You'll be aware that rhythm is important in music, but did you know it's important in writing too? Poetry, whether or not it rhymes, is dependent on rhythm. The words need to flow freely, not trip each other up, unless you want to create that effect for a special reason.
But in prose, short stories, novels, even articles, rhythm is important too. If someone were to read the piece out loud the sounds must move in an attractive way. Of course, it's even more important for a piece of drama to have rhythm too as it's designed to be spoken. Actors will find it very difficult to perform if the words trip them up instead of tripping off their tongues.
So how can you make sure your writing has rhythm? The easiest way is to read your piece out loud, putting a mark against any words or phrases that don't work. Often all you will need to do is rejig a sentence very slightly to improve the rhythm.
If you aren't musical and you don't feel you have an ear for rhythm, you can acquire one by reading poetry out loud to yourself. Even reading one poem a day will help you to hone your sense of rhythm.
So go with the flow - add rhythm to your writing and hear it swing!
Tuesday, 22 July 2008
Monday, 21 July 2008
Writing from Whose Point of View?
One of the things you will need to decide before you write a short story or a novel is whose point of view it will be told from? Who is the narrator?
Some stories are told as if the narrator is speaking. 'I woke up and found I'd turned into a frog.' This is a first person narrative. The difficulty with this is that you can only write what the narrator would actually know or see.
An omniscient third person narrator is more common. This is it is told from the point of view of someone looking on at what is happening, but (like God) this narrator knows everything so can explain what various characters are thinking and feeling.
A third person narrator with a limited point of view is quite useful, even with a more restricted knowledge and understanding compared with that of an omniscient narrator.
It's also possible to have a second person narrator, where the narrator speaks directly to someone all the time. 'You were standing at the market stall sniffing the mangos when I first saw you. You looked so exotic in your red and gold robes...' This is very unusual though and would be extremely difficult to carry off unless you were quite an experienced writer.
The next time you look at a short story or a novel, spend a few minutes figuring out whose point of view the story is told from, and whether it uses a first person, second person, third person omniscient or third person limited point of view narrator.
Some stories are told as if the narrator is speaking. 'I woke up and found I'd turned into a frog.' This is a first person narrative. The difficulty with this is that you can only write what the narrator would actually know or see.
An omniscient third person narrator is more common. This is it is told from the point of view of someone looking on at what is happening, but (like God) this narrator knows everything so can explain what various characters are thinking and feeling.
A third person narrator with a limited point of view is quite useful, even with a more restricted knowledge and understanding compared with that of an omniscient narrator.
It's also possible to have a second person narrator, where the narrator speaks directly to someone all the time. 'You were standing at the market stall sniffing the mangos when I first saw you. You looked so exotic in your red and gold robes...' This is very unusual though and would be extremely difficult to carry off unless you were quite an experienced writer.
The next time you look at a short story or a novel, spend a few minutes figuring out whose point of view the story is told from, and whether it uses a first person, second person, third person omniscient or third person limited point of view narrator.
Sunday, 20 July 2008
Writing to Music
Sitting here writing, I can hear my exceptionally talented son practising the Mozart clarinet concerto in his bedroom, which is very relaxing - a bonus I don't normally get when, as he's usually away at school.
I must admit I don't normally listen to music while I'm writing, although it would be an easy enough thing to do as my computer has a CD player built in.
There's also a radio gathering dust on the window sill. I can't remember whether I put it there or whether it's a left-over from when my husband used to share the study with me in the days before we became a two PC family. All I know is that although I love listening to the radio, I never use do it while I'm writing.
Because I'm really interested in music and I play musical instruments, I'm always afraid that music might distract me from my writing because I'd have my attention on what was being played rather than on what I'm supposed to be writing.
Other writers find it essential to have music playing while they work as they feel it helps them relax and become more creative. I might cope with a soothing instrumental, but anything with words would really divide my attention too much - I couldn't juggle words in my head and words in my ear.
But my friend, David Darling, who is a science writer, will happily work with rock music on full blast, and there are many other writers who have their own favourite type of music to help them write - be it Baroque, jazz, classical.... I don't think anyone would choose to write to 20th century twelve-tone serialism, but you never know!
Some writers choose their music to suit the mood they want to evoke in their writing, a stirring Beethoven symphony for something grand and momentous, delicate Debussy for lattice-work poetry, jazz if they want to write about smoky bars.
Sometimes writers even experiment with music in writing workshops, to see what sort of an effect writing to music will have on the participants.
That's something you could try. If you always write to music, try one session where you write in complete silence or at least play a different type of music from usual. If you never write to music, put some on and see how it affects your writing.
