Thursday, March 10, 2011

Writing Essays

"Sometimes it Sucks" by Jason Aaron http://t.co/yoxXw2x Great essay that makes you realize that when the writing sucks, it's not just you.

Allan Guthrie's Infamous Writing Tips http://t.co/y9fQ6XC Just plain good advice.

Those two links are courtesy of Brian Lindenmuth.

This next essay is called "Would You Please Fucking Stop" by Ursula K. LeGuin http://blog.bookviewcafe.com/2011/03/09/would-you-please-fucking-stop/ If you're easy offended by cuss words, by all means skip this, but there's a great history of swearing here that makes you wonder what all the fuss is about.

4 comments:

Sean Patrick Reardon said...

Guthrie's rules were excellent. Heard many of them before, but the way he presented them was excellent

Ursula's essay was an excellent read, thanks for sharing it.

Charles Gramlich said...

I definitely want to check out the Leguin post.

Unknown said...

I LOVED Miss LeGuin's essay! Frickin' awesome! :)

Mr. Guthrie's rules have found a place on my desk... I am certain to refer to these often. I got a little laugh out of Rule #29... "smiling sadly is a capital offence." Really? One I am guilty of then... as well as Cara Black. I am reading her first Aimee Leduc novel... page 84, para 6 - "She smiled sadly." Tsk... tsk, Cara... Haha!

Of course, I will not chain myself to them... if we all followed the same rules, it would make for some pretty boring writing... one author would be indistinguishable from another. Whether a story I write is good, bad, or mediocre; I do not want someone saying "...she reads like ______." I want my own style... is that egotistical of me? Good!

Jason Aaron's essay is very thought-provoking... I have bookmarked it.

Thnak you for posting these, Sandra... entertaining and informative.

sandra seamans said...

You're all very welcome! I love when such great links come my way.