Christopher Jackson
- Freelance writer
- Editor @FuelYourWriting
- Barefoot runner
- Loves creativity, storytellers and tea.
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- Nov 21, 12
There are some people currently elbow deep in the afterbirth of NaNoWriMo. They’re struggling with both hands to pull that slippery, oddly-shaped idea they have out of the tight dark crevasse of their mind and bring it, stumbling and blinking, into the sunlight in time for December 1st, when at last – at last! – they can slap a ribbon on it and show the quivering mass of a month’s frantic creation off to their electronic friends.
I am not one of those people. I don’t like NaNoWriMo. I don’t think it encourages the best practise of writing in many people. Not least because it gives thousands of people an excuse to write Avengers/Pokemon mash-up fan-fic… ‘Hhb’… … Sorry, I just threw up in my mouth a little.
Deadlines and Dirt
‘You don’t like NaNoWriMo!? But it gets people writing!’ you say.
Yes. It does. But not with the right mindset to be creative. It’s all about the one month deadline and it causes people to lose sight of the story because they’re too busy hitting the word total for the day. I don’t understand the need to treat NaNoWriMo stories as some sort of timed, hot-house obstacle course through your creative centres.
The joy of writing is not in deadlines and word counts, but in taking time to shape your work: to sit and let the ideas flow and then, when they ebb away, retreat from your keyboard until the next surge washes new fragments of story into your head. Pressure doesn’t always form diamonds. Sometime’s you’re just left with a hot pile of dirt.
You can argue that NaNoWriMo might just be a good way to get that much procrastinated novel off the ground; to start and try and get as much done and hope the momentum carries into December, but a lot of people don’t treat it like that. They treat it as a competition. I’m amazed at the number of people I see who brag about how many words they’ve done in a day but don’t brag about the actual words themselves. It’s all quantity not quality, when it should be the other way around.
Sewing The Seeds Of Bad Habits
It’s in this hot-house environment, where word counts are boasted or commiserated, that bad writing habits form. Habits such as overusing adjectives (always a big risk when you’re trying to fatten up that word total) or having too much description. It takes 28 days to form a habit apparently, so you can comfortably fit that inside November and still have two days to try and think up synonyms for ‘lips’ or ‘forests’.
Or maybe you don’t want to bother thinking up synonyms for yourself. Or any part of your novel that seems too much like hard work. In recent years there’s been an alarming amount of ‘ideas crowd-sourcing’ done, enabled by Twitter and forums. I’ve seen it first hand and you will have too. People will ask things like:
“What would be a good name for my protagonist? He’s 24, short, blonde, and likes dragons…”
“Can anyone think of a way for these two characters to accidentally meet?”
Really, this is the type of thing that a writer should be able to do. You should be able to use your own imaginations, like a real storyteller does.
You might think this is part of the community spirit behind NaNoWriMo; that it’s an exchange ideas in a friendly (but secretly ruthless) online atmosphere. It’s not. It’s people who can’t come up with their own ideas because they’re either too lazy or don’t have the imaginative capacity trawling the collective imaginative brainscape of other writers like a renegade tuna fleet, hoping enough stuff gets caught in the nets to squash together and package into a 50,000 word story.
The Infinite Monkey Theorem
By December 1st it’s all over and what is the upshot?
Are people enthused by their experience? No, mostly they’re just brain-drained after a month of trying to be creative at a hundred miles an hour. For most the results will be personally fulfilling but otherwise worthless.
One or two novels written during November will be good, readable, maybe even publishable, but that’s only because this is a numbers game and a few good stories are the statistical result of so many words being flung at the wall by so many people. Out of the chaos cogency will occasionally form. NaNoWriMo has become a 30 day Monkeys with Typewriters experiment. A grand field test to see if there’s truth to the old adage about how a room full of monkeys typing for long enough will produce Shakespeare. Except here it’s a planet full of humans and they’re just trying to come up with the next Hunger Games. In a month.
This is how I feel about NaNoWriMo, and I know it’s not a popular opinion. I think the idea of using a month to highlight the joy of writing and sharing stories is wonderful, but that’s not what NaNoWriMo is.
It’s an ego boost for those who can type fast and loose. It’s very name is a challenge, a ‘race you to the finish, last one there’s a loser!’ taunt to participants. That’s not the way to good writing. Good writing takes it’s time to form and evolve, and isn’t bound by a set word count.
Good writing deserves a space on the calendar to be celebrated, and to show writers that it’s not how much you do, but how good what you do is. So perhaps we need a National Good Writing Month – a NaGoWriMo – instead?
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Please do let us know your thoughts – agree or disagree! – in the comments below.
Images courtesy of Pete Mayhem, The Best Of NaNoWriMo Tumblr and ExtremeTech/The Simpsons.
