December 4, 2004
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Wanna Talk About Writing?
Okay here's my profound thought on writing today. Writing is just like sex. Every time you pick up a pen or sit down at the computer, you're in search of a climax. Some days you get there fast, some days slow, and some days not at all. But if you can get there and take your reader along with you, you've written well.
That's the end of my profoudn thought. Wanna hear a thought from someone who's doing a lot better at this writing thing than I am? Here's Anne Lamott discussing Plot in her book on writing, Bird By Bird ...
Plot is the main story of your book or short story. If you are looking for long brilliant discussions of plot, E. M. Forster and John Gardner have written books in which they discuss it so lucidly and wisely that they will leave you howling like a wolf. I just want to add a few thoughts here, things that I pass on to my students when they seem especially bitter and confused.
Plot grows out of character. If you focus on who the people in your story are, if you sit and write about two people you know and are getting to know better day by day, something is bound to happen.
Characters should not, conversely, serve as pawns for some plot you've dreamed up. Any plot yo uimpose on your characters will be onomatopoetic: PLOT. I say don't worry about plot. Worry about the characters. Let what they say or do reveal who they are, and be involved in their lives, and keep asking yourself, Now what happens? The development of relationship creates plot. Flannery O'Conner in Mystery and Manners, tells how she gave a bunch of her early stories to the old lady who lived down the street, and the woman returned them saying, "Them stories just gone and shown you how some folks would do."
That's what plot is: what people will up and do in spite of everything that tells them they shouldn't, everything that tells them they should sit quietly on teh couch nad practice their lamaze, or call their therapist, or eat until the urge to do that thing passes ...
I haven't plotted much this week. In fact, in the past seven days, I've written fewer than 500 words on my book. So I'm a little down on myself for being a slacker bum since NaNo officially ended. I've been busy, but that's really not an excuse. Time to get back to those characters and find out what they do next.
Comments (7)
congrats on meeting the NaNo deadline... that is a great accomplishment!
Some stories are plot driven and others are character driven. The former are what we sometimes call page turners or "thrillers". The latter tends to be more what the literary crowd likes. Sometimes comic book characters in a good plot work. My classic example of this is the Dirk Pitt novels of Clive Cussler. I'd say the same about Robert Ludlum, but he develops his characters better.
I loved Bird by Bird. I really need to buy that one and read it again. Thanks for the reminder.
Writing is just like sex, eh? Well that would explain my problem. I've been writing with my clothes on! 
For everything there is a season...
sail on... sail on!!!!
Thanks for posting this. It's all stuff I knew, yet tend to forget.
Oops...I've been chastised for not letting you know that you inspired my blog yesterday. I thought you would eventually stop by and see it, but now you know.
...i agree with SteveJ, some stories are plot driven, e.g., Agatha Christie.
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