tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post3056852404801252473..comments2024-03-18T08:33:25.907-04:00Comments on Inkwell Inspirations: Exercising “The Rules”Lisa Karon Richardsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02175430876079208723noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-3997718862163978292011-03-10T13:18:23.981-05:002011-03-10T13:18:23.981-05:00Great thoughts, Anita. My body parts fly too. I al...Great thoughts, Anita. My body parts fly too. I always considered that a ridiculous rule. And actually, I think fragments are totally allowed in fiction these days. I use more in my contemporaries than my old English historicals. I think it fits the cadence of our modern day language.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-45167144074111627722011-03-10T13:02:40.844-05:002011-03-10T13:02:40.844-05:00Excellent post, Dina. It fits your creative spirit...Excellent post, Dina. It fits your creative spirit. <br /><br />Like others, I started writing the story and didn't worry about rules. When I first decided to write seriously, I joined the eHarlequin community and learned so much, not only about writing rules, but what was expected and offered in the industry. And one of the most valuable lessons I learned from those authors and editors was Anita Mae Draperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16618699900826731377noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-3103830021250311342011-03-09T18:46:27.538-05:002011-03-09T18:46:27.538-05:00Yeah, Niki, I've noticed you hanging out at No...Yeah, Niki, I've noticed you hanging out at Novel Matters lately. I like their approach to writing. So are you reading Bird by Bird with them now?Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-65772426403945195152011-03-09T17:49:57.501-05:002011-03-09T17:49:57.501-05:00Dina, this is like a breath of fresh air. (As is B...Dina, this is like a breath of fresh air. (As is Bird By Bird!) I am forever running into blogs with loooooong lists of do's and dont's for writers, and the CBA ones are the worst for it. <br />I agree with the statement about knowing the rules so you know when to break them. The key really is to write a good story.Niki Turnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10419436634375255412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-29056068269426305902011-03-09T14:46:56.932-05:002011-03-09T14:46:56.932-05:00One of the things I learned from Angela Hunt (not ...One of the things I learned from Angela Hunt (not rules, just suggestions) are that clean and simple always same classier. I think the class was called "The Sophisticated Novelist." So basically, anytime you can leave out parentheses, italics, exclamation point, do. That made sense to me. But she's also the one who told us that any suggestions she gave us could be broken 10% of the Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-41837653441203579282011-03-09T14:41:28.268-05:002011-03-09T14:41:28.268-05:00Lemme clarify about the Inky who said she had been...Lemme clarify about the Inky who said she had been told using parenthesis in fiction was author intrusion.<br /><br />I didn't discount her comment because I didn't agree.<br /><br />I pondered whether or not I should use the parenthesis. If it jolted her, odds are it will jolt some readers. In the end, I chose to keep them because I think parentheses are a viable grammatical tool. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306070937646453722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-84856800735590239282011-03-09T14:36:57.113-05:002011-03-09T14:36:57.113-05:00Dina, since next wednesday is my day, I think I wi...Dina, since next wednesday is my day, I think I will do a follow-up post. Excellent suggestion!<br /><br />Guidelines is a much better word. <br /><br />But, let's face it, a vast portion of our contest judges that we've had don't know the difference between a guideline and a rule. That's why it's important for writers who are entering contests to realize that their judges Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306070937646453722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-91701622197213722512011-03-09T14:25:09.346-05:002011-03-09T14:25:09.346-05:00Thanks, CJ. I hope for many more too.
Guidelines...Thanks, CJ. I hope for many more too. <br /><br />Guidelines is a much better word. Suggestions even. It's not as if there's a rule book or some sort of committee on this stuff. And different editors are looking for different things.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-49437715646196219322011-03-09T14:22:31.327-05:002011-03-09T14:22:31.327-05:00Suzie, unless your aiming for like Steeple Hill or...Suzie, unless your aiming for like Steeple Hill or Barbour, that rule doesn't even count. If you are, you might just have to accept it until you have a couple of published novels under your belt.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-55847570788685875612011-03-09T14:20:38.782-05:002011-03-09T14:20:38.782-05:00Roseanna, so true about the rules being an attempt...Roseanna, so true about the rules being an attempt to explain what others learned the hard way.<br /><br />And I'm thrilled to be part of Whitefire too. I was gone for a while there because I was lost in medieval paradise shopping for costumes and wigs :) This is so fun. I've barely slept in two night.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-62614874501960488992011-03-09T14:18:42.477-05:002011-03-09T14:18:42.477-05:00Gina, I think you need to do a follow up post, &qu...Gina, I think you need to do a follow up post, "Confessions of a Rule-aholic."Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-35066663422106197882011-03-09T12:07:36.612-05:002011-03-09T12:07:36.612-05:00I think it's important to remember there's...I think it's important to remember there's a difference between a rule and a guideline. There are some aspects of writing that just shouldn't be broken because they make reading easier -- things like periods at the end of sentences or pronoun/antecedent agreement. If you violate those rules, readers will become confused and give up. <br /><br />And then there are guidelines. C.J. Chasehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02026386802434435296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-27992501858412883122011-03-09T11:52:53.567-05:002011-03-09T11:52:53.567-05:00I think the "rule" I break the most is t...I think the "rule" I break the most is that my hero and heroine almost never meet in the first few pages. It is probably the single-most negative comment I get from contest judges. And the funny thing to me is, I don't think the H&H meet on the first few pages of most of the books I read. So, I admit to being puzzled by that particular rule.Suzie Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06296203324088418271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-8919917192629878802011-03-09T11:51:14.087-05:002011-03-09T11:51:14.087-05:00Okay, that was just for fun. In reality, I think o...Okay, that was just for fun. In reality, I think overcoming our obsession with following rules requires one step.<br /><br />Humility.<br /><br />If we want to focus on following rules in our writing, that's fine. Not all rule-focused writing is bad. Just as not all rule-breaking writing is good.<br /><br />The problem, let's be candid, is when we become so focused on the rules that we &Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306070937646453722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-25591190011001705782011-03-09T11:46:04.103-05:002011-03-09T11:46:04.103-05:00I wrote twelve books before I'd learned a sing...I wrote twelve books before I'd learned a single "rule" for fiction writing. Then I joined ACFW, got slammed with the "can"s and "cannot"s, and reevaluated everything I'd ever written.<br /><br />Wanna know what I discovered?<br /><br />My first few books broke all the rules, didn't go very deep, told instead of showing, and were flat and lifeless to me Roseanna Whitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02245767775900250399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-12430603274787619932011-03-09T11:39:07.705-05:002011-03-09T11:39:07.705-05:00A twelve-step program for overcoming rule-aholism?...A twelve-step program for overcoming rule-aholism? Hmm...<br /><br />How about a 8-step program? :-)<br /><br /> 1. We admitted we were powerless over our writing rules legalism--that it controlled how we viewed published and unpublished writing.<br /><br /> 2. We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.<br /><br /> 3. We made a decision to turn our Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306070937646453722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-55703761433141775482011-03-09T10:15:33.304-05:002011-03-09T10:15:33.304-05:00Thanks, Carrie. Carrie's part of my local ACFW...Thanks, Carrie. Carrie's part of my local ACFW group. We all met together a few times recently to try to make sense of the crazy crits everyone had been getting. That experience was a big inspiration for this article.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-48731408262969993112011-03-09T10:06:35.576-05:002011-03-09T10:06:35.576-05:00Great post, Dina, and congrats again on your upcom...Great post, Dina, and congrats again on your upcoming publication. Comments on this interesting, too!Carrie Fancett Pagelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096954464239963966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-49095043262062161842011-03-09T09:04:11.865-05:002011-03-09T09:04:11.865-05:00Naomi, I've been reading Bird by Bird by Ann L...Naomi, I've been reading Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott. If you can handle a little cussing, it's an amazing book about the writing process and how to follow your instincts.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-75434775728667210002011-03-09T09:03:07.264-05:002011-03-09T09:03:07.264-05:00Ha, ha, Laurie. I think I was posting the same thi...Ha, ha, Laurie. I think I was posting the same thing in response to Gina's comment when you wrote your "you have to know the rules to break the rules" one.<br /><br />Pharisees, so true.Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-63238787031743511912011-03-09T08:57:25.382-05:002011-03-09T08:57:25.382-05:00Now that I have that off of my chest, let me say t...Now that I have that off of my chest, let me say that the advice I give my writing students is: You need to know the rules so you know when to break them.<br /><br />I played it safe for my first five books written for the CBA. Well, a little less safe with the fifth one. Then the sixth I broke a few more rules. With the seventh, I just wrote what came to me, what I felt right for the scene and Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-83033592258526562122011-03-09T08:55:52.269-05:002011-03-09T08:55:52.269-05:00I stopped listening to the rules after about six m...I stopped listening to the rules after about six months of writing, because I realized I couldn't write that way. Good grief, I don't think any sane person can adhere to all of them. I believe, with you others, that if you write well, the rules don't matter nearly as much as they're supposed to.<br /><br />Some of the agent and editor blogs out there make it sound like if you lookNaomi Rawlingshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02431203734855694561noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-63352550437016331902011-03-09T08:52:14.223-05:002011-03-09T08:52:14.223-05:00You tell 'em, Laurie :)You tell 'em, Laurie :)Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-80128728799305466092011-03-09T08:51:44.208-05:002011-03-09T08:51:44.208-05:00Gina, I'm so glad to hear you're recoverin...Gina, I'm so glad to hear you're recovering. Of course, remember you can't recover unless you at least know the rules first. I think the rule-aholics are those intermediate writers who have learned them but haven't been seasoned past their addiction yet.<br /><br />Can you recommend a twelve-step program?Dina Sleimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214446103057806111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7502152359497137754.post-78584148096952425552011-03-09T08:48:59.772-05:002011-03-09T08:48:59.772-05:00As far as I'm concerned, rule is a four-letter...As far as I'm concerned, rule is a four-letter word. so there. Meh!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com