I don't know how to write

[moderntimes]

My approach is this: Think of the story in your head like you're making a movie. Then put it down on paper. Do good dialogue. Create imperfect characters. Wing it when you have to on the story, but just finish it. It's easier to edit the finished product than to create the original. This may not work for everyone.

Some excellent suggestions.

I also try to envision the characters speaking to one another as would real people. Then I simply "take dictation" as to what they say. What's important is that you put yourself into the mindset of each character and try to see from their eyes. That way, you can engender them with real emotions and realistic behavior that will engage the reader.

One thing I've found very shabby in recent mysteries I've reviewed is how the conversations are all of one voice. One character speaks for maybe 2 paragraphs, then that character stops, and the other character speaks for a long while. This isn't how people actually speak! They use short and incomplete sentences and interrupt each other.

Another problem is when all the characters speak the same, use the same complexity of sentence structure, the same vocabulary. You can't tell who is speaking! Each character needs to sound different.

[RobertM]

If you say 'I don't know how to write' then the answer is to start small and work up from there. Flash Fiction (telling a complete story with character(s), a plot, and an ending in less than 250 words) is a good exercise. Flash can be almost any reasonably short length, but if you can get this style of writing down in 250 words or less on a consistent basis, you are going to become one heck of a better writer. I learned this from a guy named Neil Marr, a good friend of mine who died recently. Before he did, he used to run a writers' site that was very well known. (It closed down in 2009) Anyway...he was a big promoter of flash fiction to improve writing. His theory was if you can get the small stuff polished, the longer stuff will start coming to you naturally. And he was right, I think. I learned a lot from the guy.

A lot of times this is going to be a slice-of-life kind of story. You need the basics here. A beginning, a plot, characters, a solid ending. If you do it right, you can actually move people with this stuff. Anyone can do 250 words well, right? So can YOU. Let me post a short example:

Magic Bullet

A man in a silver jumpsuit shimmered into the room like a ghost. He came into focus. “All right, Professor. You know the rules about visiting the past. Lay down the rifle.”

Dr. Andrews continued staring out the window. “I can’t, Mike. I have to do this.”

“You could change everything we know. Put the rifle down or I’ll shoot you myself and take you home in a body bag.”

“Can’t you see the sense of it? I have a perfect shot at the son of a bitch!” Andrews put his eye against the scope again and spotted his target. He saw a man in another window down the street, also holding a rifle. “I’m taking the shot.”

“Put it down.”

“No.”

“Don’t make me do this, Professor. Put down the rifle.”

The crowds on the street below began waving at the motorcade as it approached.

Dr. Andrews hesitated for a moment. Taking his finger off the trigger, he used the rifle as a telescope. “I think he spotted me. He’s looking this way.”

“What?”

“He’s moving away from the window! He’s not going to shoot...”

“Damn you!” The man in the silver jumpsuit grabbed Andrews and shoved him out of the way. The high-powered rifle fell to the floor with a clatter. Snatching up the gun, he took a quick aim at a different target. He knew what he had to do. He centered the ‘x’ on the young man in the Dallas motorcade and squeezed the trigger.

You can DO this. Start really short, work up. The shorter to start, the better. Pick a target for your word count and cut out the deadwood, tighten up the story until you reach that target.

[moderntimes]

An excellent exercise, especially for those writing short stories. And a good example!

I've learned of course that novels take a slightly different mindset, the patience needed to write expository chapters and interconnnecting chapters, not all just bang and flash, as a novel requires background and texture that short stories do not.

[RobertM]

One facet of writing that really improves if you do flash...when you get ready to cut the deadwood from your first novel, and do your preliminary edit on the thing, you'll be better at it.

[MissBertram]

I feel like that all the time, too. I constantly feel like I have something to share but when it comes out on the screen it seems like a total waste of space that nobody wants to read. It's all about the crappy first draft... write exactly what you are thinking and don't stop until it's all out, no matter what it looks like or how terrible it is. Then go back and fix it.

Another thing I sometimes do is start in the middle instead of the beginning. For some reason the beginning is the hardest for me to write, and I always get stuck on trying to hook the reader and so stare at the screen with nothing getting done. If I start in the middle, words get out and I can go back and do the beginning last. So maybe start with the easiest part for you to write?

[moderntimes]

Whenever I'm a bit stuck, I simply skip ahead (thanks to Monty Python) -- for example if I'm on chapter 22 and the plot has slowed down, I start a new plot arc at, maybe, chapter 28. Then before long, it all comes to me and I can then write 23-27 more easily.

But in truth, I have the opposite of writer's block most of the time -- too many ideas crowding their way into my fevered brain.

[Nathrad Sheare]

That's how my brain works... I don't really understand writer's block. I just finally got myself to settle on two projects, one of which has enough personality to keep me very busy and entirely bereft of any chance for the kind of mental wandering that couldn't be traced back to it one way or another... I really love to experiment with words and people... fictional people. Wow, I just got this overwhelming sense of ultimate power....

[tangowithParis]

"Just write it." That's very good advice. The biggest deterrent to writing and finishing
a work(usually a short story or chapter in a book) are the arguments I get in with myself
about style. I begin with an idea that is novel or a better way of expressing a commonly
held "truth." Then I plod along changing words, metaphors, MC's even. When I'm finished "the product" doesn't look anything like the original I had in mind. Like the man said, "just get it down." You can fine tune it later.

[moderntimes]

Well, tango, I have the same problem, a chapter of my novel that "wants to" go in two different directions at once, things like that.