- Nov 20, 12
If “all the world’s a stage, and all the people merely players…” then as writers we can learn a little bit about humanity by studying those who focus on the stage. Playwrights may write with the intention of performance, but just as with any other form of literature, the ideas, characters, and stories exhibit their truth far beyond their intended medium.
Here are a few legends of the craft to inspire you to take a second look at a format that brings stories to life.
Euripides
When you go back to the beginning of playwriting, you often begin with the ancients in Rome and Greece. In this circle of ancient writers you can’t help but cross Euripides. His tales of mythological heroes and extraordinary circumstances rivals those of his poetic counterpart, Homer.
Euripides gave us legendary tales of Oedipus, Theseus, Antigone, Sisyphus, and Andromeda. He explored relationships in Medea (long before Tyler Perry used the name), gave us patriotism though The Phoenician Women, and danced around exploitation with The Bacchae. You’ve seen the themes in modern stories; you’ve heard these names and titles as they’ve been absorbed into our collective culture; now read Euripides.
Bertolt Brecht
When you see a play, or a movie for that matter, in which you leave the theater feeling blown out of the water and wanting to change your life, you have Brecht to thank. He used the stage to hold a mirror up to society; his plays provoking the audience to reflect on their lives and spark social change.
While not always easy to read, Brecht’s plays have contributed much to the idea of theatrics and playwriting. If you’re looking for a spark of uniqueness, I recommend checking out Turandot, Man Equals Man, and, of course, Mother Courage and Her Children.
August Wilson
The first African-American to have a theatre on Broadway named after him, as well as multiple Pulitzers, August Wilson drew on his life experiences growing up in Pittsburgh and his love of jazz to create plays to which the common man could relate. He uses repeated themes and characters to “raise consciousness of the Black experience in the 20th Century,” but his plays are not limited to a specific demographic. In fact he once noted that he hoped his plays would “offer (white Americans) a different way to look at black Americans.”
Giving us such classics as Fences, Seven Guitars, and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, August Wilson as created plays that reach diverse audiences and promote understanding across cultures and generations.
Samuel Beckett
If James Joyce was on the stage it would be in a play by Samuel Beckett. The obscure and private Beckett eased the dramatic form from modernist to postmodernist eras, epitomizing the period with Waiting for Godot. He branched into the Theatre of the Absurd (which he is rumored to be partly responsible for its creation), exploring bizarre characters in Endgame and bizarre constructs in Footfalls and Rockaby. Beckett is a great read for those who can relate to an early Tim Burton, or for anyone who likes to think outside the dustbin.
Henrik Ibsen
An Enemy of the People, Peer Gynt, A Doll’s House, Ghosts, Hedda Gabbler… If you’ve done any study of theatre then you know these titles and you know Ibsen’s name. The “father of realism” and critically considered “the greatest playwright since Shakespeare,” Ibsen is an iconoclast, often using irony to point out flaws in the status quo. He makes his audience think about their lives by using only vague metaphor. His realistic style brought forth a movement that inspired…
Eugene O’Neill
Nobel laureate, poet and dramatist, Eugene O’Neill was one of the first to bring the “American voice” to the stage. Often writing in tragic tones about depressed characters often on their downward spiral, O’Neill’s sense of despair could be likened to a theatrical Edgar Allen Poe, though without such frequent dark imagery.
His A Long Day’s Journey into Night epitomized the dysfunctional American family. The Hairy Ape catalogues the futility of being a working-class man in a land controlled by the wealthy. The Iceman Cometh warns of the necessity and dead-end that comes from dreams unrealized.
Arthur Miller
Nobel laureate and once-husband to Marilyn Monroe, Arthur Miller has been dubbed “the last great practitioner of the American stage.” With classics such as Death of a Salesman, All My Sons, Broken Glass, and The Crucible to his name, it’s no wonder that Broadway famously dimmed their lights to mourn the loss of a true American theatrical icon.
Tennessee Williams
“Stella!”
He gave us Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire. He gave us The Glass Menagerie. He gave us Orpheus Descending. And Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. And we gave him a Tony, two Pulitzers, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Williams threw himself into his work, literally using events from his life and family, dramatizing them and putting them on stage. Using himself as an example, Williams wrote of tragic relationships, dysfunctional families, and brought us a world so real and relatable that his many titles stand up as examples of modern society to this day.
Anton Chekhov
Protégé of Ibsen, Chekhov epitomized the stream-of-consciousness style that inspired James Joyce and other modernists in the literary arts. Despite medicine being his chosen career, Chekhov’s hobby of writing is what made him famous. Inspiring the likes of Tennessee Williams, Lee Strasberg (of “method” acting fame), Elia Kazan, and Ernest Hemmingway, Chekhov was a master storyteller giving us classics like Three Sisters, Uncle Vanya, The Seagull, and The Cherry Orchard.
