What are the 10 Commandments of Fiction Writing?

[Whispersecret]

In another thread, Judo, Big Texan, and Quasimodem were discussing realism. I combined their thoughts into this "commandment" for writers:

Thou shalt remain consistent within the world thou hast created.

Have you any ideas for other commandments? I"m sure there are more than ten. LOL

Perhaps:

Thou shalt maintain standards of grammar, punctuation, and mechanics, in order that thy message is communicated clearly to the reader.

Thou shalt not drown the reader with a flood of backstory at the beginning, but instead give them sips, as of fine wine.

 

[JUDO]

The backstory one is a bit difficult because afterall, backstory is just that which comes before the first sentence published. At some point in the process, the writer said the story starts here.


- Judo

 

[Whispersecret]

Yes, it is, Judo. Writing is and art, ain't it!

No suggestions for commandments?

 

[Madame Manga]

These aren't mine--they are gleaned from C.S. Lewis. I think that #7 and #8 are particularly pertinent for Literotica, but take your pick...

Some Rules for Writers

1. Turn off the radio. (or TV, or Internet, as the case may be.)

2. Read all the good books you can and avoid nearly all magazines.

3. Always write (and read) with the ear, not the eye. You should hear every sentence you write as if it were being read aloud or spoken. Every sentence should be tested on the tongue, to make sure that the sound of it has the hardness or softness, the swiftness or langour, which the meaning of it calls for.

4. Take great pains to be clear. Remember that though you start by knowing what you mean, the reader doesn't, and a single ill-chosen word may lead him to a total misunderstanding. Always try to use language so as to make quite clear what you mean, and make sure your sentence couldn't mean anything else.

5. Always prefer the plain direct word to the long vague one. Don't "implement" promises, but "keep" them.

6. Never use abstract nouns when concrete ones will do. If you mean "more people died," don't say "mortality rose."

7. Don't use adjectives which merely tell us how you want us to feel about the thing you are describing. I mean, instead of telling us a thing was "terrible," describe it so that we'll be terrified. Don't say it was "delightful," make us say "delightful" when we've read your description.

8. Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite.

MM

 

[Weird Harold]

Yes, it is, Judo. Writing is and art, ain't it!

No suggestions for commandments?

K.I.S.S. = Keep It Simple, Stupid.

This applies to writing in the sense that an author should complicate things only as much is absolutely required for the plot to work. Don't go wandering off on tangents that don't add to the story.

 

[Bodie]

Hi whisper,

My contribution:

"Don't make empty promises. When you say you'll do something, then do it!"

Not directly relevant to your thread, but I wanted to let you know I submitted my story yesterday.

So you can take off that strap-on, at last! Or put it on, depending on who was right about the motives!

I'll start a thread for any feedback when the story is accepted.

Hope you're keeping well.
Bodie

 

[BigTexan]

11th Commandment

Thou shalt not TRICK your reader for the sake of a plot twist

I always hated "B" grade mystery novels that revealed that the gun was full of blanks at the end of the story and the victim was still alive. Or any such bullshit!

BigTexan

 

[Whispersecret]

I am applauding, Bodie. Good job.

Tricking readers is very bad form. Writers who do that these days probably don't remain in print long, if they make it at all.

 

[JUDO]

W -

Here's another one I just remembered. Oh boy, how important with regards to the continuous "timeline" of our stories.

Commandment: ENTER LATE, LEAVE EARLY!

This is the attitude of the editing writer, looking to cut their scenes to the bone.

* * *

Ooo, just thought of another!

Commandment: THOU SHALT PAY OFF ALL THAT IS SET UP!

Nothing like being "left hangin'" with something not completed. Ever finished reading and asked yourself,"Yeah, but what happened to the thing with the stuff?"


- Judo

 

[JUDO]

Another...

Commandment: THOU SHALT KNOW THY CHARACTERS LIKE THYSELF!

This is a must before you start writing.


- Judo

 

[Alex De Kok]

Just passing, but...

...I thought I'd chip in.

Some interesting thoughts here. So how about waiting a week or so, Whisper, then distilling the essence of all this and creating another of your 'How-To' pieces?

It might need a vote to get it down to ten!

Alex

 

[Whispersecret]

Hey, romantic Alex, you read me like a, well, book. I'm toying with the idea, but I don't want to work TOO hard. LOL. That's why I'm asking for suggestions.

Of course, I'd give credit where credit was due if I DID write a how-to about this.

 

[JUDO]

Nah, just put on a robe, carve them into a couple of stone tablets and throw them at suburbanites from a mountain top. You could do an L. Ron Hubbard and call it "Writology!" You, too, can live in a tax-free America. (hee-hee-hee)


- Judo

 

[sirhugs]

Another...