So what I do is to write, say, chapter 22a, save it, then twiddle with the story and save it as chapter 22b, and so on. Thankfully computers are good at this. In many cases I've had an "a" "b" "c" and "d" version of a sequence. I just write it all down and save everything. Then I later go back and cherrypick the best, and make that the "definitive" or "director's cut" version of chapter 22. However, I've still got those a,b,c versions on disk should I change my mind.

Just a couple weeks back I finished my 3rd novel -- a series of private detective books -- and there was a whole sequence of events that I'd written but just didn't fit within the story line. So I've saved them for possible use in the 4th book! I've got a bunch of partial chapters, story ideas, character bios, and so on in my archives file, into which I can dip.

Point being, I keep writing and writing and saving everything, lots is dumped into an "ideas" folder for future use.

So those of you who have "writer's block" just write something else! But save it on disk and keep writing down whatever springs into your mind, and you'll eventually reconnect with your muse and get back on track, and will then have some new stuff for later.

I have a pretty good classically trained baritone voice, and I sang for a small but legit opera company. I remember one of the first rehearsals for the men's chorus for Mozart's Don Giovanni. One of the guys asked our rehearsal boss and pianist, "What if we forget our lines?" "Don't worry, we'll rehearse lots, you won't forget." "But everyone forgets occasionally - so if we forget our lyrics, what do we do?" The pianist smiled, "Then just sing something Italian!"

Same for writing -- just write something!

[ttuso22]

I honestly would recommend just writing. My cousin once told me to write down every idea I had and for awhile I ignored that. Recently, however, I have found the beauty in it. Not only does it keep me from forgetting the great ideas I have but it also challenges me to progress in my writing skills and I have already see improvement. My poetry grows in imagery and voice and I see what words I repeat and look for a wider vocabulary. My prose also enhances as I try and write full sentences and even chapters! I may not be the best writer, but I am always growing and know that one day I may be able to finish a book. Making friends who are also writers is a great idea because they can critique and help you see what areas you need to grow on. Hope this helps and look forward to the possibility of seeing books you write in the future!

-- 07 Jun 2014, 18:24 --

Well, tango, I have the same problem, a chapter of my novel that "wants to" go in two different directions at once, things like that.

So what I do is to write, say, chapter 22a, save it, then twiddle with the story and save it as chapter 22b, and so on. Thankfully computers are good at this. In many cases I've had an "a" "b" "c" and "d" version of a sequence. I just write it all down and save everything. Then I later go back and cherrypick the best, and make that the "definitive" or "director's cut" version of chapter 22. However, I've still got those a,b,c versions on disk should I change my mind.

Just a couple weeks back I finished my 3rd novel -- a series of private detective books -- and there was a whole sequence of events that I'd written but just didn't fit within the story line. So I've saved them for possible use in the 4th book! I've got a bunch of partial chapters, story ideas, character bios, and so on in my archives file, into which I can dip.

Point being, I keep writing and writing and saving everything, lots is dumped into an "ideas" folder for future use.

So those of you who have "writer's block" just write something else! But save it on disk and keep writing down whatever springs into your mind, and you'll eventually reconnect with your muse and get back on track, and will then have some new stuff for later.

I have a pretty good classically trained baritone voice, and I sang for a small but legit opera company. I remember one of the first rehearsals for the men's chorus for Mozart's Don Giovanni. One of the guys asked our rehearsal boss and pianist, "What if we forget our lines?" "Don't worry, we'll rehearse lots, you won't forget." "But everyone forgets occasionally - so if we forget our lyrics, what do we do?" The pianist smiled, "Then just sing something Italian!"

Same for writing -- just write something!

This was very encouraging and gives me ideas for my future writing! Thanks!

[moderntimes]

Right now I'm submitting queries to agencies on my 3rd private detective novel (the first 2 were published to good reviews, just not a lot of money).

Thanks and we'll see.

[Nathrad Sheare]

Wow, moderntimes... I wish you happy publishing!

[moderntimes]

Thanks. My first 2 novels in the Mitch King Mystery series, "Blood Spiral" and "Blood Storm" were published by a small, mostly e-book house (but NOT "vanity"), both to pretty good reviews, and although the publisher was just fine on the books and such (both books are on Amazon via Kindle or trade paperback), the money was very modest. So this time I'm "taking the high road" and querying mainstream agencies for "Blood Vengeance" -- so the first round of my placing the book is to acquire an agent (AAR signatory of course) and that's where I am now, having sent a bunch of e-queries and waiting the requisite 5-8 weeks for replies.

In the meantime I continue to read my new novel through and through, finding a word here or a sentence there to tweak ever so slightly. I'm pretty certain that there aren't any typos now but I am still on the lookout for those as well.

What I want is to have a smooth, erudite, and very "clean" product to sell to the agent who asks for the manuscript (e-format of course).

Thing is, I owe it to my future readership (and of course the publisher who pays me the advance!) to give them the best I can offer.

Not one to sit idly by, I'm now focusing on finding an agent for my supernatural thriller screenplay. But finding an agent for a screenplay is a lot harder than an agent for a book, because selling -- aka "optioning" or eventually "greenlighting" a film is lots harder than finding a book publisher.

Then of course I'm thinking of where to take my private detective on his next adventure, the 4th novel in the series. Whew!

[iColor With Crayons]

Organizing and forcing yourself to write out your story in a functional, rational, coherent manner is one of the worst things about writing. I get to points where I hate certain chapters, because I know how I want a story to start and end, but the in-between can get sort of boring. I usually just make outlines and rough it out!

[Nathrad Sheare]

I'm looking forward to reading all about how you're happy to be published and selling. Make sure you don't overwhelm the agent who accepts you. He'll only be able to handle one chapter at a time. I hope your screenplay makes it, too. I'm very excited for you.

-- 08 Jun 2014, 21:45 --

Um, that was to you, moderntimes...