“If in Act I you show a pistol, by Act III it must be fired” – Chekhov’s Gun, a metaphor of literary foreshadowing.
William Shakespeare
As much a myth as a man, with 37 plays and 154 sonnets to his name, Shakespeare stands as the name amongst famous playwrights.
His plays are the stuff of legend; they have become a part of the world’s collective unconscious. His characters are timeless archetypes that influence us all to this day. Romeo, Juliet, MacBeth, Hamlet, Othello. His monologues appear at every almost every actor’s audition. His plays are performed annually and are studied in literature classes around the globe. His sonnets inspire every romantic, every poet and every greeting card to say what we all want to express.
Who better to round out this list of the top playwrights in history than William Shakespeare?
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Are there any other playwrights who have inspired and helped you to become a better writer? Please let us know in the comments below.
Images courtesy of Steve Harris, John Minihan and Wikipedia.
- Nov 19, 12
Coming up with names for our characters can be a chore, especially when you have a big cast. We sit and agonise about getting them just right, and while names are important we shouldn’t spend too long worrying about them. Far better to be actually writing your story!
Luckily, there are random name generators online where, at the click of a button, you can have a new name for every one of your characters. Maybe they will fit, maybe they won’t. But at least you’ll have a name.
Fake Name Generator
The ‘Fake Name Generator’ is the best name generator that I have seen. It’s easy to use, obviously, but there are two things that make it so good.
Name Set & Country
Besides a “Male/Female” setting, the generator allows you to alter the name set and country of origin for your character. This means that you can get specific names for different types of people really easily.
Extra Character Details
This I really love. Along with the random generated name, this site will also give you a whole list of personal details for your character! And not just things like weight, height and blood type either – it even gives you things like occupation, what car they drive and even what their email address is!
Of course, you don’t have to use these, but any one of these details might spark your imagination to flesh out your character.
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Hat tip to MediaBistro for the name generator.
For more advice to get you through the rest of NaNoWriMo, follow along with MediaBistro’s NaNoWriMo Tips Of The Day.
Image courtesy of purpleflrs.
- Nov 19, 12
When we read, we hear the words in our head, in our own voice. It is part of the magic of fiction, that we bring the words to life within ourselves. But it’s also popular, increasingly so due to portable audio media and the Internet, to create audiobooks.
Sometimes it’s old classics read by your favourite celebrities (like Stephen Fry reading the Harry Potter series) but often authors will create audiobook versions of their own stories, and read them themselves. Sometimes, like horror/sci-fi author Scott Sigler they will even start out with serialised audiobooks, building a following to allow them to then create print copies.
But, the question is…
Do You Like Audiobooks?
Audiobooks can be incredibly convenient, and they are great for listening to in the car or while you cook the dinner. But some people don’t like them as they are arguably not as immersive as reading for yourself, and the experience you would have listening to a story will most likely be different than if you’d read it.
But, does this matter?
And would you create audio versions of your own work? Maybe start out this way like Scott Sigler has (very successfully) done?
Let us know your thoughts on audiobooks.
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Please share what you think about audiobooks in the comments section below.
Photo courtesy of yum9me.
- Oct 30, 12
Broadly speaking, there are two types of writers: planners and pantsers.
Planners (or plotters) like to know where everything is before they start, creating detailed character profiles, chapter summaries and doing lots of research before they start. Pantsers throw caution to the wind (flying by the seats of their pants, geddit?) and jump right in, working things out as they write and researching as they go.
So…
Are You A Planner Or A Pantser?
Of course, this is really more of a sliding scale. While I am sure some of us are full-on one way or the other, most writers will sit somewhere in between. But you probably tend to side one way or the other.
So which is it? Myself, I’m mostly a pantser, but that’s mainly for the reason that if I don’t just dive in and write then I get stuck in the planning stage, putting off the actual writing, and then usually convince myself that my idea is no good and so just don’t bother at all.
My planning tends to only consist of a mind-map or two (plus maybe a couple of character profiles if I’m writing a longer piece) and then I hit the ground running.
How about you?
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Please let us know in the comments – are you a planner or a pantser?
Image courtesy of WIthinIllusion
- Nov 07, 12
Yesterday, the BBC’s long-running arts program Imagine… profiled best-selling crime writer Ian Rankin as he embarked on writing another novel. It was a fascinating, honest and intimate portrayal of being a writer: the struggles, the processes, the hard work and the fear.
Even Successful Authors Struggle, Same As You
One of the best things about the program was how honestly it looked at the life and work of an author, even one as successful as Ian Rankin. His best-selling books, particularly those featuring infamous detective John Rebus, have made Rankin a multi-millionaire. Yet, he doesn’t look it, and doesn’t act like it, and no matter how much money he makes, the process remains the same. Creating a novel is always a struggle, we all get “the fear” and worry that our work isn’t good enough, even someone like Rankin who has been writing a novel a year for over twenty years.
