Reprinted from archives of previous weblog
One of the things I’m often asked by beginning novelists is where to begin. What comes first: the plot, the characters, the "message" (that one makes me shudder)--what? At first glance, that might seem like an easy question. Shouldn’t you first have a story to tell? Well ... not necessarily at first. Ursula LeGuin says in her book on writing, Steering the Craft, that "pace and movement depend above all on rhythm, and you have to hear your writing to feel its rhythm." If you really want to write fiction, first test the "sound" of your writing. Do a few simple paragraphs at random about different subjects, or make up a few brief tales and write them quickly and without editing. Now read them aloud and see how they sound to you. Dull, as if written in a monotone voice? Choppy and jerky? Tediously long, rambling sentences? But do you hear a rhythm? I promise you, there is one. Your writing will have, or should have, a rhythm. It may not be a pleasant rhythm or a consistent rhythm or even a noticeable rhythm. But there will be a certain cadence, a pace, a rhythm that you might or might not be able to detect with your first attempt at "listening to your writing." And the more you write, the more that rhythm may change and evolve. What I’m getting at is that we need to develop a reader’s ear--and ultimately a writer’s ear. Because if your fiction writing doesn’t have a rhythm that’s solely yours, a pacing and a flow that "sings" and "moves," your writing will suffer. And your readers will suffer boredom. If you’re scratching your head and wondering how weird is this, it’s actually very logical. Read--both aloud and silently-–a few paragraphs from a novel written by one of your favorite writers, someone whose work holds strong appeal for you. Then read something from another novel by a writer either unknown to you or one whose work you don’t like at all. See if you don’t detect a marked difference in the "sound" of the writing. There are a few things you can do to help develop this "ear." If you’re an avid reader (and I assume you are, or else what would prompt you to write), you’re already doing the most important exercise that will enable you to listen to your own writing. If you have a musical background, you may already have this "ear." But even if you don’t, you can listen to music--and I strongly suggest you do. I don’t mean during your writing process, although many writers do have music playing while they work. But if you find music distracting while you write, then listen when you’re not working. And listen to different kinds of music so you take in a variety of forms and rhythms. Another way to develop your ear is to listen to books on tape. But two cautions here: first, listen to only books written by those you know to be excellent writers, although even then some of the poorer audio readers may slaughter the writer’s rhythm. And be careful of the genre you’re reading in. If you’re writing or even experimenting with historical fiction, for example, be careful not to listen to too many contemporary audio books or read only in contemporary fiction. That can eventually color your own writing "rhythm" and "style." You can trust me on this: the keener your listening ear--your reading and writing ear--the more likely it is that your fiction will flow and have rhythm and movement and grace. For some, it takes place over a period of years before they even begin to write fiction. For others, it’s almost an innate thing, a sixth sense. But for those who don’t recognize the importance of this until later, there is always time to start "training." Odd as it may seem, writing fiction is perhaps one of the few endeavors in which it’s a plus to begin before the beginning. BJ
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