Forum / Ten Rules

MaryAnne Kolton
May 30, 05:28pm

I found this quite interesting and wanted to share it. Franzen appears to be a complicated man - certainly not everyone's darling. In my opinion, he is a most brilliant, gifted, and yes, arrogant writer.

In February 2010, Franzen (along with writers including Richard Ford, Zadie Smith and Anne Enright) was asked by The Guardian to contribute what he believed were ten serious rules to abide by for aspiring writers. Franzen's rules ran as follows:

1. The reader is a friend, not an adversary, not a spectator.
2. Fiction that isn't an author's personal adventure into the frightening or the unknown isn't worth writing for anything but money.
3. Never use the word "then" as a conjunction – we have "and" for this purpose. Substituting "then" is the lazy or tone-deaf writer's non-solution to the problem of too many "ands" on the page.
4. Write in the third person unless a really distinctive first-person voice offers itself irresistibly.
5. When information becomes free and universally accessible, voluminous research for a novel is devalued along with it.
6. The most purely autobiographical fiction requires pure invention. Nobody ever wrote a more autobiographical story than "The Metamorphosis".
7. You see more sitting still than chasing after.
8. It's doubtful that anyone with an internet connection at his workplace is writing good fiction (the TIME magazine cover story detailed how Franzen physically disables the Net portal on his writing laptop).
9. Interesting verbs are seldom very interesting.
10. You have to love before you can be relentless.

J. Mykell Collinz
May 31, 12:15am

Thanks for posting, MaryAnne. Good rules, all, and worth keeping in mind while writing.

Marcus Speh
May 31, 05:34pm

thank you for finding this maryann - i like it more agreeable and less bloated ... here, from the same <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/feb/20/10-rules-for-writing-fiction-part-two">article in the guardian</a>, are the rules of <strong>hilary mantel</strong> - also a better writer in my humblr view. thanks for leaving kafka alone, hilary. and thanks for mentioning dorothea brande - that book set me free.

HILARY MANTEL's RULES
<blockquote>
1 Are you serious about this? Then get an accountant.

2 Read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Writer-Dorothea-Brande/dp/0874771641">Becoming a Writer, by Dorothea Brande</a>. Then do what it says, including the tasks you think are impossible. You will particularly hate the advice to write first thing in the morning, but if you can manage it, it might well be the best thing you ever do for yourself. This book is about becoming a writer from the inside out. Many later advice manuals derive from it. You don't really need any others, though if you want to boost your confidence, "how to" books seldom do any harm. You can kick-start a whole book with some little writing exercise.

3 Write a book you'd like to read. If you wouldn't read it, why would anybody else? Don't write for a perceived audience or market. It may well have vanished by the time your book's ready.

4 If you have a good story idea, don't assume it must form a prose narrative. It may work better as a play, a screenplay or a poem. Be flexible.

5 Be aware that anything that appears before "Chapter One" may be skipped. Don't put your vital clue there.

6 First paragraphs can often be struck out. Are you performing a haka, or just shuffling your feet?

7 Concentrate your narrative energy on the point of change. This is especially important for historical fiction. When your character is new to a place, or things alter around them, that's the point to step back and fill in the details of their world. People don't notice their everyday surroundings and daily routine, so when writers describe them it can sound as if they're trying too hard to instruct the reader.

8 Description must work for its place. It can't be simply ornamental. It usually works best if it has a human element; it is more effective if it comes from an implied viewpoint, rather than from the eye of God. If description is coloured by the viewpoint of the character who is doing the noticing, it becomes, in effect, part of character definition and part of the action.

9 If you get stuck, get away from your desk. Take a walk, take a bath, go to sleep, make a pie, draw, listen to music, meditate, exercise; whatever you do, don't just stick there scowling at the problem. But don't make telephone calls or go to a party; if you do, other people's words will pour in where your lost words should be. Open a gap for them, create a space. Be patient.

