Trevor's Writing

Writing a novel – a writer’s journal

No Comments »26th February, 2009; Category: Fiction, Journal Writing, Master of Arts course, Novels, Writing a novel

I am writing a novel.

I need to clarify that statement: I have been thinking about writing a novel. The time for thinking is over. I urgently need to start some serious planning and writing. The pressure is really on, because I have to present the first chapter – or a part of a chapter – at a seminar next week.

Let me back-track a little. Regular readers of this blog will know that I am half way through my Master of Arts in Creative Writing course. So far I’ve been very successful, completing all the assignments and gaining distinctions (or higher) for every one of them. It was hard work, but the writing has been very satisfying. My skills have developed way beyond what I had hoped for, and I’ve produced many pleasing pieces of writing.

I have one unit of study to complete. It’s called Editing and Publishing for Writers, a very practical course aimed at both editing one’s writing and preparing work for publication. The balance of my studies this year will focus on my thesis paper. This will be a 40,000 word novel.

What should I write about?

This is a question that has plagued writers ever since the first stylus was picked up to scratch on a clay tablet in ancient Sumaria. I wasn’t there at the time, so I’m not sure what they wrote about. In varying degrees of perplexity, many writers have always struggled to come up story ideas.

It makes it so much easier if you know the plot line before you start writing. You know – beginning, middle and ending – that sort of thing. Not to forget twists and turns, problems to overcome, births, deaths, marriages, murders and the inevitable taxes.

It also helps to know your characters. Boy or girl, adults, animals, creatures, monsters or aliens: they’ve all been used before and will presumably be used many times more for many years to come.

Finally, it is essential that you are quite clear in your head where and when the story is set. Will it be in a city or a rural setting? Will it be a place near you or far away, perhaps in another country or even another world? Will the story be set in the present time, the distant past or even the future?

Decisions, decisions, decisions

The writer has to make so many decisions when starting to write a short story or novel. These choices are essential in the planning stages and they need to be reviewed constantly while the work is in progress. That is what I will be doing during the coming months.

I will get by with little help from my readers:

This blog will become a journey through the writing of my novel. I plan to write frequently about the process and the decisions I make. I invite reader’s comments as we go; in fact, you can all help me in the process. I will need all the help I can get.

Universal Writing Rules

No Comments »25th February, 2009; Category: Quotes, Writing Hints

There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.

W. Somerset Maugham
English dramatist & novelist (1874 – 1965)

That was a somewhat cynical view of the craft of writing. Sometimes I feel like they are not too far off the mark.

Despite that, we can but try to work out what this writing game is all about, and how to achieve with a moderate amount of success. In another life I was a classroom teacher for 35 years; near the end of that career I often said that I’d finally worked what this teaching thing is all about. I’m convinced that writing is the same; many years of practice is what it takes to discover what this writing thing is all about, and how it works.

Despite Somerset Maugham’s cynicism, there are some basic universal rules one can apply to all writing in order to improve it. An article appeared on ProBlogger a few days ago which addresses this very issue, with some commonsense rules to apply to every piece of writing to make it better – or even the best you can do. A worthy aim with all your writing after all.

You can read the article here: 5 Universal Writing Rules

You can read more on this topic by clicking on the links below.

Further reading:

What I am reading

1 Comment »23rd February, 2009; Category: Books, Fiction, Novels, Reading, Reviews

I’m a little slow about writing about this book.

I bought it about last October but kept it unread for a treat over the Christmas – New Year holidays. It has been a while since I bought a new novel to read just for pleasure. It’s something every writer should be doing regularly. Enough of my failings.

This is what I read: A Guide to the Birds of East Africa:a novel by Australian author Nicholas Drayson.

A first glance at the title and one could be forgiven for thinking it is only about birds. Well, it isn’t. Not entirely. At heart it is a romance, a mystery, an adventure and a rollicking good read. And you incidentally learn about the birds of East Africa as a bonus.

Mr. Malik is a quiet, reserved and thoroughly likable gentleman with a secret passion. Not even the members of his club know that he is totally in love with the leader of the Tuesday morning bird walk of the East African Ornithological Society, Rose Mbikwa. Rose’s politician husband had died in mysterious circumstance many years previously.

Mr. Malik has a problem; he desires to invite Rose to the annual Hunt Ball but flashy Harry Khan arrives in town in time to spoil his plans. Mr. Malik and Harry have a distant and not so happy past from their school days. When Harry indicates that he was going to invite Rose to the ball, mild Mr. Malik blurts out his feelings for her. So a club wager was set – whoever could see the most birds in a week would have the right to ask Rose to the ball.

