So, I am trying something this week. I am likely to be very busy and I’ve been meaning to add to my ‘Writing’ articles that I keep posted as pages. Well, I’ve been meaning to add many useful posts. Or maybe I haven’t, but here it is anyway.
Based on the last six years of writing and attending workshops and conferences, like the recently attended RWA10, I’ve come to the conclusion that there are two key things to becoming a writer. Two things that you must learn about writing and about yourself before you move forward.
Drumroll!
Process! and! Voice!
There. Now you know. Continue about your day. Check back tomorrow.
Or keep reading.
In reality, there are probably some people who never really learn these things about themselves as they move forward on their writing journey. I know many people who are not self-analytical like I am and may have no realization of learning these things about themselves and may be stunned to think about this and how important they are. I may be talking about you. No, not you. But you. Maybe you, too. Put your hand down. No questions until the end. Unless you have a question.
A saying that I never remember who to attribute to is that you must write one million words of crap before you’re ready to be a writer. Since I am unsure, I will attribute this saying to my cat, George. Thanks, George!
Sure, you need to learn other things besides Process and Voice. Crafty things, like craft. How to tell a story. Rules of grammar. Point of view. Pointed sticks. Setting. Conflict. Benjamin Franklin. The War of 1812. Algebra. Wait. I didn’t mean ‘setting’. No one uses setting anymore since everything happens online.
So, here’s my tips on Process and Voice.
1. Process
What is it? Why is it important? How do you get it?
What: Basically, it’s Pantzer vs. Plotter. How do you write a novel. I mean you, not me. I know how I write a novel. In theory. Or in reality. In a theoretical reality of theory, entwined in reality. I know something you don’t know! Nyah nyah.
But there’s many deviations from those simple descriptions. You have to find what works for you. Do you write detailed character descriptions before you start? Do you put all your chapters in an excel spreadsheet as you go? Do you name all your characters Bob until revisions for simplicity?
Bob1 swept into the room and kissed Bob2. Bob2 liked it. Oh yes, Bob2 really really liked it much.
Do you write out of order? Do you need a title before you can begin? Do you write a sloppy first draft? Critique partners and first readers – do you have them? How do you work with them? Do you send chapters as you go? Do you send the completed and edited draft?
Mental note: Write a post about critique partners, first/beta readers, agents, and editors.
So many questions. So many different ways to write. You must choose! Choose now and never deviate! Or try something new each time. Different books may need different processes.
It’s important to learn your process!
Why: Because I said so. Now eat your vegetables.
Or, because this is a process you are likely to repeat. Until you figure out how to write in a method that makes you comfortable with your work, it will be a struggle. If you write your first book over the course of eight years with fifteen drafts, how are you going to make it through the sophomore slump on book two?
I’m sure there are people who know, just know, right from the get go what their process is. There are some people who have developed a process already and have an advantage over other writers. Journalists and lawyers come to mind. These are writing jobs.
You may not know the answer to whether you are a pantzer or a plotter, but if you don’t know, you may be asking–
How: do I find this?
First take three six sided dice and roll them adding the totals. I apologize, but you must do the maths. Now!
If you total less than five, you’re a cycler. Read and edit yesterday’s words prior to writing today’s new words. Your first draft is almost a completed novel.
If your number is six, you have to get a kitten named Cocoa who will sit on your printed manuscript while you attempt to edit with a red pen.
or, write a novel. Then write another. Write to the end. Even if it sucks. Learning to finish is critical to learning your process. On the next novel, try a different thing. Maybe write a four to ten page synopsis before you start. Or sit down and start writing. Or pour yourself a Martini and type with your toes.
I mentioned George’s quote about the million words of crap. You will learn your process(es) through that. Journalists and lawyers and other writing heavy professions have done this. That’s why I say they have an advantage. They have done the time to learn a process. If you don’t have that background, you’re learning your process at the same time as learning all those tricky little craft things.
Some of you won’t hear this. Some of you won’t write through to the end of a book so you never learn your process. You’re going to remain locked up in story. Before you can really advance to telling a story, you need to learn a process to finish writing a book. A bad, bad, needs a spanking, book. You could write and edit and rewrite and edit the same book for ten years. Maybe then it will be published or publishable. You’ve heard it takes ten years to get published, which is probably true enough. But then you’ve misunderstood that myth. If you write 1 book per year, you’ll finish your tenth (100k) book in year ten. Assuming you bothered to learn something each book, you will be publishable.
And you will have a process.
My point is, write a book. Then write the next book. Don’t stay on the same book for ten years. Don’t start five new books per year, never finishing any of them. Learn an effective for you process that completes a book that you are comfortable showing to another human being or cat.
I probably should put a picture of a cat in here somewhere to break up all these words. Imagine fat George sitting right here.
2. Voice
What is it? Why do you need it? How do you find it?
What? Voice is porn. I would like you to share it with me. We can play the real/fake game – orgasms and boobies. Fake. fake, fake, fake, who cares, fake, real. What? C’mon, that one was real. Ok, fake, but really good.
Wait. Where was I? Voice. Voice is cadence, style. Like music, it’s rhythm and melody. Everyone has a voice. Just like anyone can try out for American Idol. It doesn’t mean everyone has a good voice. But everyone has a voice. Everything you write is in a voice. Voice is what sets you apart from someone else. Unless it doesn’t.
There’s character voice and then writer voice.
Sometimes, the writer voice should be missing or rather invisible. Think of it like Newscaster Accents. You just don’t see a heavy Boston accent in the news cast. Even that’s starting to change. Other times, it’s the writer’s voice which carries the story.
Character voice, that’s a little bit different. It’s really about being able to distinguish each character. I mean, you know when Hagrid walks in a room. He’s got style.
Use of voice, writer and character, varies from genre to genre. There’s the slow camera panning around the Fantasy world compared to a quick, short, catch your breath thriller style, to the sometimes internal emotional Romance. Then you hit sub-genres and totally mess with your head.
How do you figure out your voice?
Read. Read everything. You have a voice. Just because you love to read a certain story/genre, be it Romance or Fantasy or Mystery or Vampires, yes, Vampires, you have a voice.
Figuring out your voice will help you write. It’s not necessarily finding your only voice, but finding a voice.
I say this about voice and finding it, because I know many many authors who talk about the genre they read growing up and how much they loved it and the four to eight trunk novels they attempted in their favorite genre. I would never do this because everything I write is gold! Pure gold!
I’m just saying, your voice may be suited to a genre that you are not writing. Voice changes the story.
I’m saying, you could be Justin Beiber singing Korn’s Freak On A Leash. Oh, wait. Now I want to hear that. But that’s a very different song, now. Isn’t it.
And now for the questions to spawn dialog in the comments.
What are you getting me for my birthday?
What of Freak on the Leash are you?
What song would you sing on American Idol besides Freak on a Leash?
Did you read this whole post?
Grandizer! GO!
