Omit All Useless Words.
Take chances. Don’t be lazy. Tell the whole truth. Always remember: there is nothing to be afraid of. It is not easy to write about emotion and keep it cliché-free; write down whatever comes into your head. Double-check typing mistakes to see if you can usefully leave them in. Your sub-conscious sometimes forces your fingers into certain patterns. Perform the ’so what’ test.
Revise.
Remember: Established writers get rejected as well.
Read Good Books. Guard your time. Feed your imagination. Work regular hours. Go for a walk. Read good books. Don’t listen to other writers. Find your own way.
Table of contents for Learning To Write
- Learning to Write I
- Learning to Write II
- Learning to Write III
- Learning to Write IV
- Learning to Write V
- Learning to Write VI
- Learning to Write VII
- Learning to Write VIII
- Learning to Write IX
- Learning to Write X
- Learning to Write XI
- Learning to Write XII
- Learning to Write XIII
- Learning to Write XIV
- Learning to Write XV
- Learning to Write XVI
- Learning to Write XVII
- Learning to Write XVIII
- Learning to Write XIX
- Learning to Write XX
- Learning to Write XXI
- Learning to Write XXII
- Learning to Write XXIII
- Learning to Write XXIV
- Learning to Write XXV
- Learning to Write XXVI
- Learning to Write XXVII
- Learning to Write XXVIII
- Learning to Write XXIX
- Learning to Write XXX
- Learning to Write XXXI
- Fictional Character
- How Many Plots Are There?
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Jun 24th, 2006 at 7:29 am
I love these insights into writing. Please don’t stop.
Jun 24th, 2006 at 9:53 am
This useless words rule: I wish it were that simple! In which way useless? Who decides? There are plenty of ‘useless’ words in wonderful writing, in work by Richard Powers or McEwan or even Hollinghurst, all powerful writers.
And I like David Mitchell’s take on cliché: it can be a powerful tool, if used sparingly, if mined and adapted carefully. After all, cliché often touches on something that resonates in the reader.
But I agree with almost everything else you say.
Jun 24th, 2006 at 4:04 pm
“Don’t be lazy. Tell the whole truth.”
That just about sums it up for me. Truth is the most important element in fiction and it needs effort to make it real.
Jun 25th, 2006 at 4:35 pm
Jun 26th, 2006 at 12:39 am
You said all the things I needed to hear right now. Thank you. I might have to put this up next to the PC!
Jun 26th, 2006 at 9:19 pm
Good tips but I don’t know whether to listen to you or not.
Cliches are like foreign phrases. They can be used in italics with knowledge of their specialness.
Jun 28th, 2006 at 1:02 am
Thank you for this. There are so many wonderful things on your blog I don’t know what to link first.
Jun 28th, 2006 at 10:05 pm
Such great advice, thanks.
Jun 29th, 2006 at 11:44 am
OK, clichés are not a forbidden country, but they are only useful, occasionally, in the hands of a practised master.