Ten Things About Writing , livre ebook

September Publishing - Harris Joanne

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125 pages

English

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Extrait

Description

An indispensable guide to the craft of writing and business of publishing from one of our bestselling and most versatile authors.One-time teacher and bestselling novelist Joanne Harris has been advising and corresponding with aspirational writers for over six years. This collection of pithy and funny lists of advice provides both hard-won wisdom and insider industry help. All aspects of the writing process and story development are covered as is the thorny issue of how and where to find readers. From Workspaces and Habits to Plot and Dialogue, these are motivating, problem-solving lists from an experienced and widely respected writer.Uniquely, Ten Things About Writing also takes the reader beyond the stage of finished manuscripts and editorial changes into the territories of rights, publicity and marketing. Whether you havethe urge to write crime fiction or a fantasy novel, literary short stories or blockbuster thrillers Joanne's lists will speak to you.'Joanne is not only master of her craft but has the rare gift of being able to explain that craft and offer peerless advice in the clearest, no-nonsense, practical and entertainingof ways.' Matt Haig'[Joanne Harris's] pithy, often very funny advice demystifies writing and the publishing industry for new and aspiring writers.' Cressida Cowell

Informations

Publié par	September Publishing
Date de parution	07 mai 2020
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781912836611
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0250€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
First published in 2020 by September Publishing
Copyright © Frogspawn Ltd 2020
Illustration copyright © Moose Allain 2020
The right of Joanne Harris to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright holder
Typeset by Ed Pickford
Kindle ISBN 978-1-912836-60-4
Epub ISBN 978-1-912836-61-1
September Publishing
www.septemberpublishing.org

Contents
Introduction
Part 1 Where Do I Start?
Part 2 What Makes a Story?
Part 3 Shall We Dance?
Part 4 Characterization
Part 5 Detailing
Part 6 The First Draft
Part 7 Who Makes a Book?
Part 8 Why Am I Doing This, Again?
Part 9 Publication and Beyond
Part 10 Welcome to the Dark Side
Afterword
Acknowledgements
About the Author

Introduction
Creative writing is a great deal more than just a professional skill. Yes, a good, clear, graphic style and the ability to tell a story can help in all kinds of professions, from teaching to advertising, from writing a marketing report to writing a bestselling novel; but making art for pleasure is a valid objective in itself. Writing for pleasure promotes articulacy, empathy, understanding, lateral thinking. It gives us insights into other lives; windows into other worlds. It allows us to harness our creative energy and gives us a sense of achievement. It’s cheaper than therapy. Also it’s fun . Fun is a worthwhile end in itself. And we tend to enjoy what we do well, and want to improve and build on our skills. I hope that this book will give you the chance to do just that, however far you choose to take it: whether you’re a complete beginner, or an experienced writer looking to take your writing to the next level.
Part of improving your writing is learning what other writers have to say, and taking from them what is useful to you, which may vary from person to person. There is no single way to write, no cast-iron rules for making art, and what works for me may not work for you at all. That doesn’t make either of us wrong. We all approach these things in our own ways – and, whatever your chosen method, if the end result satisfies you, if it gets the results you were hoping for, then you chose the right way for you. But here are some things that I have learnt over my years as a writer – I have shared some of them as part of a regular Twitter hashtag series, which some of you have found useful. Many of you have asked me to collect them and put them together into a book. So here they are: and whether your aim is to become a published writer or just to improve your written style, I hope you find something here to help, encourage or motivate you. Take what you need from these pages; and most of all, enjoy what you do . Joy is such a vital part of creative writing – because if you don’t enjoy what you write, how can you expect anyone else to?

Part 1
Where Do I Start?
1. Starting Out
2. Permission
3. Habits
4. Workspace
5. Headspace
6. Time
7. Getting Ideas
8. Planning
9. Rules, and How to Ignore Them
10. Research