At the very least, it will stop your writing sessions from getting into a rut, and you may even find that the change in your listening habits leads to some sort of creative breakthrough.
I must admit I don't normally listen to music while I'm writing, although it would be an easy enough thing to do as my computer has a CD player built in.
There's also a radio gathering dust on the window sill. I can't remember whether I put it there or whether it's a left-over from when my husband used to share the study with me in the days before we became a two PC family. All I know is that although I love listening to the radio, I never use do it while I'm writing.
Because I'm really interested in music and I play musical instruments, I'm always afraid that music might distract me from my writing because I'd have my attention on what was being played rather than on what I'm supposed to be writing.
Other writers find it essential to have music playing while they work as they feel it helps them relax and become more creative. I might cope with a soothing instrumental, but anything with words would really divide my attention too much - I couldn't juggle words in my head and words in my ear.
But my friend, David Darling, who is a science writer, will happily work with rock music on full blast, and there are many other writers who have their own favourite type of music to help them write - be it Baroque, jazz, classical.... I don't think anyone would choose to write to 20th century twelve-tone serialism, but you never know!
Some writers choose their music to suit the mood they want to evoke in their writing, a stirring Beethoven symphony for something grand and momentous, delicate Debussy for lattice-work poetry, jazz if they want to write about smoky bars.
Sometimes writers even experiment with music in writing workshops, to see what sort of an effect writing to music will have on the participants.
That's something you could try. If you always write to music, try one session where you write in complete silence or at least play a different type of music from usual. If you never write to music, put some on and see how it affects your writing.
At the very least, it will stop your writing sessions from getting into a rut, and you may even find that the change in your listening habits leads to some sort of creative breakthrough.
Saturday, 19 July 2008
Why Do You Write?
Everyone writes for different reasons. Some write for the money; others because they have a burning message they want to share; others to get to know themselves and find out what they are really thinking.
Perhaps the same person writes for a whole lot of different reasons, depending on how they are feeling at the time. They might start off wanting to write for money, but become so fascinated by the whole process that they end up writing for the sheer joy of it.
There's no one correct reason for wanting to write. You write for your own reasons, and it doesn't matter what anyone else says. It's you who sets the agenda.
But the one person who really needs to know why you write is you yourself. You set your own agenda, make your own rules.
Why not spare a few minutes to write about why you write? You never know, you might learn something about yourself.
Perhaps the same person writes for a whole lot of different reasons, depending on how they are feeling at the time. They might start off wanting to write for money, but become so fascinated by the whole process that they end up writing for the sheer joy of it.
There's no one correct reason for wanting to write. You write for your own reasons, and it doesn't matter what anyone else says. It's you who sets the agenda.
But the one person who really needs to know why you write is you yourself. You set your own agenda, make your own rules.
Why not spare a few minutes to write about why you write? You never know, you might learn something about yourself.
Friday, 18 July 2008
Where Do You Read?
I always used to read in bed, but I've changed my routine recently so that I listen to podcasts instead of reading. My favourite place to read is now in a cafe - I like to take along a library book or something I've bought recently. Today I was in a cafe at lunchtime having a baguette and reading a book about money by Alvin Hall called 'You and Your Money. Creating a Prosperous Relationship'.
I also like to read when I'm waiting for an appointment at the doctor's or the dentist's and if I'm not too busy I enjoy reading in the morning or before I go to bed. It's a good way of winding down instead of watching TV, which can make the brain too agitated instead of creating a feeling of restfulness.
I used to travel by train every week and that was a good place to read too as I could fit in about an hour of uninterrupted reading on the way there, though on the return journey the trains would be crowded so I couldn't always manage to read for the whole of that journey.
Mind you, it's a lot harder to enjoy reading on a train these days now that so many people have mobile phones and iPods. When I was a student and had very long train journeys from Scotland to Cambridge, I always knew I'd be able to get some serious reading done.
Sometimes I'd make notes for my course or even write an essay. It's not always so easy to concentrate when there are other people's phones ringing, loud telephone conversations and tinkly personal stereos playing all around.
But where ever you manage to read, the important thing is to do it, and, if possible, try to establish a habit of reading fairly regularly. That way it will become part of your everyday life and you'll miss it if you don't do it.
Regular reading will nourish you as a writer in a way that nothing else will.
I also like to read when I'm waiting for an appointment at the doctor's or the dentist's and if I'm not too busy I enjoy reading in the morning or before I go to bed. It's a good way of winding down instead of watching TV, which can make the brain too agitated instead of creating a feeling of restfulness.
I used to travel by train every week and that was a good place to read too as I could fit in about an hour of uninterrupted reading on the way there, though on the return journey the trains would be crowded so I couldn't always manage to read for the whole of that journey.
