A Writer's Tale

But I decided to say it, anyway, on my way to the real subject of my rule, “Write Truly.”

It’s this.

Everything you write should come out of yourself. Every character, every scene, every story, should be a reflection of you. Pull it out of yourself, not out of movies or television shows you’ve seen, not out of news articles or books you’ve read.

If your stuff is nothing more than a rehash of other people’s work, you’re not accomplishing much. Even if you’re able to make a success of it (which isn’t likely), you’ll be little more than a hack.

To be good, your stuff has to be yours and yours alone.

You accomplish this by writing about what you’ve personally experienced in the real world, not what you’ve experienced vicariously in other people’s books, movies, etc.

For example, suppose you’re eager to write a vampire novel.

Don’t set out to write a book “like Dracula, but different.” Instead, look for a way to make the subject of vampires personal to you. How might your life be affected if you should encounter a vampire? Where might you run into one? How might you, your family, your friends react to the situation?

A hack will do a “mix and match,” creating his stew by throwing together bits and pieces taken from other sources.

A good writer’s novel might also be a stew, but whatever ingredients might be lifted from other sources will be awfully hard to identify and there’ll be a whole new taste due to the author’s secret sauce.

The secret sauce is what makes it good makes it more than just a trite mish-mash of old material.

Pushing this analogy well beyond the boundaries of good sense, I’ll go on to say that the secret sauce is made of the blood, sweat, tears, heartaches and joys of the author’s life.

Every writer’s secret sauce has a different flavor.

Some writers have lousy secret sauce that you just can’t stand. Some don’t even use the stuff at all.

You can tell when it is there and when it isn’t. It’s what makes the difference between a bland story and a rich, spicy one.

It makes the difference between an artificial story and a true one.

Have you ever wondered why you want to read more of certain authors?

‘Cause you like their secret sauce!

But let us now abandon that analogy (a little bit late) and say it straight out: To write truly, you need to tap into yourself as deeply as possible and use what you find there.

Every character, scene, word of dialogue, plot development, etc. is your creation. Allow them to look like your creations.

This is what will make them unique and valuable.

If anyone tells you to write more like Tom Clancy or Mary Higgins Clark or John Grisham, politely tell them, “Thank you very much and go to hell.”

There is only one you, so write like yourself.

It’s what might make your stuff worth reading.

It’s what could make your readers come back for more.

Because, if you do it right, they can’t get the same taste from anyone else.

Rule 5

“Finish.”

Whatever you are working on, get it done.

Just as the world is loaded with aspiring writers who claim they can’t find any time to write, it is also chock full of folks who are busy on a work in progress.” This is usually a terribly wonderful epic novel sure to set the literary world ablaze when the author sets it loose on the public in some unspecified, distant decade.

Yup. Sure.

A work in progress might make for good brag, but it’s otherwise useless.

The artist concentrating on his work in progress and never finishing it is probably afraid it’s no good. And afraid that, if he does get the masterpiece done, he won’t know what to do with himself afterward.

You don’t want to be one of these people.

You want to be a writer. Right?

So do it.

Write the story, write the book. Get it done, send it off, and get started on the next.

In addition to the dangerous WIPS (Work in Progress Syndrome), and somewhat related to it, is the malady that I’ll call LWD (Life’s Work Disorder). Writers suffering from LWD are inclined to stick to a project forever instead of finishing it or abandoning it and moving on to a new project. (It differs from WIPS in that people suffering from Life’s Work Disorder may actually be talented writers seriously trying to create a marvelous book.) They labor year after year on a book, sure that they’ve got a great concept that’ll put them on the literary map or bestseller charts if only they’re eventually able to get it right and/or some agent or editor will finally discover its merits.

Maybe the thing has merits. Or maybe it’s a dud.

The deal is, you might not want to be working on the same book for five, ten or twenty years. If you are devoting that much labor to a book, follow Tom Snyder’s advice and take look in the mirror. You’ll probably see the face of a moron. Or a lunatic.

Here is what to do.