1
Starting Out
There. That was easy, wasn’t it? You’ve taken the first step already. You’ve decided to explore and expand your potential as a writer. Whatever your objective, it’s a great thing to do, and I hope it will bring you joy and success in whatever you hope to achieve.
Now to look at a few ways to get you started.
1. Don’t try to do too much at once . Although it may be true that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, try not to think about where the journey will take you. Instead, try to focus on what you can do on a day-to-day basis.
2. Decide what you want from your writing . Do you write purely for your own pleasure? Do you write as therapy? Do you enjoy sharing your fan fiction online? Are you writing a story to entertain your grandchildren? Are you seeking to be published commercially? Whatever your reasons, and on whatever level you choose, writing can be a rewarding, enriching occupation that can bring joy to you and to others.
3. Manage your expectations . Don’t assume that by writing you’re going to make millions, attract girls (or boys), or get to hang out with famous people. For the most part, the best that will happen is that you’ll do a lot of writing. Make sure that’s what you really want. If you don’t actually enjoy writing, you’re unlikely to sustain the effort.
4. Manage your time . If you don’t actively make time to write, then you’ll never get round to it. (More on ways to do this in the next chapter.)
5. Manage your workspace . A designated workspace is the key to good writing habits. Decide where you are going to write and try to make it as accessible and as welcoming as possible. (More on your workspace later.)
6. Make sure you have the right tools to allow your writing to fit into your lifestyle. If you’re on the move throughout the day, you might prefer a laptop or a writing app that you can use on your phone. If you’re going to be working from home, you might prefer to work on a PC. And of course there’s always the time-honoured notebook-and-pen combo …
7. Find a beta reader . Not everyone wants to share their work, but writing can be a lonely business. It can help to get feedback from a sympathetic, honest reader – and having an audience, even of one, can help with motivation.
8. Join an online community . It’s so easy nowadays to get in touch with other writers, bloggers, editors or agents – and you can learn a lot from interacting with other people who may be on the same path.
9. Join the Society of Authors , or the Writers’ Guild. (If you haven’t been published yet, you can still join the society as an Associate Member or Friend). With its quarterly magazine, free legal advice, contract services, social events, literary prizes, grants and lectures on different aspects of publishing, it’s well worth the membership fee.
10. Finally, give yourself permission to write . You can do it. It’s allowed. No one’s going to laugh at you or say you’re not a proper writer – not anyone who matters, anyway.
Got it? Good.
Take a deep breath. You’re on your way. Good luck, and may your writing bring you as much joy as mine has brought me …

2
Permission
A task that many new writers find unexpectedly difficult is giving themselves permission to write . They waste time and energy worrying: Am I a proper writer? Will proper writers laugh at me? Am I being ridiculous in believing that actual readers might enjoy reading what I’ve written? So here’s a little checklist to help you get through this. And if you ever start to feel uncertain of yourself, come back to this page, take a deep breath, reread the list … then make yourself a cup of tea and get to work. You’re allowed to do it. I said so.
1. Stop thinking in terms of ‘proper’ writers and the rest of the world . You’re not an ‘aspiring’ writer, or an ‘emerging’ writer, or a ‘budding’ writer. If you write, you’re a writer. So write !
2. Banish your fear of inadequacy . Do you write as well as you want to? Probably not. No writer does. But then, why would you be any different from any of the rest of us? We all have insecurities. We’re all trying to improve our game. And like all games, yours will improve with practice, and with time.
3. Banish your writer’s guilt . Ever feel guilty at the amount of time you spend watching TV, or reading, or exercising, or being with your friends? No? Then don’t feel guilty at the time you spend writing. It’s not a selfish indulgence, it’s something you care about, and into which you’re prepared to put work and energy. Make sure the people around you understand that, and support you. If they don’t, find better people.
4. Stop comparing yourself to other writers . Compare your work to the last thing you wrote. If you’re improving (and you are ), you’re doing fine.
5. Don’t waste your time obsessing over getting an agent, or getting published, or thinking about all the money you think you’ll make, or identifying market trends . Write until you have something worthwhile, then find someone to show it to. Anything else is just a distraction.
6. Find a support network . Online or off, it’s comforting to know that there are others who feel as you do. Writing circles, blogger groups, fanfic communities, social media groups – all of these can help a writer feel connected. You are not alone, and the support of others can be an extraordinary comfort, especially if you hit a rough patch (and you will).
7. Establish a regular writing routine . Getting into the habit of writing is just like getting into any other habit – it takes a few weeks to establish. But stick with it; and before long it will feel as natural as any other part of your life.
8. Don’t put yourself under unnecessary pressure . It can take a long time to get a book into publishable shape, so be careful how much you reveal to the people around you – that is, unless you want your colleagues at work constantly asking: ‘How’s the book going?’
9. Don’t expect too much, too fast . Everything about writing a book takes a lot longer than you think it will. Live in hope, but pack for the long haul.
10. Don’t worry if you end up trashing some or all of what you’ve written – nothing you write is ever wasted . Remember that every word you write is part of your ongoing training, and that anything you discard now may one day be reused, re-imagined or rebooted. For now, d