10 Be ready for anything. Each new story has different demands and may throw up reasons to break these and all other rules. Except number one: you can't give your soul to literature if you're thinking about income tax.
</blockquote>
<br /><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg">

W.F. Lantry
May 31, 08:04pm

"Franzen's rules"

Do we get to vote on these? I want to vote! ;)

1. yes
2. no
3. yes
4. no
5. no
6. no
7. no
8. no
9. no
10. I have no idea what that means.

Here's what's surprising: as I read through them, they seemed fine. But when I considered them individually, I found myself in a state of shocking disagreement. I have no idea what that means! ;)

MaryAnne Kolton
May 31, 08:21pm

Marcus, #8 "Description must work for its place. It can't be simply ornamental. It usually works best if it has a human element; it is more effective if it comes from an implied viewpoint, rather than from the eye of God. If description is coloured by the viewpoint of the character who is doing the noticing, it becomes, in effect, part of character definition and part of the action."

Huh?

David Ackley
May 31, 08:36pm

In this series, the Elmore Leonard rules that began it have never really been bested, at least if you wanted to write like Elmore Leonard--which wouldn't be bad, at least from a monetary perspective.

In general, I like the advice Chekhov gave a young writer: "Go back to your story and tear up the first half: the story begins there."

There are novelists who could benefit from something similar.

Isn't Franzen the one who writes wearing ear plugs in a room without windows? This seems odd when most of us can probably benefit from letting some air into our prose. I know I usually can.

MaryAnne Kolton
May 31, 08:38pm

Bill, Of course we can vote if we want to! Last time I looked this was still a democratic society - just barely,but still. . . Ah, but I digress. I said I think he's arrogant. I'm trying to coordinate your yes and no votes with the proper numbers. Just a moment.
Okay. Let's see. 1-3 also yes from me. 4, I'm torn here because I find third person narratives usually make my stories much stronger, but that's just me. 5-9 He does pontificate a great deal regarding these. I could really go either way on 5-9 depending on the cycle of the moon. THEN there is 10. Not sure what he means either. You have to love to be a good editor? To write an over-long story? To cross busy streets against the light? To stalk someone? Haven't a clue. Perhaps we should write to him and ask? You do it.

James Lloyd Davis
May 31, 09:26pm

Rules.

Okay, let everyone else worry about rules, THEN, when you break them ... allll of them, you will be called a genius. Posthumously, of course ... after you have died a pauper and someone serendipitously finds your manuscripts in a trunk.

I have only three:
1. Read a lot.
2. Write incessantly.
3. Buy a very good trunk and leave it in a conspicuous location.

I like Chekhov's rule. Hilary's rules made me dizzy, so I must lie down now.

Old Taoist proverb:
"If you meet the editor on the road, kill him."

David Ackley
May 31, 10:18pm

Re Franzen's # 3 above," Write in 3rd person, unless inspired by irresistible ist person voice..." or words to that effect.

So much for "Gatsby..." ( colorless 1st
person narrator.)

W.F. Lantry
May 31, 11:50pm

"You do it."

I would, but I don't have his email. And we're not friends on facebook! ;)

MaryAnne Kolton
Jun 01, 12:42am

David, yes, Gatsby, tepid narrator at best.

Bill, Here's a link to a video clip with Oprah Winfrey - the world's real authority on literature - ahem. They had a spat because he wasn't thrilled enough to have his book "Freedom", which I liked very much, BTW, named as one of her Book Club Choices and he said so. Out loud. At any rate, he decided to appear with her after all and he made as nice as is possible for him. The point to all this is I don't think he would answer our email anyway. We're supposed to Just Know what he means when he says these things I guess.

http://us.macmillan.com/AuthorExtras.aspx?AuthorKey=455325&m_type=4&m_contentid=24727#cmscontent

Sorry can't hyperlink it. Just Google him. Tons of stuff there.

Also have a wonderful clip where he talks about "young" writers asking him bothersome questions like where do you find an agent? he answers all these annoying inqueries by advising everyone to subscribe to Poets & Writers. So Enlightening. . .

James, are you talking about that old boxy thing that was sitting right in the middle of the laundry room? The thing I gave to the Salvation Army a month or so ago???

