I’d like to welcome the lovely Rosemary Clement Moore to the blog today. She has something incredibly fun, educational and helpful in store for you.
Thanks, Candy, for letting me play in your space today. Since it’s November, I wanted to share something earth shattering I learned from the concise little book, No Plot, No Problem, written by the founder of NaNoWriMo, Chris Baty.
Seriously. This is was a breakthrough idea for me. Ready? Here’s what you do.
Draw a line down the middle of a page to make two columns. (I’ll wait while you do that.)
At the top of one put: Things I love in books. List all the things that you love in a story. Do not edit yourself. No matter how trite, cliché, cheesy, un-feminist, un-macho, or what your mother would say about it… put that on your list. (For example, I love witty verbal fencing between the hero and heroine. Also, books with dogs.)
Got it? Okay. Title the second column: Things I hate in books. List all the things that turn you off, bore you, or make you throw the book against the wall. No matter how classic and erudite, or how popular or trendy, write them down. (My example: I have an arbitrary dislike of present tense, despite many wonderful books being written that way.)
Remember! These aren’t things that are bad writing, just things that you don’t like. The whole point is, these are subjective. Your may love something your best friend hates, and that’s okay. Neither one is “wrong.” (For both lists, it’s more useful to list general things rather than specific books/authors. If you dislike a book, try and figure out why.)
Okay, so now here’s the complicated part. Sit down and write your book. Put in everything (well, maybe not everything) you have on your “love” list and don’t put in what’s on your “hate” list.
What happens sometimes when we write–All of us!–is the inner editor says: That’s a dumb idea. That’s cliché, no one likes that but you, you freak. And in the other ear, the inner English Teacher speaks from the part of your subconscious where she’s been living since the ninth grade and says, “These things you hate make great literature. They are Worthy and Important. You just hate these things because they’re Good For You.
(Or alternately, your inner bookstore clerk will say: Everyone loves Lovelorn Vampires except you. What’s wrong with you? Do you hate kittens, too?)
Oddly, when I do this exercise in writing classes, the “hate” list seems much easier for people than the “love” list. I think that’s because we’re so conditioned to look for flaws, but we’re so busy thinking about what makes “good writing” that we may dismiss our personal fancies and passions as unimportant. But what could be more important? These are the reasons we write.
The first draft of any novel, whether you write it in a month, year, or decade, should be a selfish thing. As an author, you first need to entertain, enlighten and stir your own soul. Because, trust me, if you don’t enjoy your book, no one else will. Second drafts are soon enough to cull the clichés, or rein in your id (or ego) and amputate that scene you love so much but doesn’t advance the plot.
Funny thing is, when you write about things that tickle you, please you, and move you emotionally, it’s going to be a better book, because your love of the material is going to shine through. And here’s another secret. Whatever it is you love in a book, chances are, you’re not the only one.
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Hi
Thank you for the great post Rosemary.
I’m going to do that exercise.
All the best,
RKCharron
xoxo
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It really is a great idea. I having trouble figuring out what I do and don’t like. It’s good to think about these things!
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Great post, and a great reminder. The publishing business is so tough, that if we don’t let ourselves love the writing part, and love the books we write, what’s the point?
Thanks.
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Thanks, Rosemary (and Candy for letting her guest blog)!
I don’t feel so bad now that my first book is taking years to get the first draft done. It’s got a lot of the things I love in it–Montana, family, romance, a tall, dark and handsome guy who’s not a jerk–and well, the main character is fun to write because, well, she’s a lot like me. When I come back to it after not writing in a while, it’s like reconnecting with old friends. I can just write, not worrying about whether or not I’ve used that phrase before or not (I figure that’s what editing is for), although I do pause once in a while to ponder a particular turn of phrase. So thanks again for the great advice, and I see lists in my future. Did I mention I happen to LOVE making lists?
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Yay! Someone who’s got it right. I’m bored to tears of hearing about your targeted audience, what is popular, what publishers want, the correct word length for the genre, blah blah blah… Let’s get back to basics–if you don’t like what you’re writing, no one else will either! Kudos to you Rosemary!
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I’m a list maker, too, so naturally this exercise appealed to me. My list(s) keep growing and evolving, too.
I should point out, the idea isn’t to make you completely closed to the things on your “turn offs” list, or for you to throw everything and the kitchen sink into your book. For instance, one of the things on my “don’t like” list is books about the Civil War. But The Splendor Falls is set in an antebellum mansion with a subplot that goes back to Civil War history.
The idea is to make you aware of your particular joys in books and to give them validation. It seems so simple, but I was amazed at how much it helped to clarify what MY VOICE was, and what I wanted my niche in the writing world to be.
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Thanks for sharing this, Rosemary. I think this is going to help me a LOT. And I keep eyeing Chris’s book. Think I’ll have to break down and get it.
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re: Chris’s book. I wont’ say there was in anything in there that improved my craft, except that it got me thinking in a way that freed me up to, gosh, actually write stuff. (Well, and as I said, I think that making this list really helps you find your voice as a writer.)
It pointed out such SIMPLE things that I, as an overthinking perfectionist control freak, just forget.
Plus, it’s a little thin book and a much quicker read than Bird by Bird (Annie Lamont), which is ALSO a great book on the psychology of writing, but one that should be lingered over.
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I just love this blog, Rosemary! And so on point with where I am right now. I’m about to turn in a rewrite on a book to my ed where I have unabashedly written all of the things I like, even knowing full well that there may be (are!) people who feel differently. And honestly, I’ve never loved a book more than this one, because I didn’t allow myelf to hold back in any way with it. It feels like a great epiphany for the way I want to write my next book and the one after that, etc.
Thanks for the post!
Bella
HOT AS SIN – another hot firefighter is out now!
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Great post, Rosemary. I’m creating my lists right now.
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This was a great post. It seems like it would be so easy, yet I’ve never thought about sitting down and writing my likes/dislikes out like that. I will now, though!
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Oh thank you for this! I really needed this post today. Thank you!
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Oooh thanks for sharing Rosemary! My “loves” list would be populated with all sorts of sordid unmentionables. :p
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