The Major Lesson of Five Decades of Writing

Looking back at five decades of writing, I can say with certainty the major lesson I’ve learned. I was reminded of it while I was reading Writing Better Fiction by Harvey Stanbrough. This is about as no-nonsense, straightforward, this-is-how-it-is discussion of writing that I’ve ever come across. And most of it applies to non-fiction as well as fiction. 

In other words, I recognize what he talks about. Fully recognize it.

 

The major lesson: Writers write, no matter what.

 

You may be sick. You may have 67 other priorities and pressing demands. You may stare dully at a blank page or screen without having a single thing to put down. You may hear the chorus of constant critics, including your own internal voices. You may watch others write something seemingly effortlessly and wonder why that never happens to you. Twice a day might be tempted to pack it all in and walk away, forever.

To continuing reading, please see my post today at Dancing Priest.

Photograph by Nik Shuliahin via Unsplash. Used with permission.

Some Wednesday Readings

 

Homeschooling, Luddite Style – Nadya Williams at Mere Orthodoxy.

 

“I Wouldn’t Take Nothing for It”: An Appreciation of Love for the Land – Robert Corban at Front Porch Republic.

 

Simple is Hard: Two short poems by A.E. Housman – Joseph Bottum at Pomes Ancient and Modern.

 

For the month of April, The Beautiful Madness of Martin Bonham by Robert Hudson is on sale for 99 cents. You can read my review here.

When Your Characters Take Over the Story

The title for this post is something of a “Well, duh” kind of title. For a story to work well, it’s the characters who have to take over and knock the author from his perch.

 

I’ve been reading Writing Better Fiction by Harvey Stanbrough, and he says that he almost called his book Writing Better Character-Driven Fiction, until he realized it was rather redundant. “All good fiction is character-driven,” he writes. He’s not big on outlines, plotting, character sketches, erecting signposts, or anything else that might smack of planning. Instead, he says, “like real life,” he says, “authentic fiction is not planned. Like real life, authentic fiction unfolds naturally.”

 

Stanbrough has an acronym for this – WITD, or “Writing into the Dark.”

To continue reading, please see my post today at Dancing Priest.

Some Wednesday Readings

 

American Civil War: prize-winning new book reveals plight of underage soldiers – The National Tribune (Australia). My review of Of Age can be found here.

 

Booknotes: The War That Made America: Essays Inspired by the Scholarship of Gary W. Gallagher – Civil War Books and Authors. 

 

Our Banner in the Sky – Jon Tracey at Emerging Civil War.

 

“Imagine Mountains,” a poem on the 150^th anniversary of Robert Frost’s birth – Carey Jobe at Society of Classical Poets.

 

224 Feet of Fencing – Brian Miller at A South Roane Agrarian.