MaryAnne Kolton
Jun 01, 01:00am

Marcus, Thank you so much for showing link to original article. I loved it. So many of my favorites. Colm Toibin, for one. . . Bless you my child.

Bill Yarrow
Jun 01, 03:07am

Not rules, but writing advice I share with my students.

http://writinghood.com/style/how-to/advice-to-writers/

Franzen: Love #5, #6, #7, #9, and #10

Mantel: Love #3, #4, #8, and #9

Davis: Love #1, #2, and Taoist proverb (James, did you make that up?)

David Ackley
Jun 01, 04:18am

Perhaps, should have specified, that "colorless" lst person narrator notwithstanding, or maybe in part because of, Gatsby is one of a very few contenders for the great American novel of the 20th century.Franzen should be so good. All these rules and rulesmakers are ultimately tedious.

Listen to Blake: If the fool persist in his folly, he will be wise.

David Ackley
Jun 01, 04:29am

Art deals very largely in the unexpected. Which does not enter through the doorway of expectation that rules attempt to shape. Better to batter down the wall.

Marcus Speh
Jun 01, 07:16am

this thread exploded since last night!

i had no idea what a "haka" was and i didn't succeed in posting the picture, which shows a group of writers throwing their paddles up in the air (they've exchanged pens for paddles, obviously, that was rule #11):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg

i need some rules and structure right now because my life's craaaaaazy and there doesn't seem to be time for jim's rules #1 & #2 and when i read his #3 i think of a coffin and i'm looking for a nail. fictionaut may be that nail.

@mary: hilary mantel's #8 if i understand her correctly, this breaks the rule:

« the road was curved. in the curve stood a wooden post. carved in the post was the image of a monkey. in its mouth, lusciously bent down, the monkey held a copy of franzen's freedom. he had evidently died trying to eat the book »

...while this doesn't (so much).

« iason stopped where the road was curved. he noticed a wooden, elaborately carved post. he hobbled closer and saw the image of a monkey. the monkey had a large mouth that made him realize how hungry he was after having walked all night and day. the carved monkey held a book in its jaw. once again, iason regretted that he'd never learnt to read. he brought out his scanner to have the machine tell him what book it was. »

admittedly, this little story ran away with me ... ;-))

also, hilar(ious) mantel can put things more succinctly, at times:

"By the hairy balls of Jesus"
— Hilary Mantel (Wolf Hall)

@bill thank you - great list.

@david yes. especially "better to batter down the wall." will stay with me.

@bill this summer, i choose to face the book rather than facebook.

Marcus Speh
Jun 01, 07:24am

ps mary, thank you for that oprah link...that is actually a very interesting chat, esp the first part about constructing a dream which is exactly what it is (should be) for me (when it works, and when it isn't like this, i know it's no good).

James Lloyd Davis
Jun 01, 12:17pm

So, MaryAnne sent my trunk to the Salvation Army. Strike James Lloyd Davis' rule # 3, insert new rule, "Writers should never marry other writers. The periodic and latent urge to kill is normal in relationships, but is often exponential where there is even the hint and possibility of competition."

Bill, yes, I made up that proverb ... I write fiction. It's what I do so much better than anything I've ever done. (I think I just wrote something very profound though quite by accident there. Or maybe I'm confused. If so, it's because I'm sharing a page with an Oprah link.)

Marcus, there's always time for rule #'s 1 and 2. Of course, you can always do what I did, wait until you're older and have fewer responsibilities so you can then devote the time, but you'll find yourself in a similar position ... which is having a head full of novels and so little time left with which to extract them.

Writers should learn to take chances and to become entirely irresponsible when they are young ... if they can't, they should at least learn to get by on three to five hours of sleep per day. To quote Cicero, "Coffea arabica est denique solutio." Translation: "Coffee is the ultimate solution."

(Yes, Bill, I'll anticipate your question and tell you that I will make up a quote in a heartbeat rather than go to the trouble of finding a real one. To confess: In the eighth grade I got an "A" for a book report on a book that I not only did not read, but a book that did not exist. I made up the book and the author's name. When I got an "A" for that particular bit of pure bullshit, it opened up a universe of possibility.)