If I’m lucky I get one good idea a year, but if you’re a novelist one good idea a year is all you need.”
Man-Made Inspiration
Another thing I particularly loved about the program was how it looked at the normality and mundanity of Rankin’s writing process, from the way he collects newspaper cuttings and hand-written notes into a green manilla folder (which he looks through every December to find the idea for his next novel), to him taking a physical road trip (rather than going online) to fact-check and find those little details that will enrich his novel.
Writing is not always magic. When it is going well, it sometimes feels like magic, but the reality is that it is hard work, hard work, hard work.
An Inspiring Yet Unglamorous Portrayal
The program is available to watch (and please, please do) here on the BBC iPlayer site, and will be available for the next couple of months. If you live in the USA or elsewhere, and are unable to view it, there are several workaround options, or you can download the global iPlayer app for iPad and iPhone.
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Did you watch the program? What did you think? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Image courtesy of the BBC.
- Nov 02, 12
Yesterday was the 1st November, which for some of you will mean growing a moustache and for others it will mean writing a novel in a month.
Yes, it’s NaNoWriMo time again! The question is:
Are You Doing NaNoWriMo?
If yes, GOOD LUCK! It really is an awesome thing to take part in, I did it many years ago, and would definitely like to do it again sometime. Have fun over the next crazy, caffeine-fuelled, seat-of-the-pants month of writing. Please let us know that you’re doing it, and let us know why too!
If no, then why aren’t you doing it? Fearful that you can’t make the time to commit? Worried that taking part would negatively affect your home life? Do you think NaNo is a massive waste of time?
Talk to us below!
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Sincere good luck to everyone taking part, keep us up to date on your progress here.
Image courtesy of NaNoWriMo.
- Oct 31, 12
We are, almost always, our own worst enemies. The internal critical struggle is something that holds back many a writer, many a creative person, from freeing themselves to create the art that they are capable of doing.
I recently came across this wonderful series of illustrations by cartoonist Stephen McCranie, featured at his site Doodle Alley. It starts with the image below, and goes on to depict the struggle that we feel every day.
We have talked before about befriending your inner critic, but the central conceit of Stephen’s cartoon – be friends with failure – is even more profound and powerful.
You want to know the difference between a master and a beginner? The master has failed more times than the beginner has even tried.
Accepting that failure is part of your road to success, and befriending it and making it part of your life, will ultimately free you to be the writer you can be. Please head on over to Stephen’s blog to read the rest of the cartoon.
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Please let us know your thoughts – how have you befriended failure? – in the comments below.
Image courtesy of Stephen McCranie.
- Oct 29, 12
Neil Gaiman is trying to start a new Hallowe’en tradition.
It’s called All Hallow’s Read, and it is based on a really simple idea. Give someone a scary book to read this Hallowe’en.
I applaud Neil Gaiman for doing this. Not that he has done much, per se, but then again maybe he has. In ten years time, maybe lots of people will be giving each other scary books on Hallowe’en. In twenty years time, maybe more. Maybe people will do it just because it’s the done thing, because it’s now “tradition”.
Wouldn’t that be great!?
So, give someone you love a scary book this Hallowe’en. Frighten them, grip them, inspire them. You may be opening someone’s eyes to the wonderful world of horror literature. You may be sewing the seeds of a new horror writer! And you may even be part of something that will become a tradition your children and children’s children will enjoy.
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If you need some ideas for what books to buy, check out the All Hallow’s Read site, which has helpfully gathered together some links of the top scary books around.
And if you take part, please let us know what books you buy (or receive)!
Image courtesy of All Hallow’s Read.
- Oct 26, 12
Everyone loves a scary story.
Many authors have spun tales of haunted houses, ghosts and ghouls, and things that go bump in the night. But only a few can weave tales the leave you lying awake at night (and still checking under your bed) years after you first heard that soft creeeeaaak as the binding of the book swung open.
Searching the shelves at your local bookstore for a good Hallowe’en read can yield a lot of results, and a lot of rubbish. Every store puts those specials-of-the-month right on the end-caps to sell lots of copies. But the best isn’t always the most profitable and thus not always right out front. Often it is the buried treasures and hidden secrets that yield the most reward… if you dare journey to seek them out.
Dive into the catacombs with me and dust off a few old treasures to find a Hallowe’en read that will chill you to the bone:
Neil Gaiman
Some may say weird, some may say odd, but if you like the classic Tim Burton brand of creepy, then Neil Gaiman is the author for you! How about a boy who grows up in a cemetery after his parents are murdered? Or a girl who slips into an “other” world of button-eyed freaks?
From short stories, to comic books, to full novels, both fiction and non-fiction, Neil Gaiman has a unique view of the world that will keep you wondering just what he was thinking… in a very good way!
