For those of you whose schedules did not permit attending the live chat with me at RedmundPro today, you missed out on an interesting discussion. Feel free to leave more questions, as I will be returning to the threads to answer them. They led to today’s title.
In my travels amongst some powerhouse authors, I have come to realize the majority of authors have a preference, either they look for the relative ease of compiling facts into logical and useful formats or they revel in the creativity which spawns fiction. The minority are the authors who jump genre.
No, we are not talking about the sci-fi writer who decides to write a fantasy novel or the romance novelist who moves over to historical fiction. I mean the authors who jump between fiction and non-fiction. The two are very different animals.
Over the course of this series, we are going to compare and contrast non-fiction writing and fiction writing in birthing a book.
To Plan Or Not…
One of the burning questions is whether authors plan fiction stories. Where non-fiction needs a plan so you do not waffle on for an extra 30,000 words about sock lint futures, fiction is not so clear cut. Speaking for myself, sort of. No, I do not need someone to take my temperature. The answer may not be my normal absolute; still, bear with me.
Fiction stories are like children. Where one will learn and progress at a pace on par with its peers, another will linger at one stage longer than expected and travel in an opposite direction from the plan. Anyone ever raise a teen? No? So, did you ever do exactly what your parents planned for you on schedule? See, well, there you have it.
Teen Angst
Always with the questions.
Another question which can plague a fiction writer is When is the story useless? Non-fiction is easy. There are normally a finite number of facts or limited presentation space. Fiction has all the “facts” you and your characters can conjure or accomplish (within reason).
This is another one with choices for answers.
First and most obvious: When you can no longer (remember, conceive) where the story is going.
If you have no idea where your story is going, stop writing it. Whether you keep it is a topic for another post. This brand of writer’s block is dispelled like any other. Seek inspiration: Read, draw, watch movies, play video games, knit. Clear your mind and wait for the muse. (Chanting Mantra’s name is often helpful.)
Next: When it is epic and futile.
Someone started an awful rumor. It is not a book until it is 100,000 words. Can you imagine a NaNoWriMo at 100,000 words? Most authors cannot.
If your characters are finished at 47,281 words, one syllable more than that is plot stuffing. I do not buy books based on the number of pages (In an ebook it is irrelevant anyway.); I buy based on the author’s ability to get to the point and keep me engaged. When the author wanders away from the plot on some snipe hunt, I am headed to the kitchen for a snack and to check the SIB. It is always entertaining.
Last: There is mold growing in the fridge.
It is a green-grey mass of fur-like cells attached to every surface of your story. Why? Instead of being filled with action or events or surprises or pertinent information, you are describing the wood grain in the crown molding or the traffic while you attempt to figure out what happens next.
Unless your protagonist is a historical building restorer turned on by crown molding or going to be hit by an oncoming car, you are telling your reader you really do not have anything else for your characters to do. Here, watch the drinking bird until I figure something entertaining to tell you. —>
What do you mean?
Going into a massive amount of detail which will not impact the outcome of your story is boring. Let me say that again. B.O.R.I.N.G. If the layout of the room is not going to play a part in your story (e.g. Samson tripped over the coffee table on his way through the living room.), it is not necessary to tell your readers about it in six consecutive pages. Slip it in with details as the story progresses. Otherwise, you are flagging your readers to skip pages looking for the actual story.
Build your world and scenes with enough detail the reader can picture themselves in the story. Do not take a time out to describe the blueprints to the building before you burn it down. While it is cool you decided to furnish the room with Ming vases, unless someone is going to smash or steal one, your reader will never know they are actually knock offs from Neiman Marcus.
Tangential asides can destroy a good story. If you have a character hanging from a cliff while a rescue squad lowers an orangutan to rescue her from the 1,281 foot drop to the rocks below, this is not a good place for her to recall the first time she saw an orang on a contest-won vacation to New York where she went to the Bronx zoo with her father who died on a Wednesday in a mine shaft in a Kentucky coal mine after eating a bratwurst and pimento cheese sandwich with a Moon Pie and an RC Cola.
During your three page foray into a childhood memory, the orangutan swallowed a fly and choked to death at the end of the rope. Rescue foiled. Story spoiled. Rescue her, and let her tell the story back at the ranger station (if you absolutely need to tell it).
Enter Editor
When your editor comes along and asks, Why did you put this (in, here)?, you are being given warning:
1. This detracts from your reader’s attention and your story.
2. This disrupts the continuity of the story.
3. This does not impact the story in any way and is irrelevant plot stuffing.
If you are really attached to what hits the editing room floor, take the piece and write a story to support it. You have seen how far authors can go with flash fiction and one word. How far can you go with an established character and a scene?
Gray Dawster
/ January 29, 2013Bravo, it is always refreshing to read something that makes absolute common sense, you certainly pack a mean punch and express yourself extraordinarily well in the process, and I like this post a lot.
Red
/ January 29, 2013As you shall see all over M3, I prefer to tell it the way it is 🙂 Do be sure to press the Love! button. I do not record who presses it or how many times. It helps others find the posts most loved by the readers.