Commandment: THOU SHALT KNOW THY CHARACTERS LIKE THYSELF!

This is a must before you start writing.


- Judo

but for me half the fun of writing is discovering who my characters are!

( or which parts of me they are)

 

[Whispersecret]

Nah, just put on a robe, carve them into a couple of stone tablets and throw them at suburbanites from a mountain top. You could do an L. Ron Hubbard and call it "Writology!" You, too, can live in a tax-free America. (hee-hee-hee)


- Judo

LMAO

 

[JUDO]

And lo, the commandments echoed through the valleys and hills, cascadeth down the mountainside unto those lost minions of Writology who were unknown to one another. (Book of Whispers, Chapter 7, Verses 4-6)


Commandment: THOU SHALT CONNECT THE THROUGHLINE OF THY SENTENCES WITHIN THE PARAGRAPH.

Commandment: THOU SHALT VARY THY SENTENCE STRUCTURE.

Commandment: THOU SHALT VARY REFERENCES TO THE SAME SUBJECT.

 

[Quasimodem]

Commandment of Fiction Writing

First Commandment: THOU SHALT ENTERTAIN!

Followed by limitless dogma directed toward achieving the First Commandment.

 

[wildsweetone]

or,

Thou shalt not follow blindly but learn to be unique and develop thine own skills

 

[Singularity]

Commandments for Oneself

Some of these trespass on previous postings, and say some of the same things.

1. Let the darn thing sit and rest for a while, and reread it at least a couple of times before you let anyone else read it, so you don't embarass yourself. Read it aloud (to yourself, or better yet to someone else).

2. Treat your characters with respect. While they are fictional (usually), they should be accorded the same care and consideration you would to a real person. Not all characters will be nice and not all will be people you might want to meet in real life. But give them the honesty of consistency and the possibility of realism. A character that is a caricature is not what you want to create.

3. Write what you know about, or are comfortable with (this applies to everything except incest, I think).

4. Dont' exaggerate the physics and the science of copulation (we are all probably guilty as charged on this one from time to time, me included).

5. Let your characters speak. Use dialog and let them express themselves instead of you telling us about them. They can talk, really.

That's it for tonight.

 

[deliciously_naughty]

Thou shalt have a plot (your characters really do need a reason to be fucking...really they do)

 

[the_bragis]

This is all good sound advice, but I just have to say I like this one the best:

Thou shalt have a plot (your characters really do need a reason to be fucking...really they do)

Dare I say it? It's deliciously naughty.



Alex

 

[TheEarl]

Thou shalt not describe the character from head to toe

She had blonde hair that reached her collarbone and blue eyes with dark eyebrows. Her face was pear shaped with a dimple in the chin. She had dark mascara and rouge on her cheeks. Her lipstick was dark and she was wearing hoop earrings. She was wearing a read shirt with a Nike tick on the breast...

No. Just pick out two or three improtant points and work them into your story. Readers have a sense of imagination, so let them use it.

The Earl

 

[wildsweetone]

She had blonde hair that reached her collarbone and blue eyes with dark eyebrows. Her face was pear shaped with a dimple in the chin. She had dark mascara and rouge on her cheeks. Her lipstick was dark and she was wearing hoop earrings. She was wearing a read shirt with a Nike tick on the breast...
The Earl

wot? no hat?


sorry, couldn't help myself *giggles*

 

[JUDO]

Thou shalt not describe the character from head to toe

She had blonde hair that reached her collarbone and blue eyes with dark eyebrows. Her face was pear shaped with a dimple in the chin. She had dark mascara and rouge on her cheeks. Her lipstick was dark and she was wearing hoop earrings. She was wearing a read shirt with a Nike tick on the breast...

No. Just pick out two or three improtant points and work them into your story. Readers have a sense of imagination, so let them use it.

The Earl

This is a good one, Earl. It's been said as "Don't overwrite" before. But yours points to a good fact -- the reader needs to be interactively involved. Let the words you use serve as guideposts for the readers imagination. In that way, each reader will be largely in the same place, but not exactly. The more exact the description, the less enticing it can be.

How would we word this in a commandment? Maybe...

"THOU SHALT ALLOW YOUR DESCRIPTIONS TO GUIDE THE READER, NOT DICTATE IMAGINATION."

...or something like that.

Good one, Earl.


- Judo

 

[deliciously_naughty]

This is all good sound advice, but I just have to say I like this one the best:

Thou shalt have a plot (your characters really do need a reason to be fucking...really they do)

Dare I say it? It's deliciously naughty.



Alex

aww...

and earl..that's a good point as well