On writing

[serafina20]

I've seen a few people this last week talking about how much they hate their writing and want people to help them out, etc. It's funny how the hive mind of fandom works, because I've been thinking along the same lines the last few weeks. Not that I hate my writing, because I love my stories. Love them. I love writing, I love reading, I love rereading. I've never been unhappy with something I've written until I've grown as a writer, look back, and see everything I did "wrong" in past fics. And, even then, I still like the basic idea, plot, or story.

My problem with my writing is, well, the way I write. My style. I need to grow. It could be better. I tend to rely on stock phrases and movements to break up dialogue or whatnot. "He shrugged." "She ran her hand through her hair." "He smiled tightly" or slightly or a little bit, etc.

I need style-work, and I don't know if working on style is easier or harder than working on plotting. I find plots easy; Reporter!Lex was supposed to be, well, vaguely plotless, and look what happened. A plot grew. But the syle ... it's okay. It's even good. Enjoyable. But it's not great.

So. Any suggestions?

Comments

[happyminion.livejournal.com]

Hey, babe. I just opened up a forum for this over in smallville_au if you want to keep an eye on it or just cut and paste this entry as a comment over there. I just found it very interesting that I'd read you, Celli and Aelora all going through the same thoughts and self-exploration in the past few days, and being that you're all really good AU writers, I thought I'd bring it to an AU forum to address among likeminded writers.

[muse-attack.livejournal.com]

I am the sort of person who dislikes nearly everything she's ever written. I've been told it's the writer's curse, to hate every word you've ever penned but think every word you're about to write is genius.

I think style is the most important thing in the world. I agree with Vladimir Nabokov, who said "Style and structure are the essence of a book; great ideas are hogwash." You can have the greatest idea in the world, but it's absolute trash unless you can tell it well.

As humans, we learn by imitation, whether it's walking or singing or writing. That being said, I think the best way to improve your style is to imitate the style of authors you admire. I've recently tried to write more like Ernest Hemingway, in terms of sparsity. At times, I've tried to write more like Lorrie Moore. Chuck Palahniuk. I'm currently imitating Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried." To look at the way other people structure their work & the ways they utilize language can really help you to create a style of your own & also give you courage to try new things.