lot of English (certainly english lit) study at university centres around studying other peoples' work, which really equates to reading.

And it depends on whether you thinks creative writing is a skill that can really be taught, as such. I mean, plenty of people have tried to teach me and I use none of their teaching when I write, I use things I have read as an aid to better creativity and skill. Writing is something you develop properly by yourself, I believe.

 

An English professor is not the same as a Creative Writing instructor.

 

You're splitting hairs. Most people learn to write from English classes, not creative writing courses. Granted most people suck at creative writing, but that's how the sytem generally teaches us.

I still stand by my assertion that famous authors give aweful, generic advice and often self-serving advice. There are a few exceptions, like one author who famously said that "Writing fiction is a war against cliche's".

 

You are missing the whole point here. Authors give creative writing advice; not grammar and punctuation (English professor) advice. There is no splitting hairs here. They are two completely different things.

A creative writing class is usually compromised of workshoping with fellow students on creative writing. It focuses on story telling.

An English class tells you how to write technically; not creatively. It focuses on actual writing mechanics.

 

^I get that. I know. You're right.


Famous authors should give better advice like a creative writing instructor would. There.

 

Have you taken a creative writing class before?

Your instructor will say the exact same thing as these authors:

"Write and read daily if you want to improve your story telling and creativity."

The only way to study and improve creative writing is to do it and read it.

In fact, an instructor in a creative writing class is almost not needed. Most of your "studying" is with fellow class mates. You write and critique each others work; that is workshoping. I would even go as far as saying that this forum is all the creative writing courses you will ever need. It does the exact same thing as those classes.

 

Let me just say that when (not if) I am a famous writer and Charlie Rose asks me what advice I would give to young writers I will say, "Well, be very certain about what your narrative language is going to sound like. And don't underestimate the importance of chapters, they are your friend. And don't write so much damn dialogue!".

Haha, or whatever I might say, it's going to be pertienent to the words on the page. But I wont say some generic crap like:

"Sit up straight. Sharpen your pencil. Keep your head down. Get to work."

 

Why should they? A famous writer shouldn't feel obligated to give any advice whatsoever, much less and specific kind of advice should they choose to do so. If they wanted to be creative writing instructors, they could follow that path.

 

This is what Stephenie Meyer said when she was asked to give advice to young writers: "Write for the joy of writing, not because you want to [be famous], because there is a lot of hard work involved..... and now I don't have time to write and I literally have so many ideas in the back of my mind".

Thanks Stephenie, I feel better equipt now. :/

 

But, friend, the only way to find your voice (narrative language) is to write and read!

The only way to see the importance of chapters is to also write and read!

And how little or how much dialogue you use is part of your own personal voice; so the same applies! Write and read!

 

Way to defend famous writers right to snub peoples questions. That's their MO, I agree. But if they happened to not want to be jerks, then we would appreciate that too. Eh?

 

Your first mistake is trying to get any kind of advice from Meyer.

HooHooHoo; I kid, I kid.

 

It's good advice. If you've somehow mistaken her for a creative writing instructor, that's your mistake not hers.

 

People don't learn to write from English classes. They might, if they're lucky, learn to read good literature with a little more perception than they otherwise would.

I've never taken creative writing course in school, but I have taken several online from the Gotham group. As Jhunter says, it's all about submitting your work to the other students, receiving their critiques, and critiquing their work. The instructor's primary function is to serve as a more senior critiquer - someone with more experience, who can often sort out issues the students don't properly understand when dealing with their own critiques.

A creative writing instructor is not there to teach technique, because technique isn't really that important. Different writers use different techniques and can be equally successful. The instructor is there to supervise a workshop, and that's about it.

I firmly believe that the best way to learn to write is to do a lot - I mean a lot - of reading when you're young. When you're a preteen kid. And don't read kid stuff then. Challenge yourself with books written for adults. No cheating by reading so-called "young adult" stuff. This way, you'll have spelling, punctuation, and grammar mastered before you even enter high school; high school will just teach you the names for things you already know.

I don't claim that a person who read a lot when young is automatically a good writer when they're an adult. I do think, though, that writing will be much easier for that person to learn. Your first attempts will still suck, but you'll be writing well long before your friends who didn't read young.

It may be that some of you didn't read when you were kids. I think you guys are out of luck. Learning to write when you didn't read when you were young is probably three times more difficult, and take three times more practice, if not more.

 

I agree. I began reading voraciously as a child. I can say for certain that it has given me an edge my whole life with writing. Be it in a classroom or personally.