Mind you, it's a lot harder to enjoy reading on a train these days now that so many people have mobile phones and iPods. When I was a student and had very long train journeys from Scotland to Cambridge, I always knew I'd be able to get some serious reading done.
Sometimes I'd make notes for my course or even write an essay. It's not always so easy to concentrate when there are other people's phones ringing, loud telephone conversations and tinkly personal stereos playing all around.
But where ever you manage to read, the important thing is to do it, and, if possible, try to establish a habit of reading fairly regularly. That way it will become part of your everyday life and you'll miss it if you don't do it.
Regular reading will nourish you as a writer in a way that nothing else will.
Thursday, 17 July 2008
'The Street' by Jimmy McGovern
Catching up on the TV Dramas
Now that it's the summer holidays and I've got a bit more spare time than usual, I've been enjoying catching up on some of the television dramas I recorded ages ago but hadn't got round to watching.
One of them is the drama series, 'The Street' which was the brainchild of Jimmy McGovern, the brilliant Liverpool writer who honed his craft on the Channel 4 soap, 'Brookside'.
I was fortunate enough to meet Jimmy many, many years ago when he came to run a workshop in Sheffield on writing for television. He was a very interesting man, very passionate about his writing and about the place he came from. He reminded me a lot of one of his characters, Jimmy Corkhill from Brookside as he had that same type of down-to-earth, ordinary working class bloke quality.
Dark, Thought-Provoking Stories
In creating 'The Street', Jimmy was able to put on the sort of serious dramas that used appear on Play for Today, but which no longer find a place in the television schedules among the glitz and froth of US imports. He managed to do this by creating a set of self-contained stories but having them linked into series format by virtue of the fact that all the characters live on the same street.
He deals with some very dark subject matter - a working class builder's labourer who unexpectedly begins a homosexual relationship with one of his colleagues while he's away on a job; a young man who beats up a taxi driver but leaves his innocent cousin to take the blame; a young man who is consumed by guilt because of something terrible that he did when he was twelve, something that he can't forgive himself for.
They aren't the sort of programmes you'd watch if you were interested in an escapist romp. They're not full of actors who were hired for their looks, and you won't find any posh frocks or swish sets. But they're brilliantly written and acted and they're the sort of dramas you will remember for years to come.
The series is available to buy on DVD, so if you're at all interested in serious drama, I'd urge you to buy it.
Now that it's the summer holidays and I've got a bit more spare time than usual, I've been enjoying catching up on some of the television dramas I recorded ages ago but hadn't got round to watching.
One of them is the drama series, 'The Street' which was the brainchild of Jimmy McGovern, the brilliant Liverpool writer who honed his craft on the Channel 4 soap, 'Brookside'.
I was fortunate enough to meet Jimmy many, many years ago when he came to run a workshop in Sheffield on writing for television. He was a very interesting man, very passionate about his writing and about the place he came from. He reminded me a lot of one of his characters, Jimmy Corkhill from Brookside as he had that same type of down-to-earth, ordinary working class bloke quality.
Dark, Thought-Provoking Stories
In creating 'The Street', Jimmy was able to put on the sort of serious dramas that used appear on Play for Today, but which no longer find a place in the television schedules among the glitz and froth of US imports. He managed to do this by creating a set of self-contained stories but having them linked into series format by virtue of the fact that all the characters live on the same street.
He deals with some very dark subject matter - a working class builder's labourer who unexpectedly begins a homosexual relationship with one of his colleagues while he's away on a job; a young man who beats up a taxi driver but leaves his innocent cousin to take the blame; a young man who is consumed by guilt because of something terrible that he did when he was twelve, something that he can't forgive himself for.
They aren't the sort of programmes you'd watch if you were interested in an escapist romp. They're not full of actors who were hired for their looks, and you won't find any posh frocks or swish sets. But they're brilliantly written and acted and they're the sort of dramas you will remember for years to come.
The series is available to buy on DVD, so if you're at all interested in serious drama, I'd urge you to buy it.
Wednesday, 16 July 2008
Build Your Writing Career from Small Beginnings
Would You Go Straight from a Moped to a Ferrari?
Sometimes writers get discouraged early on in their writing career because they expect to achieve too much too soon. They think that their very first short stories or articles will be snapped up by national magazines and they'll be raking in the money.
Some people might be very lucky and have their work accepted by the big boys very quickly, but most of us need to work our way up. Would you expect to go straight from riding a moped to driving a powerful Ferrari? Expecting to have sizeable pieces published or commissioned by one of the nationals is just as unrealistic.
A few people might be lucky and hit the big time straight off, but for most of us it's better to progress slowly and surely. Not so much moped to Ferrari, but moped to motor bike to mini to hatchback to family car to Ferrari.
