“Time is our enemy. Most people don’t
have enough. This is why our writing must be tight, direct and hook early.
Modern audiences have the attention span of a toddler hopped up on Pop Rocks
and Mountain Dew. We can’t afford to let them drift.” So says Kristen Lamb in Uncategorized, Writing Tips
Here are some of the reminders I keep for myself –
1. Describing what a character sees can be overdone and more
importantly, keeps the reader at a distance, makes her a mere observer and not
a participant. Sight is possibly the weakest sense and doesn’t help pull your
reader into deep POV. SO: Don’t rely on a lot of description.
For many, the sense of smell is the most
powerful sense, followed by taste
Try to use a combination of all the senses.
2. Don’t have body parts doing things. You don’t need a character
to raise his hand to reach for the door handle. If he makes it from one
room to another, the reader will fill in the details.
3. Don’t State the Obvious
She slammed the door
and cursed in anger.
We know she’s angry because she slammed
the door. Telling us she’s angry is
redundant.
4. Don’t bring in too many characters too soon. If you have ten
named characters by page one your reader will be confused.
5. Too Much Anything v Give Us a Sense of Time
and Place
This happens with historicals as much
as science fiction and fantasy. If the readers get lost in all the characters,
places, clothes, prophesies, weapons, technology, dragons, ships and robots, it
is bad. A few details are helpful to orient us where we are
– maybe the smell of horse manure, the rattling of carriages or the whir of
computers. The readers need to be grounded quickly and easily to become part of
the world.
6. From page one, the reader should have picked up the basics about
a character.
7. Tighten the Prose
Overuse of the word “was” is an
indicator of weak writing and passive voice. If a writer does this on page one
it is likely it will continue.
.JPG)
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