Writing tip 25 - pursue ignorance - ask questions

Does the most interesting writing ask questions, or provide solutions? Or...

Is the sky the limit?

Like this Tip section of the blog, it's possible that too much advice can be quite annoying.  Why? It might be because providing answers generally implies particular assumptions, and closes off other alternatives. It might be that it assumes an uneven distribution of expertise between the giver and receiver of advice.

So, sorry about that, and a caveat - I know nothing! Next to nothing. Moving on...

I listened to a couple of TED talks on science this week, and they both suggested that opening up, rather than closing off, was the way to go. Science is not so much about proving what you know, as discovering what you don't know. It's not so much the pursuit of information as the pursuit of ignorance. As I listened, I thought that the same could apply to storytelling.

The pursuit of ignorance could well be another way of growing intelligence. Check out the links. In this model, entropy is useful. Chaos is productive. Certainty might well be less  productive - at least if there is too much of it. It can slow down discovery and close off possible responses to difficulties.

Is this why advice is so stultifying - because it closes off possibilities and attempts to provide a single solution to a problem that we might have created precisely so that we can explore the possibilities? That's just one idea, and like all these 'tips', everything written here is simply an idea which may or may not be useful. It can be taken, or leaven (that is to say, inflated like bread!). From a pragmatic point of view the more we learn, the more we understand that we don't know. And I guess this is a good thing.

Maybe one of the reasons I like storytelling is because it presupposes that, even with the same characters, there are countless alternative stories possible - different choices and circumstances create different stories. Maybe the whole idea of fiction is about asking 'what if?' And 'what if' might be an even better question than 'why'.

The best question, if we want to really learn something, is an open question - one that does not lead to an absolute conclusion, a 'because', or a 'yes/no' type of answer. At its best, a good question - or a good story - opens up the space for even more interesting questions to be asked.

Feel free to comment and disagree.

Prompt: Read through what you have done and remove all solutions replacing them with questions.

Writing tip 24 - take whatever time you need, or have

While not everyone will agree with this, I am increasingly convinced that it is important to take all the time that is needed to write a book. Depending on the project, the time needed might be six months or it might be several years. Occasionally it might be decades.

At the Book Length Project Group yesterday Author, Ian Reid, talked about the value of writing slowly. He mentioned that he tends to edit as he proceeds, and that he is constantly reviewing the structure and the texture of the writing.

We have a slow food movement, with slow cooking arguably producing a more enjoyable and ultimately satisfying experience all round. I want to add my voice to the slow reading and writing movement.

My slow-cooked marmalade

To this end, Ian recommended a book called Reading like a Writer: A Guide For People Who Love Books, And For Those Who Want To Write Them by Francine Prose. I haven't read it yet, but it is on the list.

I think there is something important in this idea of taking time and care to consider different ideas and words.  If we want to enjoy a meal we might eat mindfully, savouring each mouthful and enjoying the context of our meal, the company and the setting. If we want to enjoy reading and writing, perhaps we could approach it in a similar way. When writing a book we might work carefully on a small section at a time, and finish that before moving on. Better to choose carefully than try to include every possible idea.

I wonder, is there a link between the way writing is changing, and the speed and superficiality that seems to be overwhelming modern societies? I don't know, but it is worth considering.

A tangential, but possibly linked phenomenon, was discussed in a recent episode of Radio National's All in the Mind. The program focussed on the increase in narcissism, and I have included a link here. It's well-worth listening to this program which also comments on the way in which point of view in novels has changed over time.

There is something about the phenomenon of focussing attention on the individual rather than the community that seems to encourage superficial, rather than more meaningful relationships. How does this relate to writing? The best books, I believe, are those which invite a deep engagement with the reader. For writers this means taking care to communicate as well as we can, and it means valuing the quality of the reading/writing experience over volume. It takes time.

Writing prompt

Try this as an experiment:

Allow an entire day to work intermittently on a single scene. Take time to let the mind wander around the scene. Write slowly and savour the process.

That Untravelled World - Ian Reid

I have just finished reading Ian Reid's most recent novel, That Untravelled World. For those interested in getting a feel for new settler, predominantly Anglo-Saxon Western Australian society in the first half of the Twentieth Century, this novel is a great place to start. It is beautifully written and eminently readable, a book in which the protagonist Harry begins the new century full of hope and excitement about a future which he believes is going to see the world transformed with flying machines and wireless communication, bringing people together across the world. As a young, skilled wireless engineer, he is full of optimistic anticipation about his own prospects in this imagined new world. As the story unfolds in the context of two World Wars and the Great Depression, we are guided through a single lifetime in which our hero's plans are progressively frustrated.

