The Limnades

A quick note, just to say that the story for which I'd been reading Poe's stories as research has now been outlined in full. It has a working title now of "The Limnades," which I'm not going to explain, but which, if you look it up, won't reveal anything about the story's conclusion. This title may yet change, in fact. I'll say that the outline is three pages long, single spaced, typed in 13-pt Courier New, with 1-1/4" margins. The actions in some scenes were outlined in some detail. I expect to start writing this story very soon.

There is a little more I'd like to say, but I'll leave it for a later post.

Grammar

Now, to answer yesterday's question of the day... the de Camp's wrote:

If you see nothing wrong with such sentences as "He stared like he had seen a ghost," or "An individual can return to any period of his entire life providing his passage is not blocked by engrams," you do not know enough about writing English to tackle fiction.

Their answer, word-for-word, is:

The first sentence uses "like" for "as"; the second, "providing" for "provided."

Thus, "He stared like he had seen a ghost," should be, "He stared as he had seen a ghost." Or, perhaps, "He stared as if he had seen a ghost." And, "An individual can return to any period of his entire life providing his passage is not blocked by engrams," should be, "An individual can return to any period of his entire life provided his passage is not blocked by engrams."

The confusion with like/as is a common one, and is the one of the two that is, I think, the most easily spotted. The second is more difficult. "Providing" is a gerund, a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. What's needed in that position of the sentence is a verb, not a noun.

WIR #31: You Can Write a Mystery

I finished this last night.

I like Roberts's constant devotion to giving specific examples to back up her instruction. For example, many writing books tell you to carry a pen and a small notebook, to write down ideas, observations, etc. Very rarely do these authors tell you what they write down. I don't understand why this is. It's not as if national security would be jeopardized. Prior to reading Roberts's book, the only specific example I recall being given was to write down "snippets of overheard dialogue," but the author didn't explain what they meant by that. And my memory isn't that bad! To contrast this with examples from Roberts's book:

Clues and cues to note
Note scraps of real-life dialogue that affect you. You'll probably become aware that you are struck by a gesture or words or dress because its meaning is greater than itself. Make note of what specific appearance cues caused you to react emotionally and make immediate value judgments. Don't write the abstract/judgment at which you arrived. Instead of writing sloppy, be specific: "hem unraveling," "stain that looks rubbed at but not removed on lapel," "hair in back matted."

Roberts's advice is more specific. Write down what affects you! In other words, don't be a secretary dictating what others say. Pay attention to your reaction to what's said. Note only those things that stand out, unique turns of phrase, juicy tidbits that capture your attention and imagination. Those sorts of things and more.

Many neophyte writers often make the mistake of basing story people on people they know. Professional writers caution against this for a variety of reasons (including avoidance of potential litigation). Roberts adds to her caution something I've never read before:

Beware of basing characters on people you know. Whether you adore or despise the original, you run the danger of writing an unbelievable character. (...) As a fiction writer, you must think of real life—the one that isn't on the page—as no more than a starting point.

Human beings are too complicated and unfocused for writers to replicate, so what you aim for is your interpretation of a person. Know that your vision is skewed. Don't presume to be omniscient; presume to be a fiction writer. Don't duplicate or try to report; create something new.

Generally, what intrigues you about the person you want to use as a model is his personality or emotional core. Keep that, therefore, and systematically and drastically alter the externals. Change hair or size or gender or the setting in which he must act. Take part of one person and part of another. Does she really have to be a mother even if yours was the model for this rotten person? Could she be a despicable teacher or minister? Does the character have to be a female as long as the unreliablity and coldness is there?

I find it fascinating that Roberts says that basing a fictional character on a real person runs the risk of creating an unbelievable character. I've never heard it put this way before, but when she explains herself—human beings are too complicated and unfocused for writers to replicate—it makes perfect sense. And then she nails it: what you aim for is your interpretation of a person. The rest is stock advice, found in any writing book, with the exception of her clarification: what intrigues you about the person you want to use as a model is his personality or emotional core.

Roberts advises: your next job is to wrap believable life around that starting point. That's where the imaginative work of the writer begins.

One reviewer at Amazon didn't like Roberts's focus on "rules." Rules? Sure, Roberts has provided rules, or principles, if you like, but far more importantly, she's provided pragmatic, down-to-freakin'-earth examples of what she means. She presumes that you don't know what she's talking about, and she's right in doing so. If you did know what she's talking about, you'd be a published writer, and probably not reading her book.

Roberts doesn't provide a silver bullet to ensured publication (one doesn't exist), but her advice and her examples will damned sure improve your writing if you follow her advice and will also improve your chances for publication. You don't need to be a published writer to see that.

This is a library book, but it's about to become a resident in my personal library. I'm ordering myself a copy of this from Amazon!