Further to my previous blog about sense of place not being enough on its own, I think that good story writing depends on many things but can be boiled down to three factors, the triangle.
At the top is the narrative, a strong story, plenty of pace, a tale that enthrals the readers.
At one bottom corner is a sense of place, a strong sense of where the action is taking place.
At the other corner is a sense of being, the creation of characters strong and interesting enough to carry the story.
Get the triangle right and the rest flows from it.
John Dean
Monday, 4 August 2014
When sense of place is not enough
I tried reading a book by a much-lauded Scandinavian author a few weeks ago (not my usual fare of crime fiction). Her novel has been much praised by some big names and in the opening pages the sense of place (snow, ice, biting winds) was brilliant.
Trouble is, nothing happened and, increasingly bored, I put the book down after 30 pages and will not go back.
Maybe I am shallow/impatient but it does show that sense of place is crucial but in itself is not enough.
John Dean
Trouble is, nothing happened and, increasingly bored, I put the book down after 30 pages and will not go back.
Maybe I am shallow/impatient but it does show that sense of place is crucial but in itself is not enough.
John Dean
Friday, 1 August 2014
A place to write
Looking for a place to take your writing group for a few creative days away from it all?
Then check out http://www.sykescottages.co.uk/cottage/Ayrshire-and-Dumfries-Galloway-Kelton-Hill-or-Rhonehouse/Kettle-Knowe-904654.html
John Dean
John Dean
A slice of life
A short story is a slice of life. As such, it works best if you narrow the time frame and geographical location of the piece. One plot, two or three characters and no more than two or three locations fit best into a short story.
John Dean
John Dean
Getting it right from the off
Here’s some thoughts on starting short stories.
The first cardinal rule of opening lines is that they should possess most of the individual elements that make up the story. An opening paragraph should have a distinctive voice, a point of view, a rudimentary plot and some hint of characterisation. By the end of the first paragraph, we should also know the setting and conflict, unless there is a particular reason to withhold this information.
You might be tempted to begin your narrative before the action starts, such as when a character wakes up to what will eventually be a dramatic day. Far better to begin at the first moment of something interesting happening, though, which is more likely to grab the reader‘s interest.
If you feel compelled to begin a story with dialogue, keep in mind that you’re thrusting your readers directly into a story in which it’s easy to lose them early on. So keep the dialogue to a minimum. One way around this is to begin with a single line of dialogue and then to offer some context before proceeding with the rest of the conversation.
Sometimes a story evolves so significantly during the writing that an opening line, no matter how brilliant, no longer applies to the story that follows. The only way to know this is to reconsider the opening sentence once the final draft is complete. Often a new opening is called for.
John Dean
The first cardinal rule of opening lines is that they should possess most of the individual elements that make up the story. An opening paragraph should have a distinctive voice, a point of view, a rudimentary plot and some hint of characterisation. By the end of the first paragraph, we should also know the setting and conflict, unless there is a particular reason to withhold this information.
You might be tempted to begin your narrative before the action starts, such as when a character wakes up to what will eventually be a dramatic day. Far better to begin at the first moment of something interesting happening, though, which is more likely to grab the reader‘s interest.
If you feel compelled to begin a story with dialogue, keep in mind that you’re thrusting your readers directly into a story in which it’s easy to lose them early on. So keep the dialogue to a minimum. One way around this is to begin with a single line of dialogue and then to offer some context before proceeding with the rest of the conversation.
Sometimes a story evolves so significantly during the writing that an opening line, no matter how brilliant, no longer applies to the story that follows. The only way to know this is to reconsider the opening sentence once the final draft is complete. Often a new opening is called for.
John Dean
Promoting Australian talent
We know that a lot of Australian writers read this blog and we regularly receive their entries to the Global Short Story Competition so it’s worth a few words on how we promote some of the brightest talent Down Under.
The overall quality of our Australian entries is testament, I think, to the emphasis placed on creative writing in that country. During our work promoting this competition, we have come across a number of excellent writing centres in Australia, which clearly help local writers in every way they can.