Clive Barker
If you say his name five times while looking in the mirror he will appear… or at least his character of the Candyman will. Spurting bloody titles like, The Midnight Meat Train, The Book of Blood, and The Damnation Game, Barker has been anointed by Stephen King as “the future of horror.” These tales will certainly get your guts churning with that queasy feeling that someone could be under your bed.
Thomas Harris
“When the fox hears the rabbit scream he comes a-runnin’, but not to help.” – Thomas Harris, The Silence of the Lambs
Creating the character of Dr. Hannibal Lector, one of film and literature’s most hair-raising psychopaths, Thomas Harris has expanded his mythic character over four novels, each diving further into the twisted mind of the epic anti-hero. While it is hard to separate the book from the film, especially with Anthony Hopkins’ Academy Award-winning hissing, the books are so vivid in their description you’ll feel everything along with every character and even find yourself cheering for a cannibal.
Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Scarlet Letter is frequently on a high school student’s required reading list, but don’t let reading Hawthorne become a chore. Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment warns of what can happen when you discover the fountain of youth. The House of Seven Gables may sound sweet and romantic, until you realize it’s about living with guilt, self-destruction, and witchcraft. Young Goodman Brown tells of a mysterious errand in the woods that leads to one man’s eyes being opened and his complete loss of faith in humanity. Just what happened out there? Let this classic author take you on a journey that will make your heart skip a beat, and second-guess everything around you.
Shirley Jackson
If you won the lottery, that would be a good thing right? Not in Shirley Jackson’s world! Her classic story, The Lottery, tells of a town making sacrifices to help the fall crops. The Haunting of Hill House has been adapted into horror films not once, but twice! These stories that warn of the dangers of conformity and trusting your intuition make Shirley Jackson a surefire bet for a creepy read.
Dante Alighieri
His Divine Comedy is a benchmark in world literature. With one epic poem, Dante solidified his place in history. Combining Dante’s words with Gustave Doré’s engravings, has defined our cultural imagery of Hell. If you want to witness the underworld in its most pure form, without visiting there yourself, take a peek at an illustrated Divine Comedy, if you dare!
George Orwell
Because of Orwell, one year is synonymous with a dystopian future and gave us all something to fear: 1984. And if that’s not enough, add in Animal Farm.
Telling tales of caution for our future, Orwell scared an entire generation… just, it seems, not enough to make the necessary changes to avoid the social structures he warned about. Assuming they were avoidable at all.
Edgar Allen Poe
A beating heart, a swinging pendulum, a cask of wine, and of course a raven. Poe’s name stands virtually synonymous with the idea of creepy. As gothic as they are violent, as shadowy as they are subtle, his work reads as tortured as his characters and his soul.
“Quoth the raven, ‘Nevermore.’”
Bram Stoker & Mary Shelley
All together separate, but unified together thanks to Hollywood, Stoker’s Dracula and Shelley’s Frankenstein are forever joined (and tied on this list) as classic mythical monsters. Thanks to gothic imagery, themes of humanity at its darkest, and of course the classic Universal Horror Films, Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley almost double-handedly defined nearly two centuries of horror. Look no further for a classic Halloween treat.
Stephen King
The legend himself. Not only will you find him on the best-seller list, and on those pesky profit-making end-caps, but his work will keep you looking over your shoulder.
From rabid dogs, to haunted cars, to hotels that make you go mad, King is the epitome of the horror genre. Carrie, The Stand, The Shining, Cujo, It, Pet Sematary, Night Shift, Firestarter, The Dead Zone… each a chilling classic. Need I go on?
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy…
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy…
All work and no play…”————————————————————————————————————————-
What scary books do you like to read at Hallowe’en? Please share your favorite horrifying tales in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Stephanie Massaro and HarpyMarx.
- Oct 25, 12
Time and time again on this site we tell you that it’s vital to have a close group of people around you who share your love of writing.
If there was a 10 Commandments of Writing it would be at #5, just ahead of ‘Thou shalt not write thy novel in a Starbucks’. The people around you can help simply by bringing you a refreshing cup of tea, or someone who you can talk to about writing and bounce ideas off, or someone who actively reads and critiques your work.
It’s important to be surrounded by passionate people. It fuels you and makes the whole process of creation easier and more worthwhile.
But… you have to be careful.
Without meaning to, friends can actually damage your work with blind encouragement. They can kill your writing with kindness.
When It’s Bad And They Say It’s Good
I’ve seen it happen before, I’ve had it happen to me before, and I know for a fact that as well as being on the receiving end of well-meaning but blind encouragement I’ve given some out too. No doubt you’re the same. Writing isn’t easy; it’s a fragment of your heart and soul borne onto the page. When a friend comes to you and asks you what you think of their work, you want to be kind. You want them to like what they’ve done and you want them to like you.
