1. Abandon the idea that you are ever going to finish. Lose track of the 400 pages and write just one page each day, it helps.
Then when it gets finished, you are always surprised.
2. Write freely and as rapidly as possible and throw the whole thing on paper. Never correct or rewrite until the whole thing is down. Rewriting in
process is usually found to be an excuse for not going on. It also interferes
with flow and rhythm which can only come from a kind of unconscious association
with the material.
3. Forget your generalized audience. In the first place, the nameless,
faceless
audience will scare you to death and in the second
place, unlike the theater, it doesn't exist. In writing, your audience is one
single reader. I have found that sometimes it helps to pick out one person - a
real person you know, or an imagined person - and write to that one.
4. If a scene or a section gets the better of you and you still think
you want it, bypass it and go on. When you have
finished the whole, you can come back to it and then you may find that the reason it gave you trouble is because it didn't
belong there.
5. Beware of a scene that becomes too dear to you. Dearer than the rest. It will usually be found that it is out of drawing. (I take this to mean that you, the writer, are particularly drawn to your own brilliance. I could be wrong. AT)
6. If you are using dialogue, say it aloud as you write it. Only then will it have the sound of speech.
Thanks for sharing Adrian. While I like them all I think number 3 resonates the most with me.
ReplyDeleteGood advise, especially #6. Written dialogue often feels forced or unnatural, and reading it aloud really does reveal where it falls flat. It’s the best ways to make sure the rhythm and tone actually sound like real people talking. Thanks Adrian.
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