Okay, so I’m not
Jackie Collins or my fave, Julie Garwood.
But, I have learned a plethora of
tips and techniques to make my writing the best it could be. Though I don’t follow writing etiquette to
the letter while writing fan fiction (as opposed to the medieval novel that I
aspire to have published someday - when…don’t ask! LOL), a course in creative writing, in addition to
critique groups I used to meet with once a month, has been a valuable tool in
perfecting my skills.
Since I began
posting fan fiction, I have been surprised with e-mails about my stories, not
to mention the wonderful feedback. I’ve
gotten questions about whether I write for a living as well as advice I could
give on getting started. That prompted
me to put together this little ‘cheat sheet’.
Please bear in
mind that the following points have been taught to me through classes, how-to
books and critique groups and not necessarily my sole opinion.
With that in
mind……..read on. I hope you find it as
helpful as I still do!
1. Read,
Read, Read!!!
This
is probably the biggest learning tool for new writers. I’ve been a voracious reader for years and
have read various types of authors.
This helped me to learn the meaning of what an author’s voice is. If someone were to rip off the cover of a Julie Garwood novel,
I’d knew it was her as soon as I started reading it. Your ‘voice’ is the style in which you write – how you describe
your characters, their feelings, how you use dialogue, etc. Once you learn what kind of ‘voice’ you want
to convey, you’re on your way!
2.
Learn Balance
You’ve just conjured up an absolutely original, mindblowing
plot. However, your writing style, or,
your ‘voice’, could be what keeps readers from salivating while waiting for
your next chapter to be posted. Nothing
is worse than long, drawn out narrarative – especially in the opening chapter
or two-. The first two chapters are the
most critical because this is where you grab
your readers attention. How you
continue after that determines if you keep
their attention.
3.
Show…..Don’t
Tell, With Action.
The best way for me to describe this would be to give you an
example with a scene. One shows and the other tells.
This one tells……
The
doors to the church sanctuary opened and the bride made her way down the aisle
which was lined with candles. She held
onto her father’s arm with one hand while she held a bouquet of white roses in
the other. Everyone in attendance
gazed at her with awe, She was attired in a cream colored silk organza gown
with a chiffon overlay that had hundreds of pearls and beads sewn into it. Her veil was chapel length and a piece of
the sheer material covered her face, allowing her to keep her eyes on her
intended and notice his smile of approval.
She wished she could read his mind right this moment.
Now……..the same exact scene written in a manner that shows:
The
doors to the church sanctuary opened and everyone in attendance was hushed by
the site of the lovely bride. She
fragrant scent of her white rose bouquet wafted through the air as she floated
down the aisle on the arm of her father.
The intriquitely hand sewn pearls and beads in her cream colored silk
organza gown twinkled off the candlelight that lined her path. Her eyes peered through the whisper soft
material of her chapel length veil as she cast her eyes of her intended who
awaited her at the alter. She fervently
wished she could read his mind at this moment, however, the look upon his face
told her all she neeed to know.
Now….be honest.
Which one makes you go zzzzzzz, and which one makes you feel as if
you’re one of the wedding guests witnessing this? No doubt, the version that shows with action flows much
better than the version that tells with narrarative. I’ve
conveyed what the bride wore, the atmosphere of the church, the flowers, the
reaction of the guests and her first look at her intended without describing it
as if it were a catalog item. Incorporating a character’s looks, clothing,
facial expressions, etc. with action not only gets the point across, but also
makes the scene flow smoothly.
4.
Show….Don’t Tell…With Dialogue
I
LOVE writing dialogue – the sharper and wittier the better! Dialogue can help the reader truly interpret
the character’s personality. Whether
your character is a stuffy, pompous political science professor, or a cool
surfer dude with an eye for the chicks, you can convey a character’s
personality just by what he or she says - without even knowing what they look
like. I also try to weave facial
expressions, body language and observations made by the other person into a
dialogue. And......always find clever
words to use instead of ‘he said’ and ‘she said’. I’ll give an example of the pol-sci professor and the surfer
dude:
“Young
man, you need to do well on your test to pull your grade up,” the professor
said. “You are not doing well in my
class.”
“I
know, but I didn’t think going to college in California would be this hard,”
the young man said.
“Why
is that?” the professor asked.
“Well,
the beach, that’s why,” the young man said.
“Those waves just call out to me.
Since I learned to surf, I just can’t stay away from the beach. And the girls aren’t too bad either.”