Gray Dawster
/ January 29, 2013That is a very good idea and I will start pushing those buttons every time that I call by, I have had a very nice visit and will be calling back regularly.
It is a pleasure to find such an outstanding website that covers absolutely everything. I have much to read here, and so far I have enjoyed everything that you have added.
Bo Lumpkin
/ January 29, 2013Great advice, however the whole thing made me want an RC and a Moon Pie. I don’t however have any orangutans around.
I agree…tell the story and spare us the details unless they mean something. Most readers have a pretty good imagination and one of the best parts of reading is mentally picturing things the way you think they should be. I might not be the best writer in the world but I am a prolific reader.
Bo Lumpkin recently posted..Project In Progress
Red
/ January 31, 2013I think you missed the post where I pointed out without readers writers would fail to exist. While I am detailed, I do leave enough to the imagination to make it fun. 😉 Can you get RC where you live?
raymond alexander kukkee
/ January 29, 2013RC Cola, a fine detail of a certain era, it was a good-tasting soft drink that used to come in glass bottles-in competition with Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola–not a bad thing to know–but too much of any detail is indeed a killer. It was also slightly addictive. Great choice for an analogy, Red. The corner office has droves of filing cabinets full of details that will never get used for that reason.
Building fiction is a fine balance. That’s what the muse is for. She does not plan. Ever. She speaks, the characters speak, I write, down to the dialect. They build their own world.
GREAT article Red! “:)
raymond alexander kukkee recently posted..Earthquake: Northwestern Ontario
Red
/ January 31, 2013Mine build their own world as well. Occasionally, I end up with twice as much. What I wanted to write…and what the characters wanted. I take it you cannot get RC there any more.
raymond alexander kukkee
/ January 31, 2013No, RC isn’t available here any more, how sad it is…. “:)
raymond alexander kukkee recently posted..Writing Life: Ethics in Content Marketing
C. Brown
/ January 30, 2013Thank you! I thought it was just me who was tired of tripping over coffee tables that I didn’t understand the need for in the middle of a room.
C. Brown recently posted..Mean Streak
Red
/ January 31, 2013LOL! Me, too. The unexpected things are not as fun a surprise as some authors would have you believe! xxx
Valentine Logar
/ January 30, 2013Please may I have a knock off Ming with my coffee table?
How about a swing in the bedroom, bet that has a purpose that goes with the story.
As always this is superb and done without beating your readers over the head. Now if only all the would be writers and authors would pay meticulous attention to your advice.
Red
/ January 31, 2013I am guessing there is a great use for it 😉 Thank you, my darling.
Gail Thornton
/ January 30, 2013I write memoir and poetry, different genres, but the same thing about getting bogged down in detail applies to memoir as well. While I may have a vivid memory of something, and the details caught me up when I was there, it usually isn’t something the reader would need to know or be interested in. I rely heavily on the interpersonal conflicts, which I imagine might be the same when building characters in fiction. I love this series, Red! Thanks.
Gail Thornton recently posted..Review of A Month of Mental Moments
Red
/ January 31, 2013It is very similar. There are details which are not pertinent and only obfuscate the story. Stay tuned. There is more to come.
El
/ January 30, 2013This was swell! Now, as far as that Ming Vase, sometimes it helps to know something, even a quick detail, because it supports character development. Is she wealthy? Phony? Adores fine vases but can afford little else? Wants to keep up with the Jones’ . . . or is a true lover of fine things? But yep yep yep in general to what you wrote!
El recently posted..Skating with Molotov: Portland Renegade Roller Derby
Red
/ January 31, 2013Aye, but you are talking about an illustrative portion of your story. Indeed, it makes a difference in that case. Great to see you today, El. xxx
Carrie Rubin
/ January 30, 2013Excellent post with great tips we all need to be reminded of from time to time. I’m a firm outliner myself. I think for a thriller, it’s important to plan it out–where to plant clues, when to introduce a later important player, etc. But I know there are many out there who don’t agree with that approach. One should do whatever works for him or her, but as you point out, we all need to remember to recognize when a passage or scene is getting us nowhere.
Carrie Rubin recently posted..Reflections Of A Woman At A Magic Convention
Red
/ January 31, 2013My action stories need an outline or I leave out some pertinent part and have to figure out how to separate the seams to insert it after the fact. Resembles rewriting…which gives me hives. Great to see you today, Carrie. xxx
Binky
/ January 31, 2013Like so many things, writing is a balance. Too much detail is boring, too little can be vague and unconvincing. A good editor is invaluable for helping make that evaluation since it’s often hard to find the right balance when you’ve gone over your story a hundred times and none of it is fresh anymore.
Binky recently posted..Mouse Trap
Red
/ January 31, 2013I agree 100%. Had it not been for my editors, most of my books would have been too long. Since starting with Flash in the Pan, I am running into the opposite-ish. Almost too much left to the imagination.