The chase is on and the adventure begins. Intrigue, mystery, excitement (yes – birders do get excited) misunderstanding and a heinous crime all add spice to the chase.

A thoroughly good read.

Highly recommended.

Reference:

Drayson, N, 2008, A Guide to the Birds of east Africa: a novel. London, Viking.

A Guide to the Birds of East Africa: a novel

Oxymorons

2 Comments »20th February, 2009; Category: The Writer's Life, Writer's block, Writers, Writing Hints

I love Oxymorons.

They fascinate me. Sometimes they are really funny, sometimes serious and often thought provoking. Here is a brilliant one I came across recently in our daily newspaper. It speaks volumes to writers.

PROCRASTINATE NOW!

Yes.

Writers take note: procrastination will kill your writing career.

Stop dithering and get on with it.

Go on – stop wasting time here and get on with your writing.

Further reading:

Oxymorons – an article I wrote some time ago explaining what they are, with some examples.

Good writing: and stop putting it off.

What I learned from mowing grass

No Comments »18th February, 2009; Category: The Writer's Life, Writer's block, Writing Hints, Writing prompts

My home is situated on five acres (2 hectares) on the outskirts of a country town in South Australia. We have a small orchard, about two acres of bushland scrub and the remainder is open grassland. Many years ago it was used for grazing sheep.

We used to have five sheep, but they had an accident and ended up in the freezer. The sheep did a good job in keeping the grass down and mowing was unnecessary. It’s a different story now. In spring and early summer the grass and weeds grow quickly, sometimes up to waist high, depending on the winter rains. Of necessity I bought a ride-on mower a few years ago. It was a good move.

What has this to do with writing?

Plenty.

I learned a great deal about writing from mowing the grass.

Get a spark of an idea

Last spring the grass needed mowing. It was becoming a fire hazard as it dried in the warm sun. I went to start the mower – nothing.

Not a spark. The battery was flat. It wasn’t going anywhere.

Our writing can be like that. It seems to be going nowhere; in fact, some days it just won’t even start. Sometimes it needs a jump start to get it going. Take a break. Make a cup of tea or coffee. Go for a walk. Read a book for ten minutes. Then come back refreshed and ready to get it going again.

Get some outside help

Even though I charged the battery of my ride on mower, it still wouldn’t start. I tried everything I know about mowers and motors and batteries (which isn’t much – more of a short, short story actually). It needed professional help. I loaded it up on the trailer and took it to the dealer, a specialist in mower maintenance. That did the trick. He knew exactly how to solve the problem, giving me a few maintenance hints as well. Get some professional help with your writing. This is where networking and writers’ groups can be so beneficial. If necessary you may even need to pay to have your manuscript professionally assessed.

Eliminate the rubbish

When the mower was home again I got busy. There was plenty of grass that needed mowing before the summer fire danger season. Round and round I went mowing happily until… until the mower stopped mowing efficiently. What the… ? I stopped and looked down: the cutting area was clogged up with matted dry grass. The blades couldn’t do their job properly.

Is your writing clogged with rubbish? Words that don’t fit, or redundant sentences. Paragraphs that are really run-on sentences going nowhere. Wordy descriptions that “tell and don’t show.” Spelling and grammatical errors that readers – not to mention editors – will trip over and curse you for their sore knees.

Shed some light on your work

Sometimes I was enjoying the mowing so much the sun set on me and it started getting dark. The mower has two headlights but they don’t shed much light on the path ahead. I had to shut down, put the mower away and start again the next day.

Sometimes with our writing we get eyes that are dimmed through tiredness or trying too hard for too long. Put it away over night, or for a few days, and come back in the light of a new day. Instantly you will see where you were having troubles with a piece of writing and be able to correct it and move on.

Be sure to top up the fuel tank

My mower sometimes runs out of fuel. The gauge is on the side of the tank where I can’t see it from where I sit. It leaves me in no doubt about what is happening. It splutters to a stop with no warning. Sometimes it is a long walk back to the shed to get fuel.

Has your writing ever sputtered to a sudden stop, going nowhere? It is then time to refuel. Take a short holiday completely away from the work that is bogging you down. Go for a long walk every day. Set aside a day or two just for reading a novel. Stop and refuel by listening to music. Walk on the beach. Let the wind blow through your hair. See a movie or two or three. Visit a friend and have a good yarn about anything except your writing. Then come back fully refueled and ready to go on with your writing.

Good writing.