Writers who say that writers should only write about that which they know have lost the concept of fiction and the beauty, the power of creative imagination. Experience is a wonderful vehicle for discovery, but to limit one's art to what one has personally experienced is like participating in a conversation and listening with your mouth and not your ears.

Rules are something you should only concern yourself with when you are a famous author and a journalist comes to you and asks, "What advice would you give to aspiring young authors?"

When you answer that question, bear in mind that if you can put off the competition by confusing them, you will be a famous author just that much longer.

James Lloyd Davis
Jun 01, 12:32pm

In case my high school Latin teacher is reading this, I should correct my Cicero quote above ("Coffea arabica est denique solutio") to read "Coffea arabica denique solutio est."

Sister Mary Raul Julia, I am soooo sorry. Consider this an act of perfect contrition. (Or, is that a 'perfect act of contrition?) Either way, I'll never misplace my Latin verbs again. Okay?

Bill Yarrow
Jun 01, 02:13pm

"In the eighth grade I got an "A" for a book report on a book that I not only did not read, but a book that did not exist. I made up the book and the author's name. When I got an "A" for that particular bit of pure bullshit, it opened up a universe of possibility."

Great STORY, James, even though it's true! Love to read that one.

James Lloyd Davis
Jun 01, 02:25pm

Yeah, Bill ... it's true. I can say this now, after decades, without fear of reprisal. If it had been a nun teaching that class? I never would have told anybody. You pull stuff like that on a nun? Sheesh. And the statute of limitations never, ever runs out.

Mark Reep
Jun 01, 04:54pm

Most of Leonard's rules work for me. No surprise, probably; most of his work does too. One of the books he dedicated to his wife said '...for that look she gives me when I write too many words.' That's one of my biggies: If I can say something with one less word, I probably should.

James, love the fictional book report. Never thought of it then, but I am guilty of the occasional imaginary review, quoting excerpts from nonexistent sources, etc :)

And a big yes to this: 'Writers who say that writers should only write about that which they know have lost the concept of fiction and the beauty, the power of creative imagination.'

MaryAnne Kolton
Jun 01, 05:36pm

Hey, you guys. May I have a moment here???
Bill Y, Great advice, will print it and tape to my desk. Thank you!

David, agree with you. Yes. Trying to write by anothers "rules" is like pretending you are someone you are not. Never quite believable.

One of my favorite rules from the Guardian piece "Remember: when people tell you something's wrong or doesn't work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you EXACTLY what they think is wrong and EXACTLY how to fix it, they are almost always wrong." Have had this experience on more than one un-happy occasion. Even given exact words and sentences to use in place of what I had written. Is it then mine or ours?

Marcus, only you could explain Hilary rule #8 so even I can understand it, sort of.

re:making up book reviews. Once took a Logic course during which I never attended any classes or handed in any assignments. Did manage to convince professor to let me take final exam for which friends had helped me cram. Test had one question on it. Knew I was screwed, so wrote poetry for two hours. When grades came out, I got a C. Had to ask the Prof why. He said he thought my poetry was quite logical!

As for the "brilliant James Lloyd Davis" (he insists that I refer to him thusly, he has been confined to a lovely institution on the east coast, near the sea, for many years now. I write all his stories, comments etc. and pass them off as mine. Let the truth be told!

MaryAnne Kolton
Jun 01, 06:06pm

PS Thanks to all of you who participated in this thread. Have learned so much from and about you. Now know that Bill Yarrow was a great deal smarter than some of his teachers, Elmore Leonard is probably the best rule writer - for those who like rules, got a great new semi-swearing phrase from Marcus, David makes up better quotes than Blake , Bill L and I are both unlikely ever to contact Franzen for any reason and last but not least, there is no "brilliant James Lloyd Davis" JLD, you can have the chest back for an amount to be mutually agreed on during the next time we actually find time to speak face to face. . . .

I love this kind of exchange and it's one of the reasons I am now addicted to fictionaut.

