In today’s Journal
* Topic: Body Parts and “Gave”
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Topic: Body Parts and “Gave”
First, read the post over at the Kill Zone blog today, where Terry Odell discusses “Roaming Body Parts” at https://killzoneblog.com/2020/07/roaming-body-parts.html. Her point is that (as a reader) she doesn’t mind passages like “Her fingers flew to her cheeks.” Her reasoning is that since she doesn’t personally mind such constructions as a reader, she’s justified in using them in her writing.
On the surface, that’s fine. Certainly we have the right to read what we want to read and write however we like. But (shrug) who cares?
Your personal preferences (what you mind and don’t mind) AS A READER should have zero bearing on anything you do as a writer. If you want to become a better writer, your very first task is to separate your personal preferences as a reader from your professional attitude as a writer. In other words, you have to learn to THINK like a writer:
First, realize there are readers on the other side of the keyboard, and THOSE are the readers whose preferences matter.
Second, realize you can’t please them all, so write for yourself, for the thrill of finding out what happens next. BUT…
Third, don’t put ANYTHING on the page that you know your readers MIGHT find distracting. Like “his eyes shot across the room” or “her legs raced down the street” or “his ears heard sirens in the distance.” Why sabotage your own story?
If those constructions don’t bother the reader, that’s fine. But if they do, you’ve just lost a reader, one you wouldn’t have lost with “he looked franticallly across the room” or “she raced down the street” or “sirens wailed in the distance.”
For the rest of the topic for today, I urge you to read my comment on her post and than visit the links I provided in that comment. Just in case something happens to them, here they are:
https://harveystanbrough.com/pro-writers/human-parts-do-not-have-human-traits/
https://harveystanbrough.com/pro-writers/human-traits-and-human-parts/
https://harveystanbrough.com/pro-writers/the-infamous-gave/
But understand, I’m not personally invested in your career (though you certainly should be). So read my offerings, and then make up your own mind.
Talk with you again when I can.
Of Interest
See “Brandon Sanderson Kickstarter” at https://www.deanwesleysmith.com/brandon-sanderson-kickstarter/.
See PG’s take on “Harnessing the Power of Coauthoring” at https://www.thepassivevoice.com/harnessing-the-power-of-coauthoring/.
The Numbers
Fiction words yesterday…………………… XXXX
Nonfiction words today…………… 390 (PWW)
Writing of (novel)
Day 1…… XXXX words. Total words to date…… XXXXX
Total fiction words for the month……… XXXXX
Total fiction words for the year………… 309655
Total nonfiction words for the month… 2290
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 124530
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 434185
Calendar Year 2020 Novels to Date…………………… 5
Calendar Year 2020 Novellas to Date……………… X
Calendar Year 2020 Short Stories to Date… 12
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 50
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 8
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 208
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31