From the perspective of a reader/writer currently going through the joys and struggles of writing a second novel, there were a number of things that impressed me about this book. From the beginning it was evident that as reader, I was in good hands. I enjoyed the finely balanced structure of the story, its accuracy, restrained telling, and the way in which the era, age and physicality of the character, at various stages of his life, was so clearly evoked. Not once was Harry dropped out of character, or did the author flinch from portraying the less desirable mainstream social values of the time. At the same time, seen through Harry's eyes, there was compassion for each of the characters, damaged and flawed as they were, providing a way into what could otherwise have been difficult material.

Besides enviable fiction and non-fiction writing credentials, Ian Reid has the advantage of being a poet, a historian and a highly skilled researcher, and the depth of understanding is evident in the telling of this story. It's a satisfying read, and at the end I felt I had learned something about the early Eurocentric history and psychology of this part of the world.

Ian Reid will be meeting with the Book Length Project Group this coming Sunday to discuss his writing process with us. All welcome.

10am, Fellowship of Australian Writers WA premises, Allen Park Precinct, Swanbourne. Mattie's House.

Writing tip 23 - write about something meaningful to you

On the weekend I went to a book launch for Swamp - Walking the Wetlands of the Swan Coastal Plain. This is a compilation of poetry by Nandi Chinna, published by Fremantle Press.

Nandi is a dedicated campaigner for the preservation of fragile ecosystems, and her beautiful and deeply moving poems reflect this. Here is a taste of Nandi Chinna's Manning Ridge from this remarkable collection. The black birds mentioned refer to the Carnaby's cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris). There is some evidence that these gorgeous birds are under habitat threat if the proposed Roe Highway extension goes through:

At 6pm

the black birds flew over

so low I could see into

the dark shafts of their eyes.

They were all coming in.

The sky was filled

with what I have always known.

Then everything began to recede.

I was the last person left,

the black bird bursting

inside my chest,

squalling and flapping against my ribs. 

This volume of poetry, like almost all books, represents years of dedicated work and passion, and in this case an undoubted love of the life dependent on the wetlands around the Perth metropolitan area. It is passion combined with talent and writing skill that makes this volume so special.

I would suggest that a level of passion, or belief in the subject matter of a book (or short-story), is absolutely needed to maintain the impetus to bring a work to publication standard. I believe it is this passion and enthusiasm that transfers to the reader and encourages him or her to care enough to read on. So, this week's tip: write about something that is meaningful to you.

Writing prompt:

Make a list of all those things that are important to you, and those things that fire you up with indignation. Which is most important to you at this time? If what you are writing is boring you, ground yourself in your values and start again in a place that rekindles that spark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Writing tip 22 - attend writing workshops

Well, the strategy of writing myself out of a hole seems to be working, although I don't want to jinx it by overanalysing. For me, creative writing is a bit like my road sense. I'm good at getting lost, but have managed to find my way back. So far. Getting lost has the advantage of seeing things I wouldn't have seen if I hadn't diverted from the track representing the shortest distance between two points, or getting off the track, full-stop. I often think, that looks interesting. What would happen if I followed that thought? Or thought-words to that effect. (I have to say I am also attracted to shiny things in shops!)

The other thing I did this last week was to attend a workshop run by Jaki Arthur from Hatchette and funded through the Australia Council, facilitated by writingWA. I gained a number of positive spin-offs from attending this workshop.

First of all it is a very good thing to gain an understanding of the publishing industry from the perspective of people like Jaki Arthur, who work so hard to promote and present the writers that they represent, and to remember that this will work so much better if the writers are pulling in the same direction as their publishers, once the book is ready to go. It is also heartening to know that the industry is full of such committed and talented people.

The very fact of attending a workshop that supports and challenges existing ideas is stimulating, and gets the brain back into doing what it needs to do to get that book written, and out there. This one was a market development workshop, but the sentiment applies to any other writing workshop, especially if it is able to provide a good balance of new information and participation.

It's inspiring, and encouraging, to meet other writers and to share ideas, stories, letters and cards. Many of these talented people are generously sharing their knowledge through teaching. They conduct workshops and creative writing courses through schools, universities and writing organisations. (And they are excellent value for the cost.) Check out UWA Extension courses, courses advertised through writingWA, the Fellowship of Australian Writing WA, KSP and Peter Cowan Writing Centre - to start. I have included links for all of these.

So that's this week's writing tip. If you are stuck, go to a workshop or two.