No one likes being unkind or giving bad news. So you stretch a false smile over your gritted teeth, nod a lot, and say buttery generalisations: “This is great! I love this. Doesn’t Character X have a great name?” They go away happy, and you go away with that horrible hollow sensation in your head that feels as if your brain parachuted out to escape your lying tongue.
In this scenario: no one wins.
When They Say It’s Good But Don’t Say Why
And sometimes people aren’t lying. Sometimes they genuinely don’t know any better but want their opinion to be voiced. Look on almost any writing forum or comments section on a writing blog and you’ll find people slapping each other on the back over fragments of their WIP, enjoying the saccharine empty phrases such as “I look forward to reading this!!!” and “Wow that’s brilliant!” in a meaningless orgy of mutual false praise and an overuse to exclamation points.
Such fawning words might make you feel good, but what good are they doing your writing? Other than perhaps spurring you on to write more, how are they making you a better storyteller?
False Criticism Will Send You Way Off Course
The end result of both is that you’re not getting criticism. Worse, you can’t detect the things people truly like from the things they’re just saying they like. Everything is devalued into a mush of clichéd hyperbole and hollow sycophancy.
You’re unable to tell the good from the bad – what needs work from what strengths you should play to. Having a friend who can’t/won’t critique you is like putting a magnet next to the compass. It’ll lead you wildly, dangerously, off course. Before you know it, you’ll have fallen into bad habits just because people weren’t honest with you.
The Importance Of Criticism Over Encouragement
There’s a difference between encouragement and criticism.
Encouragement is a statement:
- “I really liked the protagonist!”
- “You’re a great writer.”
Criticism is a statement with (and this is very important) reasoning behind it:
- “I really liked the protagonist because I thought they had a well-defined voice.”
- “You’re a great writer because you have a real knack for characterisation.”
A good friend – one who really has your best interests as a writer at heart – will use criticism. Occasionally they’ll say things you don’t want to hear, but that’s a good thing. It’s not because they hate your work (or you), but because they like your work (and you) and think that an audience would like it even more if some changes were made for certain reasons.
They’ll tell you what they liked and why, and what they didn’t like and why, and from that you can come to your own conclusions about how to edit or continue writing.
This is how you improve.
Look For Honest Criticism
People who just tell you that they love your work, while a nice ego-boost, are completely useless to you as a writer. Well, unless they’re bringing you lots of cups of tea. Probably best to keep them around then.
So keep your friends close, and your writing friends even closer. And don’t believe everything you hear. Especially if it has three exclamation points after it.
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Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Images courtesy of smileycreek, onpaperwings and hcmctoday.
- Oct 24, 12
How many ideas do you have that never get completed?
Maybe you talked yourself out of it and convinced yourself the idea was no good in the first place. Perhaps you planned the idea to death. Did you weigh up the pros and cons and come to the conclusion that the idea wasn’t worth your time? What if it was?
You need to execute your ideas.
Execute is the title of a new book by Drew Wilson and Josh Long, that is currently being written.
It was started yesterday. It will be finished on Monday. THIS Monday. The 29th of October.
Execute Immediately
Drew Wilson knows all about executing on your ideas immediately. Recently he created the brilliant Space Box, a service for accepting payments quickly and easily, in just five days. On the 11th October, he was talking to his friend Adam Stacoviak who vented his frustrations with PayPal. This sparked an idea in Drew, and he started creating right then and there.
Literally, during the conversation. Space Box was launched five days later.
Inspiration is the most potent form of energy we have in our creative lives, yet we waste this energy on planning, what-ifs, or even worse, talking ourselves out of great work.
The Book
Along with Josh Long, managing editor at Treehouse, he is now writing about a book about that process, and the book will be written in the exact same way. It will be executed – researched, planned, written, printed – in seven days.
That sounds like utter madness, but what is so wonderful about this is that this book will be created in exactly the way that it’s content will advocate. Which means that its message will be all the more meaningful.
And that message is this:
When inspired, execute.
Don’t wait. Do.
The Process
Drew and Josh will also be documenting this process over at Drew’s blog. This will be a fascinating look into a mad dash of creation, and I can’t wait to see how they get on executing on their idea, making the most of their inspiration and using it to fuel their creative process, instead of letting it go to waste.
We need to embrace our inspiration, our strongest incarnation of energy, and act *now*.
Drew and Josh are practising what they preach.
Execute On Your Ideas Immediately
I’m already inspired. I hope you are too. Now; that idea that you’ve been putting off?
Go do it!
And get along to Drew’s blog too, follow along and support this great project.
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Please share your thoughts in the comments below!
Image courtesy of ExecuteBook.com
- Oct 19, 12
Yesterday, we explained why it is important to write with a purpose, an end goal. So today’s question is very simple.