Readers' Letters and Tips - a Good Place to Start
One of the easiest ways to start seeing your work and your name in print is to write letters to newspapers and magazines. It doesn't take long to write a piece and you may even be able to submit them by e-mail to some publications, so it wouldn't even cost you the price of a stamp.
Useful Market Study
Studying a publication and trying to figure out what sort of letters it usually chooses to publish is a very good way of learning to study your prospective markets. You can put the knowledge you acquire to good use later when you eventually start submitting fiction or articles. Your name will start to become familiar to the editors, which will be very useful when you want to stand out from the thousand other writers whose work is in the magazine's pile of unsolicited manuscripts.
Publication Means Prizes or Payment
It will really give you a boost to see your name and your words in print, and often there are quite good rewards for readers' letters, tips, and photos. Some magazines will pay £50 just for a tip which lasts one or two sentences, which means you'd be getting an excellent rate of pay per word! Others offer prizes for letters published or the letter of the week.
I remember getting all sorts of things when I was starting out, including a caddy of tea and a very handsome Schaeffer pen, which I still use today. I had all sorts of things published, anecdotes from my family or odd things that I overheard when I was out and about.
You don't even need to buy the publications regularly to check whether your letter is in. I used to spend a little while browsing in a big newsagent's and look at the letters pages of the magazines I'd sent things off to. Then I'd buy the magazine if my contribution had been published that week.
How to Work Out What Gets Published
The important thing is to study three or four recent copies of each publication you are targetting so that you can identify the readership of the magazine and the sort of things they like to publish. Some magazines love little anecdotes and pictures of children and grandchildren. Others like to publish letters in which the reader says how much she identified with an article in a previous issue because they'd had a similar experience.
One more thing to remember is that you mustn't send the same letter to more than one publication at a time as editors hate it if they publish something which ends up in another magazine around the same time.
But if several months have passed and your letter still hasn't been printed, you'll be safe to send it somewhere else, possibly adapting it slightly for your new target publication.
So get writing - and good luck!
Sometimes writers get discouraged early on in their writing career because they expect to achieve too much too soon. They think that their very first short stories or articles will be snapped up by national magazines and they'll be raking in the money.
Some people might be very lucky and have their work accepted by the big boys very quickly, but most of us need to work our way up. Would you expect to go straight from riding a moped to driving a powerful Ferrari? Expecting to have sizeable pieces published or commissioned by one of the nationals is just as unrealistic.
A few people might be lucky and hit the big time straight off, but for most of us it's better to progress slowly and surely. Not so much moped to Ferrari, but moped to motor bike to mini to hatchback to family car to Ferrari.
Readers' Letters and Tips - a Good Place to Start
One of the easiest ways to start seeing your work and your name in print is to write letters to newspapers and magazines. It doesn't take long to write a piece and you may even be able to submit them by e-mail to some publications, so it wouldn't even cost you the price of a stamp.
Useful Market Study
Studying a publication and trying to figure out what sort of letters it usually chooses to publish is a very good way of learning to study your prospective markets. You can put the knowledge you acquire to good use later when you eventually start submitting fiction or articles. Your name will start to become familiar to the editors, which will be very useful when you want to stand out from the thousand other writers whose work is in the magazine's pile of unsolicited manuscripts.
Publication Means Prizes or Payment
It will really give you a boost to see your name and your words in print, and often there are quite good rewards for readers' letters, tips, and photos. Some magazines will pay £50 just for a tip which lasts one or two sentences, which means you'd be getting an excellent rate of pay per word! Others offer prizes for letters published or the letter of the week.
I remember getting all sorts of things when I was starting out, including a caddy of tea and a very handsome Schaeffer pen, which I still use today. I had all sorts of things published, anecdotes from my family or odd things that I overheard when I was out and about.
You don't even need to buy the publications regularly to check whether your letter is in. I used to spend a little while browsing in a big newsagent's and look at the letters pages of the magazines I'd sent things off to. Then I'd buy the magazine if my contribution had been published that week.
How to Work Out What Gets Published
The important thing is to study three or four recent copies of each publication you are targetting so that you can identify the readership of the magazine and the sort of things they like to publish. Some magazines love little anecdotes and pictures of children and grandchildren. Others like to publish letters in which the reader says how much she identified with an article in a previous issue because they'd had a similar experience.
One more thing to remember is that you mustn't send the same letter to more than one publication at a time as editors hate it if they publish something which ends up in another magazine around the same time.
But if several months have passed and your letter still hasn't been printed, you'll be safe to send it somewhere else, possibly adapting it slightly for your new target publication.
So get writing - and good luck!
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