What is notable about Australian entries is the writers’ strong sense of place and how to use it to create atmosphere, allied to strong characterisation.
Many of our Australian entries have also exhibited a very clear understanding of how a short story works: how to write in mini episodes, how a short story can sometimes cover but a fleeting moment in time, how it needs to have pace and balance so that it gives you enough information but not too much.
Short story writing is an art form in itself and Australian writers, through their success in our competition (winners, commendeds and shortlistings) have shown that they know how to get it right. We celebrate Australian writing in three of our ebooks:
Global Shorts - an anthology of short stories taken from the early years of the Global Short Competition, including Australian writers
Vegemite Whiskers - a selection of some of the finest writing from Australian authors who have entered the Global Short Story Competition
Cyber Rules by Myra King. The novel by Australian writer Myra tells the story of a farmer’s wife in isolated rural Australia. Caught up on the addictive side of the Internet, she holds a secret which may prove to be deadly.
More details on our home page at www.inscribemedia.co.uk
John Dean
The overall quality of our Australian entries is testament, I think, to the emphasis placed on creative writing in that country. During our work promoting this competition, we have come across a number of excellent writing centres in Australia, which clearly help local writers in every way they can.
What is notable about Australian entries is the writers’ strong sense of place and how to use it to create atmosphere, allied to strong characterisation.
Many of our Australian entries have also exhibited a very clear understanding of how a short story works: how to write in mini episodes, how a short story can sometimes cover but a fleeting moment in time, how it needs to have pace and balance so that it gives you enough information but not too much.
Short story writing is an art form in itself and Australian writers, through their success in our competition (winners, commendeds and shortlistings) have shown that they know how to get it right. We celebrate Australian writing in three of our ebooks:
Global Shorts - an anthology of short stories taken from the early years of the Global Short Competition, including Australian writers
Vegemite Whiskers - a selection of some of the finest writing from Australian authors who have entered the Global Short Story Competition
More details on our home page at www.inscribemedia.co.uk
John Dean
First quarterly story competiton starts
A reminder that the team behind the Global Short Story Competition has announced that it is going quarterly from today.
Begun more than six years ago, the competition has until now run on a monthly basis but has switched to one which runs for three months at a time, with the new one running from August 1 to October 31, 2014.
The prizes continue to be £100 for the first prize and a £25 prize for highly commended writers. The entry fee remains £5.
The competition, which has topped £11,000 in prize money handed out, has had entries from more than 60 countries over the years.
Each competition is judged by Fiona Cooper, an author in North-East England, where the competition’s organisers Inscribe Media are also based.
Competition administrator John Dean said: “It was becoming a little too challenging to sustain the competition on a monthly basis but we think writers will respond to the idea of a quarterly one that continues to seek out and showcase the very best of new talent worldwide.”
The competition, which has been supported by best-selling author Bill Bryson since it was established six and a half years ago, can be entered at www.inscribemedia.co.uk
* There is plenty of time to enter Inscribe Media’s latest free flash fiction competition at its Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Inscribemedia/183385438479538 or accessed through www.inscribemedia.co.uk
John Dean
Begun more than six years ago, the competition has until now run on a monthly basis but has switched to one which runs for three months at a time, with the new one running from August 1 to October 31, 2014.
The prizes continue to be £100 for the first prize and a £25 prize for highly commended writers. The entry fee remains £5.
The competition, which has topped £11,000 in prize money handed out, has had entries from more than 60 countries over the years.
Each competition is judged by Fiona Cooper, an author in North-East England, where the competition’s organisers Inscribe Media are also based.
Competition administrator John Dean said: “It was becoming a little too challenging to sustain the competition on a monthly basis but we think writers will respond to the idea of a quarterly one that continues to seek out and showcase the very best of new talent worldwide.”
The competition, which has been supported by best-selling author Bill Bryson since it was established six and a half years ago, can be entered at www.inscribemedia.co.uk
* There is plenty of time to enter Inscribe Media’s latest free flash fiction competition at its Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Inscribemedia/183385438479538 or accessed through www.inscribemedia.co.uk
John Dean
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