What Is Your Writing Purpose?
Why do you write? It’s a simple as that, but it’s an incredibly important question.
You may already know why you write. If so, excellent! Let us know. And if you don’t know, use this as an opportunity to ask yourself the question.
Take a moment, think about your writing and your life and what you want to achieve, and be honest with yourself. Sometimes we find that what we want to achieve from our writing isn’t what we thought it was.
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Please tell us why you write, and what you hope to achieve, in the comments section below!
Image courtesy of Simon Hayhurst.
- Oct 18, 12
It’s not enough to write. You have to write with purpose.
What Do You Want?
When you shut the door and ease yourself down in front of that keyboard, or when you hunch over an unsullied notebook page and begin to throttle the life out of a pen, what’s your end goal? What do you want from the experience of shuffling the words from your head onto the paper?
Because you really should have a purpose when you write, even if it’s just a small one. After all, everything else in your life has purpose. The act of creation should be no different.
Action and Reaction
We often talk about Creativity as a beautiful abstract; a quirk of human nature which, like whistling or the ability to bake jam tarts, doesn’t need any reason to exist, but it’s pleasurable that it does. It’s easy to think of Creativity as the opposite of Work or The Day Job – the anti-matter to what matters, as it were.
It’s the ball pit that the “Real You” can collapse into and frolic once your average Joe office persona has been left on a hangar at the door: a place where we can express freely and enjoyably in pen or paint or percussion, all without consequence.
But Creativity needs consequence. In fact it craves it, because Creativity is just the element. The force which needs to be channelled. It’s like fire: you can let it burn rampant and freely, or you can focus it to do productive things. Without purpose to what you’re doing you’re just burning up imagination.
So what do I mean by purpose? No doubt some of you are thinking that I’m going to say that Creativity must have some sort of financial gain as its goal. While being paid to imagine is certainly one of the most rewarding purposes, as well as a validation of a passion which many of us would appreciate, it’s far from the only one.
Write To Entertain
You want to entertain people with your stories. In the old days this was difficult, but now to write for sheer entertainment’s sake is easy. Anyone can start a blog, or join in on a fan-fiction site, and start getting electronic exposure (and feedback) to your work. Knowing that there are people out there who you are writing directly for, who read and enjoy your work, is one of the best purposes there is. Of course the best way to get your work seen by as many people as possible is to…
Write To get Published
Most everyone who writes wants to be published. And why shouldn’t they? It’s not only a way to entertain as many people as possible, but it’s a sign of success in your endeavours; proof that all your hard work has been worth it. It’s all very well and good to have friends or internet strangers tell you they like your work, but to get a professional seal of approval is hugely fulfilling.
Plus it’s nice to earn a little money. And there’s nothing wrong with wanting to earn a little money from your writing (though ‘little’ is the operative word here). It’s when you write only with the sole purpose of making money that you’re going down the wrong path.
If you write with the purpose to get published, and to be in the mindset that whatever you’re writing is going to be seen by every publisher and agent and editor it’ll give a great deal more focus to your work and force you to really concentrate on making what you’re doing the best it can be.
Write To Highlight Something Important
The world is bleeding with problems big and small, personal and ubiquitous. Sometimes we’re affected so much by a problem, be it our own or another’s, but feel so impotent in the face of it, that all we can do is write about it. Highlighting a cause or a problem is a great purpose to your words.
Don’t forget, some of the most powerful messages about injustices have come in the form of fiction (think Dickens, Gaskell), and sometimes great texts are created simply because of something profoundly unpleasant that has affected the author directly.
Write To Detox
In recent years the academic notion has arisen that the enjoyment of writing is actually a therapy in itself; a sort of stress release or brain detox, wherein your problems are alleviated or sublimated through the act of writing about them, or by escaping into fantasy temporarily and having some semblance of control in your life by controlling a story. Writing with the purpose of clearing your head? Sounds pretty good.
No doubt you enjoy writing anyway, else you wouldn’t do it, but writing to relax and release all the aggression and stress and worry from your head onto the page is a different purpose. It’s relaxation therapy that you are in control of – an hour or two every so often where you can let go and see what your brain produces when it isn’t thinking numbers and commutes.
In fact it may be that you write your best stuff under the purpose of a healthy emotional release, pouring raw thoughts and feelings onto the paper and then going and editing back at a later date. Not only have you cleared your mind, but you might have come up with something for others to enjoy.
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I can’t stress how important it is to find a goal to your writing (perhaps one I’ve no doubt neglected to include here), and lock on to it. As a species we thrive when we have something to work for. As creators we work best when we have a void we feel needs filling with light and thought.
So find your own purpose. It’ll make the lonely hours in front of the keyboard feel all the more worthwhile, and it’ll really add some fuel to your writing.
