Want to write good dialogue? Then you’ve got to break the rules.
When you and I talk, we sometimes break the rules of grammar. (I know, it’s a shock, but it’s true.) To write good dialogue, it’s not so much that we are breaking the rules, per se, it’s just that there are rules for dialogue that trump grammatical dogma.
Write every day. Set a word count and don’t get up until you reach it. Butt in chair, hands on keyboard.
Writers get a lot of advice about the importance of pushing ourselves to get the words on the page. It’s a principle I try to live by, and I know I’m not alone. But there are times when the best thing you can do for your writing is just step away.
I am addicted to the song “Counting Stars” by OneRepublic. It’s the first thing I listen to in the morning. It all started when the lead singer of OneRepublic, Ryan Tedder, was a guest mentor on The Voice. Now, I know you’re gonna cringe, but I’ll say it anyway. I love music, and yet, even as a writer, I never digest the lyrics. Weird I know.
In this case something Tedder said struck a chord. He described the meaning behind the song (being broke, worrying about money, wishing not to worry…) and all of a sudden I wanted to listen to the song and absorb the lyrics. In doing so, I found a stockpile of similarities between the words in the song and my life as a writer. Let’s take a look at the lyrics and see if they hit you too.
It seems one of the most neglected considerations in writing is form. Everything else screams for more attention: chosen topic(s), subtheme(s), genre, characters, plot, voice, style. As for form itself, the decision usually goes along the lines of choosing whether to be a short story, a poem, a play or a novel. From there on, you’re supposedly not to think much about it, except how to structure the plot and cliff-hangers in the whole story.
Rather than following familiar schemes, you can experiment and find your own specific way. In this age of radical change, form can also be a widely explored phenomenon.
What is experimental fiction? And how can you incorporate lessons from the genre into your own writing?
Choosing among the multiple attempts to define it and trying to keep it short and simple, let’s just say that experimental fiction is about breaking the rules, skipping conventions, literary innovation, and uniqueness.
Innovation comes only by trying out new things – experimenting – since progress in any field is a result of reaching out to what was once considered impossible. In this sense, experimental fiction is truly revolutionary.
Time is relative, especially in a writer’s world. It’s easy for any one of us to get sucked into some shiny rabbit hole. We lose time like it’s cool.
We spend time being ‘busy’. Busy marketing on social media. Busy networking with fellow writers. Busy submitting manuscripts to publishers.
You know what we forget? We’re writers. We need to write!
