MY WRITING STYLE
March 24, 2014 at 7:21 pm 1 comment
Presently, I’m in a quandary about the subject of this piece, my writing style.
Every writer has his or her own style, the way of expressing in word the thoughts they are trying to convey. How does this characteristic of the author originate? Is it some deep-seated voice that represents your essence, or is it merely a manufacture of all the authors whose works you have read?
My reason for pondering this question is that I am in the process of editing my novel, Sweet Depression, and in this endeavor I am attempting to cure what others have pointed out to me as a major fault – my brevity. I tend to concentrate on the core of the story and leave out details that would give the story more life. But where is the line you must be careful not to cross when that life would morph into a boring existence?
Take a look at your bookshelves. If you’re as voracious a reader as I and share my fault of not being able to part with a book once read, those shelves are overflowing. Science fiction and horror are my writing genres, but lately some of my stories have spilled into the murky boundaries of the thriller. But back to science fiction. I look at the science fiction novels of fifty or more years ago and those of today and see a distinct difference. Older science fiction is more concise, more to the point. Of course, you have the epic series Dune written by Frank Herbert and continued by his son which are massive in length, tomes of a complex series. But I look at H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds which is little more than a novella and see the more typical length of science fiction of a bygone era.
Recently I have talked to writers whose work are massive and needed to be cut for publication. My work doe not require deletion but rather addition. But how much to add without diluting down the story or slowing the action, that’s the quandary.
While thinking this piece through I may have come up with the answer to my problem. It is not the length that is important, rather the content and the skill of the writer. Talent is the bottom line. The writer must take the readers by the hand and lead them down a path without detours causing them to lose their way. And when the readers reach the end of that path, if the writer has been successful, they are left with a treasure.
Entry filed under: OBSERVATIONS & OPINIONS, Update, Walt Trizna, WALT'S OBSERVATIONS, WALT'S OPINIONS, writer's information. Tags: fiction, science fiction, style, writing, writing style.
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Lori D | March 24, 2014 at 8:05 pm
Nice post. I struggled with my voice at one point. I belong to a writer’s critique group, and I always got comments on explaining too much. I thought that was just “my voice,” but learned it can be daunting for readers. I always worry my reader won’t understand what I mean if I’m not direct and just outright say something without beating around the bush. My critiquers pointed out that the reader doesn’t need to be led by the hand. The audience likes the challenge of discovering some things on their own without direct input. For example, don’t name emotions, show a facial expression or body language and let the reader figure it out. I finally figure figured out my voice, but I’m forever honing my work. Hope writing out your thoughts helped you work things through.