jason erik lundberg

First Jay, then Tim, then Nick. Now me.

Except mine won't be direct advice, but that of Michael Swanwick, who graced my fiction-writing class a few weeks ago and was nice enough to critique the stories on the block that week. (My story had been critiqued the previous week, and I'd have been interested to see what he thought of it. Oh well.) These are just two little things he mentioned that made an impact on me:

1. Readers are like little baby ducks, and they imprint on the first thing they see. This is especially true in short stories, which means you'd better mention the main character in the first paragraph, and have something interesting happen pretty quickly. You may have heard of the importance of hooking the reader in right away, and this is what it refers to.

2. Never underestimate the importance of sensory detail. If a character gets shot and is dying in a parking lot, go out to a parking lot and get on your stomach and really pay attention. These kinds of details ground the story and provide verisimilitude to the real world. Also, describing detail at a moment of crisis or climax can make that moment even more powerful.

He gave some other great nuggets of advice, but either they were said by the three learned gentleman aforementioned, or I just can't remember them at the moment. For some, er, different kinds of advice, swing on over to Unca Mike's Answers.

The only thing I can think to expand upon is to read as widely as you can, within and without the genre. This seems to be followed much more than it used to be, hence the upsurge in slipstream/magic realism/contemporary fantasy right now. We've seen that the boundaries between realistic and non-realistic fiction are being crossed, re-crossed, and annihilated altogether. Reading widely exposes you to all different kinds of styles and concepts and, like they say on college entrance applications, will make you a more well-rounded writer. Plus, you'll have more markets you can submit to.

Now Reading:
The Body Artist by Don DeLillo

Stories Out to Publishers:
5

Books Read This Year:
40

Zines/Fiction Mags Read This Year:
34

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2003-10-07 1:30 PM more advice Previous Entry :: Next Entry Mood: benefactory Read/Post Comments (4) Share on Facebook	First Jay, then Tim, then Nick. Now me. Except mine won't be direct advice, but that of Michael Swanwick, who graced my fiction-writing class a few weeks ago and was nice enough to critique the stories on the block that week. (My story had been critiqued the previous week, and I'd have been interested to see what he thought of it. Oh well.) These are just two little things he mentioned that made an impact on me: 1. Readers are like little baby ducks, and they imprint on the first thing they see. This is especially true in short stories, which means you'd better mention the main character in the first paragraph, and have something interesting happen pretty quickly. You may have heard of the importance of hooking the reader in right away, and this is what it refers to. 2. Never underestimate the importance of sensory detail. If a character gets shot and is dying in a parking lot, go out to a parking lot and get on your stomach and really pay attention. These kinds of details ground the story and provide verisimilitude to the real world. Also, describing detail at a moment of crisis or climax can make that moment even more powerful. He gave some other great nuggets of advice, but either they were said by the three learned gentleman aforementioned, or I just can't remember them at the moment. For some, er, different kinds of advice, swing on over to Unca Mike's Answers. The only thing I can think to expand upon is to read as widely as you can, within and without the genre. This seems to be followed much more than it used to be, hence the upsurge in slipstream/magic realism/contemporary fantasy right now. We've seen that the boundaries between realistic and non-realistic fiction are being crossed, re-crossed, and annihilated altogether. Reading widely exposes you to all different kinds of styles and concepts and, like they say on college entrance applications, will make you a more well-rounded writer. Plus, you'll have more markets you can submit to. *Now Reading:* The Body Artist by Don DeLillo *Stories Out to Publishers:* 5 *Books Read This Year:* 40 *Zines/Fiction Mags Read This Year:* 34 Read/Post Comments (4) Previous Entry :: Next Entry Back to Top
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