The fact that the ‘dude’ is more interested in surfing and
girls than school is the only thing that’s
conveyed. Nothing about their
personalities or expressions are revealed.
Now....the same conversation, but a little more revealing:
The pompous looking professor pushed his glasses up
the bridge of his nose and pursed his lips as he regarded his student.
“Young man, you need to do well on your test to
pull your grade up,” the professor warned.
“You are not doing well in my class.”
The young man jerked his head back to flip his
shaggy, unkempt hair out of his eyes.
“Yeah, I know professor,” the young man agreed. “But....man, I didn’t know going to school
in California would be so hard.”
The professor rolled his eyes to the ceiling, which
helped him to avoid looking at the young man’s concert t-shirt and loud,
Hawaiian style shorts.
“And just why is that, young man?” the professor
huffed out with impatience.
“Why?” the young man asked. “Isn’t it obvious professor? I mean,
the beaches, the waves, the girls.”
I think you pretty much get the point in this one. Of course, the best education on how to
master this is to read how other’s weave it into their craft and then
practicing your own.
5. Keep Within The Element Of The Story
Whether
you’re writing a novel set in medieval times (like me!), a western, or….even
writing fan fiction (da Leps!), always keep within the element of your
story. That means…..if you’re setting
is medieval times, don’t have the hero pull up in front of the maiden’s castle
in a Trans-Am! Yeah, I know…I know…a little drastic. But, you have to always keep the element and
setting of the story in mind when it comes to trends, clothing styles,
dialogue, etc. If you set your fan
fiction back in 1979, don’t have the guys attending a Nirvana concert (okay, a
little drastic again too, but you get my drift!). Also, if you’re writing Lep fiction, remember….these guys are
British so incorporating American slang into their dialogue won’t fit the story
too well.
I
remember when writing Like Father, Like Son, Ty’s band, Crossfire, consisted of
him, two British mates (Randy and Mark) and one American (Kevin). I had to be very careful with my dialogue so
that Kevin’s speech and mannerisms were more American than the other
three. I’m also running into the same
challenge now with my story How To Tame A Rock Star with Mark being the only
British member of an American rock band.
I need to keep it consistent by making sure Mark sounds British and the
other guys sound American.
Hey,
nothing sharpens your skills more than a challenge!
6. Incorporate Factual People, Places And Things
Into Your Story
There
are about 3 authors on the fiction
sites who’s stories really come alive and make me feel as if I’m in the room
with the characters because they sometimes center a fictional story around
factual people, places and things.
Depending upon the era of the story, they’ll usually introduce members
of other bands from that era, or have the characters eat at some famous L.A.
hotspot, etc. I try to do that as often
as I can. And….the ‘net is a GODSEND
for finding what you need.
In
my story, Icon, I had Joe and Nina visit a CD store while the band was in
Baltimore for their gig. I wanted an
actual place, so I typed in ‘Baltimore Record Stores’ in my search engine and
found Flashback – a wonderful antique/oldies record store, which I incorporated
into the story.
Factual
tidbits carefully scattered here and there lends a more personal touch to the
story, I always feel. Of course, when
you just don’t have the time to surf the net, its perfectly okay to make
something up. After all….it is fiction.
7.
Be Realistic
This pretty much applies if you’re looking to write
seriously for future publication. In
fan fiction land – we know that anything goes (vampires anyone?)
If you’re an established author on the group who’s work is a
staple amongst the readers, then you can pretty much get away with any
premise. However, if you’re a new
writer, and feedback is VERY important to you, then you may stand a better
chance at pulling in new readers with a premise that’s more realistic.
I would never want to squash anyone’s creativity. If we all thought alike…..ho-hum. So…..if you’ve got a story brewing in your
head about Joe taking up ballet, doning tights ( now there’s a visual!) and joining
the company of the Nutcracker, then by all means….write it! Who knows – it just may become the hit of
the fiction group – especially if its cleverly written.
However, if you doubt your writing skills, but still want to
take a stab at fiction, and feedback is very important to you as a new writer, then may I suggest a story of a more softer nature (like a
simple, modern day love story, perhaps?) that will draw readers in and
introduce them to you and your style.
Once you get an audience, and sharpen your skills along the way, then go
all out with your imagination.
8.
Don’t Give Up!!!
Very, very important.
Keep trying. Always keep
trying. As I said above, nothing is a
better educator than practice. Keep
reading authors who’s style you admire and try to incorporate that into your own voice.