In my beginning is my end...
I love TS Eliot's eloquent line from East Coker (The Four Quartets) – the melancholy in it is balanced and weighed and there is an inevitability about it which I find appealing.
Eliot's elegant summary of the trajectory of a human life can also be applied to the development of a story. Integrated into all the elements that you assemble at start of a book should be a suggestion of where the narrative might end, or at least an indication of the direction of travel. I'm not suggesting that you give away too much, but I think it's very important in your opening paragraphs that you let the reader know the kind of ground that you will be covering, at least in terms of genre: it should be obvious from the outset whether you are writing romantic fiction or a thriller. If you open your book with a dramatic event which begs several questions, not only will it draw the reader into your story, but it suggests a kind of competence and authority that will help to reassure them that you know your craft and it will be worth then investing valuable time in finding out what happens next.
If you want an example of what I mean, read the beginning of Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge where, after a bout of drinking, Michael Henchard sells his wife and daughter to a passing sailor in a defining moment which dictates the course of subsequent events.
In a well-crafted narrative all the seeds of the story will be evident in the opening: character, style, genre and the suggestion of a plot. If your beginning is well-conceived and integrated, you won't have too resort to clunking expediency later on, the only kind of surprises lying in wait for your reader will be the right kind.
In my beginning is my end...
Showing posts with label Starting a Story. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Starting a Story. Show all posts
Tuesday, 9 July 2013
Monday, 4 February 2013
Top Tips for Starting a Novel
I am – I think – on the threshold of starting my Next Major Work. If you detect a note of caution, it's because I'm not absolutely certain that I'm ready to begin, even though I started making notes about possible ideas last May, so I've already had a good forty weeks' gestation and should be ready to give birth.
Which brings me to my first tip: don't start writing your story or novel too soon. This is because you need to be so pent up, so desperate to write it, that you generate enough momentum to keep you going over a period which could last years. Giving yourself plenty of time to prepare will also mean that your ideas and characters are well developed and will therefore spring vividly from the page.
My second tip is that you should have a reasonable sense of where you're going. I'm always amazed at the number of people who set off on the long creative trek to write a book without having some kind of a route map to guide them. Don't be afraid that having a plan will cramp or inhibit your inspiration – you can modify your work right up until the last minute if you want to and it's a good idea to build in enough flexibility to allow you to respond to the brilliant idea that hits you halfway through. But if you don't give your imagination material to work with – the basis and structure for a story – you may find that you're making impossible demands on it and don't be surprised if it, and your project, run out of steam. If you were building a house you'd employ an architect, who would be there to help you if you wanted to change the position of the kitchen halfway through the build. It's the same with writing fiction. Having a solid structure will support the alterations you want to make, as well as giving you the confidence to be bold and implement them.
My third tip is that you should keep mum: don't reveal what you're writing about to anybody because it will dilute the story you want to tell. The first narration should occur on the page. I wouldn't be too precious about having your idea stolen because, like fingerprints, no two stories are the same and you can't copyright ideas, only words. By keeping quiet about what you are up to, the only expectations you have to deal with are your own and you may find those difficult enough in any case.
My final tip – enjoy what you are doing. Relish every phrase you write. Fall in love with your characters as you get to know them better. Let yourself be giddy with the excitement of it all. Writing is the easy part – the big challenge of how to get your work into the public domain comes later.
Which brings me to my first tip: don't start writing your story or novel too soon. This is because you need to be so pent up, so desperate to write it, that you generate enough momentum to keep you going over a period which could last years. Giving yourself plenty of time to prepare will also mean that your ideas and characters are well developed and will therefore spring vividly from the page.
My second tip is that you should have a reasonable sense of where you're going. I'm always amazed at the number of people who set off on the long creative trek to write a book without having some kind of a route map to guide them. Don't be afraid that having a plan will cramp or inhibit your inspiration – you can modify your work right up until the last minute if you want to and it's a good idea to build in enough flexibility to allow you to respond to the brilliant idea that hits you halfway through. But if you don't give your imagination material to work with – the basis and structure for a story – you may find that you're making impossible demands on it and don't be surprised if it, and your project, run out of steam. If you were building a house you'd employ an architect, who would be there to help you if you wanted to change the position of the kitchen halfway through the build. It's the same with writing fiction. Having a solid structure will support the alterations you want to make, as well as giving you the confidence to be bold and implement them.
My third tip is that you should keep mum: don't reveal what you're writing about to anybody because it will dilute the story you want to tell. The first narration should occur on the page. I wouldn't be too precious about having your idea stolen because, like fingerprints, no two stories are the same and you can't copyright ideas, only words. By keeping quiet about what you are up to, the only expectations you have to deal with are your own and you may find those difficult enough in any case.
My final tip – enjoy what you are doing. Relish every phrase you write. Fall in love with your characters as you get to know them better. Let yourself be giddy with the excitement of it all. Writing is the easy part – the big challenge of how to get your work into the public domain comes later.
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
Your Starter for Ten (or Twelve, Actually)
A new year starting, a mass of writing resolutions to live up to, a new door opening...
Here's a little exercise to give you some momentum now that 2012 is upon us. Take a random selection of five objects: on my desk at the moment I have a diary, a CD, a photograph of somebody acting dead, a letter from a friend I have lost touch with and the access card to my online bank account -- I think they provide a pretty interesting mix. Spend a little time contemplating your objects to see if they suggest some kind of story to you. As your ideas start to gel, draft out a rough plot, but don't start writing yet.
Now go back to your five objects and think again. Imagine another situation/story, different from the first one you came up with, using different characters and different incidents. Draft that out into a rough plot.
Finally (sorry if this is starting to sound like a recipe, the literary equivalent of put it in the oven at 175° for half an hour) graft your two stories together -- you might like to use one as the subplot and one as the main action, or alternatively decide to give them equal weight - but by knitting two strands up like this, you will devise a narrative of greater complexity and interest. When you are happy with the sequence of events, start writing....
Here's a little exercise to give you some momentum now that 2012 is upon us. Take a random selection of five objects: on my desk at the moment I have a diary, a CD, a photograph of somebody acting dead, a letter from a friend I have lost touch with and the access card to my online bank account -- I think they provide a pretty interesting mix. Spend a little time contemplating your objects to see if they suggest some kind of story to you. As your ideas start to gel, draft out a rough plot, but don't start writing yet.
Now go back to your five objects and think again. Imagine another situation/story, different from the first one you came up with, using different characters and different incidents. Draft that out into a rough plot.
Finally (sorry if this is starting to sound like a recipe, the literary equivalent of put it in the oven at 175° for half an hour) graft your two stories together -- you might like to use one as the subplot and one as the main action, or alternatively decide to give them equal weight - but by knitting two strands up like this, you will devise a narrative of greater complexity and interest. When you are happy with the sequence of events, start writing....
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