Rachelle Gardner has a great post up about "Writing Rules are Just Tools" http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2010/10/writing-rules-are-just-tools.html I remember a writer on SMFS once saying that you had to know the rules before you could break them. And this doesn't just apply to the grammar rules but to genre rules as well. You need to know what came before so you can intelligently change things.
Chris Rhatigen has a post up on his blog about the rules for "Writing Violence" http://death-by-killing.blogspot.com/2010/10/writing-violence.html I think as writers we all struggle with one. How much is too much? But I have these great details of her brains splattering all over the purple rose wallpaper to create a Jackson Pollack effect, why can't I use it? The questions are endless and it all boils down to the market you're submitting to and how much you think your readers can accept.
Another thing writers have to deal with is creating characters. Who are they? What's in a name? And yes, another series of endless questions to answer before you put pen to paper.
Over at Declan Burke's blog, Tony Black has an essay detailing how he created his series character, Gus Dury. http://crimealwayspays.blogspot.com/2010/10/origins-tony-black.html
And Dave White looks at changing the past of a character he's already created in a short story in his post at Do Some Damage. http://dosomedamage.blogspot.com/2010/10/changing-past.html Can he or can't he? What say you?
3 comments:
As the writer goes on writing
no rules last long.
shivakrishnamoorthi
Thanks for the links, Sandra. Your site is a daily visit for me--such a valuable resource!
You're very right, shivakrishnamoorthi, the more you write, the more it's about the story. But by then, the rules have become second nature and you use or break them as need be.
Thanks, Chris! I'm glad folks find it useful.
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