Bill Yarrow
Jun 01, 08:55pm

"Once took a Logic course during which I never attended any classes or handed in any assignments. Did manage to convince professor to let me take final exam for which friends had helped me cram. Test had one question on it. Knew I was screwed, so wrote poetry for two hours. When grades came out, I got a C. Had to ask the Prof why. He said he thought my poetry was quite logical!"
Another great true STORY! Wonderful, MaryAnn! I'd love to read that one too!

Jane Hammons
Jun 02, 04:41pm

I prefer tips (especially the kind in the tip jar) to rules. Steve Silberman's list of tips by 22 writers:

http://blogs.plos.org/neurotribes/2011/06/02/practical-tips-on-writing-a-book-from-22-brilliant-authors/?sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4de7bbe0fad52446%2C0

(Silberman writes for Wired and is writing a book on autism and neurodiversity.)

W.F. Lantry
Jun 02, 06:34pm

I read all the tips. Many don't apply to actual art, but I liked this one:

"Write when the book sucks and it isn’t going anywhere. Just keep writing. It doesn’t suck. Your conscious is having a panic attack because it doesn’t believe your subconscious knows what it’s doing."

I actually like that one a lot! ;)

Thanks,

Bill

stephen hastings-king
Jun 02, 09:14pm

I don't pay much attention to sets of rules. I read them though. You never know.

Coincidentally, an article with/by Brian Eno about maintaining a creative practice just popped up in my virtual world a few minutes ago. Here's the link:

http://the99percent.com/tips/7034/Developing-Your-Creative-Practice-Tips-from-Brian-Eno?utm_source=Triggermail&utm_medium=email&utm_term=ALL&utm_campaign=MIH+June+%2711

I think it's useful to not restrict oneself to thinking like writers think about writing when one writes simply because writing is a process that has much in common with other processes and there are folk who practice them who may think about and talk about aspects of them that get swamped beneath all the focus on character and narrative and so on. Eno is one of those folks.

Marcus Speh
Jun 03, 09:42am

fantastic link and article, stephen, thank you for posting this. reposted it at <a href="http://kaffeinkatmandu.tumblr.com/">kaffe in katmandu</a>.

David Ackley
Jun 03, 01:36pm

Not restricting yourself to writers' advice as Stephen says above is exactly right. My favorite work(s)in this vein are Van Gogh's letters, which are about life, painting, color, seeing, God and madness. I feel I've learned a lot from them, though I can not say what.

James Lloyd Davis
Jun 03, 02:35pm

It's true that the learning or the acquisition of art in creative writing comes from many sources and all of the senses, physical and emotional. Mating the array of available words and forms with the recall of sight, sound, touch, smell, the pulse of emotions perfectly tuned, all emotions ... may be the quality that distinuishes between mere writing and art.

Good point, David. Something we should never forget.

MaryAnne Kolton
Jun 03, 03:40pm

I suspect that art can be found in almost every single aspect of life. Creative outlets abound. Cooking well, making sand castles, street painting, a crisply ironed shirt etc.etc. How wonderful that writing about this abundance only increases its necessity.

James, rather "is" than "may be".

Mark Reep
Jun 04, 04:49am

Stephen, thanks for the Eno link. I'm always interested in learning more about how other artists/writers/whomever do what they do. Usually no matter what the media, some aspect of their approach or process is useful, inspires.

MaryAnne- Big yes to your last. And thanks for initiating a great thread.

Gill Hoffs
Jul 20, 08:31am

Just read through this fascinating thread and clicked on some of the links. What a great resource! I've posted some of the links to the Wrire Writers' Group in Warrington that I attend. Thank you all.

Darryl Price
Jul 20, 01:10pm

Have a very good thunk and if you feel like it leave a think.Rules suck-- for all the obvious reasons, and they help when you apply them directly on the problem they themselves will refer to. Otherwise, it's just one more opinion among an endless stream. To quote Paul Simon,"One man's ceiling is another man's floor." If it helps,aren't you lucky? If it hinders,you should have trusted your own deepest feeling.Go.
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