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Please let us know your thoughts, and your own purposes for writing, in the comments below.
Images courtesy of SuchCuri0sity, Doug Beckers and Mikey Moto.
- Oct 16, 12
Sometimes, you can learn a lot from a book you wouldn’t normally read.
When I went away this year, I finished my holiday read on the train ride to the airport, so I decided to buy something new before I got on the plane. The bookshop offered me a choice between Fifty Shades of Grey, or a number of Lee Child thrillers. I’d heard praise for the Jack Reacher books, and figured that the blend of violence, intrigue and action was probably going to capture my interest more than erotica.
I found book one of the series, Killing Floor, and loved it. However, now I’ve just finished book two, Die Trying, and I can’t help thinking that there is a lot writers can learn from Lee Child about how to craft a solid protagonist.
Even Heroes Make Mistakes
When you spend all of your time with your protagonist, that can be a tendency to infuse that character with all sorts of positive qualities, and forget their flaws. These protagonists never do anything wrong, and they become the dreaded ‘Mary Sue’. Yet Reacher makes mistakes, and gets things wrong – in some cases in a massive way. Reacher feels more believeable, and we become interested – not to see him make mistakes, but to see how he will fix them.
Besides, conflict is your engine driving the plot forward – making mistakes is one of the quickest ways to generate conflict, and since adversity often exposes character, you can use it as an opportunity for us to get a better handle on your protagonist and how he/she will cope.
They Don’t Have To Be Perfect
Reacher is an ex-military policeman, and as such, he knows how to handle bad guys when they step out of line. But he also recognises that sometimes, you have to break the rules of engagement to get the job done. You’ll sometimes come across Reacher shooting men in the back, or going for “low blows”.
Lee Child himself admits that these things should make us dislike Reacher as they go against the traditional notions of the hero. However, I think we end up admiring Reacher for his efficient way of solving problems, and we become sufficiently emotionally invested in him as a character that we almost ‘overlook’ these incidents, instead seeing them as simply actions which add up to make the bigger picture. It humanises your character, making it much easier for the reader to empathise with them.
We Don’t Need To Know What Your Protagonist Looks Like
All we know about Reacher is that he’s 6ft 5ins tall, 220lbs, and blond with blue eyes (yeah, you can see why Tom Cruise was ideal casting for the movie…). We get occasional mentions of his physique but other than that, Lee Child skips the details and lets you sketch them in yourself.
Reacher’s height and build are important as he often uses them to his advantage in combat, but everything else is superfluous to the plot, and Child’s books are all about plot. The other bonus to keeping details to a minimum is it allows your reader to picture the hero the way they want to picture him. So ditch those scenes in which your protagonist examines themselves in the mirror and casually drop those details that matter into your prose – and your protagonist will become stronger for it.
Loners Need Companions Too
There can be a tendency within fiction towards the ‘lone wolf’ hero. You particularly get them in fantasy, with warrior or barbarian characters operating alone. Trouble is, no matter how cool the loner is, that makes them boring. They have no one to spark off, and no one to talk to.
No one cares about internal monologue, and as with a lot of fiction, you’re looking for ways to build character. Dialogue is one of the best, and most natural, ways to reveal character, so give your protagonist someone to talk to. The Lone Ranger had Tonto, Batman has Robin and Alfred – even Iron Man has Jarvis.
Reacher often has close confidantes and the way he relates to them, and protects them, tells us a lot about who he is as a character – and the companions provide ways to drive the plot forward. Plus, what the companions do provides something for your protagonist to react to – so you’d better develop your companion characters just as much as you develop your hero!
Make Your Readers Care How Your Hero Survives (Even If It’s Obvious They Will)
There are now seventeen Jack Reacher novels – bit of a giveaway that no matter how much trouble he gets into, Reacher will find a way to get out of it. That knowledge diffuses some of the dramatic tension because we no longer worry about him.
Instead, Lee Child turns our emotions from worry and concern to curiosity and we end up wondering not if he’ll escape, but how he will do it. For one thing, you can’t always guarantee that those around him will escape the danger, so we may not worry about Reacher but we may worry about them (and if there’s one thing the Reacher books demonstrate, is that no character is really safe from the chopping block). Secondly, and this links back to point #1, your hero won’t always get things right, which just gives him more things to fix…
Your Protag Should React To The Plot
I think all these points add up to something similar, in that finding ways to build a character through his or her reaction to the plot is, in itself, a great way to drive the plot forward. I’d highly recommend reading the first Jack Reacher book, Killing Floor, to get an idea of what I mean, but you could equally study other flawed heroes, such as Frodo of Lord of the Rings, James T. Kirk, or even Doctor Who.
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What about you? Do you agree, or do you think there are better ways to craft a solid protagonist?
Image courtesy of Project C, @BRUCKHEIMERJB and Zemni.
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