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What are writing Do's and Don'ts. I had a friend tell me not to use 'the blonde said'. What do's and don'ts do you all know?
Do's and Don'ts
- Thread starter EndlessDestiny
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She says to not refer to characters by their appearances. Do you guys disagree? I've been trying to consciously look at the writing in books, normally I just read and enjoy, and I don't see to much of that.
Hmm. Not something I've ever been warned against. I don't see anything wrong with it. I mean, if you don't know the character's name, or if your POV character doesn't know this person's name, how else are you meant to refer to them?
There's no set rule. Some writers have written books without any character description at all--and it worked. Other writers give you mounds of detail. I like the middle way, let the reader fill in the blanks while providing my general idea of the character.
But as for do's and dont's, I think it's a bit ridiculous to cut off any description whatsoever just because "that's how it should be done". Write what feels right, worrying about the small stuff later.
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Of all of my friends she's the most critical about writing. What if the characters have names? It's one thing if you have an unnamed character, but a named one? What about using 'the older girl' or 'the witch'?
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These can vary depending on the genre or market. What applies to literary fiction might not apply to women's magazines, for example. What was the context for your friend's advice?
Cheers,
Rob
As long as it serves a purpose. Names aren't horrid, either. They're there for a reason (who's doing what, who's saying what), as might a nameless character be nameless for a reason, whether it serves a theme or keeps the focus on the action, etc. And brief descriptions aren't bad at all. The MC might ask directions from a man merely known as a "gnarled old sailor". You might see the sailor again in the future, you might not. Either way, you added a dimension to your world, albeit very subtle and small, and the action is moved forward as now the MC knows where to find the tavern where his parent's killer likes to frequent. Yaddah yaddah yaddah.
Don't lock yourself in with do's and don'ts. Maybe be conscientious of what is effective, what isn't, and how you want to grow in your writing from these, but don't swear by them. A lot of funky stuff has been written, after all, but it's been great stuff too. Me, I tend to freeze up when I start thinking about rules.
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She was BETAing my story, so she was reading through it. The story is urban fantasy if that helps any?
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I actually agree, but that's just a personal thing. I wouldn't call it a rule.
I agree that there's no absolute rule here, but one thing I would say is that this is something you see a lot in fanfiction. 'The blonde', 'the boy', 'the demon', 'the vampire', 'the wizard', 'the young assassin' - you see this kind of thing in place of character name a lot. And, for third person limited, at least, it's really kind of weird - people just wouldn't have an awareness of themselves as 'the wizard' or 'the blonde' that way, unless they're actively thinking about the hair colour of everyone present or similar.
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I've been going through the MS, changing most of those lines. I've left a few there, but there are a lot less than they're were before.
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There's nothing inherently wrong with "the blond said" even if the character has a name. Or "the short guy said" or the "fat one said." They're totally legit way. Of course, if you write "the blond said" every time she says something, then it's just tiring and infantile.
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Here's a do and don't for you:
Do learn the rules and best practices.
Don't follow these rules and best practices without prejudice. Learn to break the rules.
Do learn the rules and best practices.
Don't follow these rules and best practices without prejudice. Learn to break the rules.
Never think your first draft--or your second or third--shines and throw it out there to editors. Let it sit at least a few days without looking at it.
The most important rule I keep closest to my heart is: Never send in a query that is written in crayon. This has proved to be even more significant for me as I now send in all my queries by email, and the crayons kept getting stuck in the disk drive slot.
You don't want to go imposing pettifogging rules on yourself.
And this 'don't use physical characteristics' is just plain wrong.
Don't collect rules. Just don't.
What might be happening here is not enough variation in dialog taging.
Let's say you don't want to used 'Fiona said because you used it six times in the last six pages, and you don't want to use 'she said' because it's unclear in context.
So you resort to 'the other woman said,' or 'the blonde said, or 'the tall woman said', 'the only one who knew the answer said, or ' the woman beside the davenport said.
It could be the Beta is seeing an awkward circumlocution.
What you may want to do
instead of finding another subject for the 'she said' line
is to drop the whole 'she said' schtick
and go with an action tag or an internals tag or a description tag or one of the other ways to tag dialog.
"You're a rattlefink," Fiona said. (Tagging with a saidism.)
"You're a rattlefink." It was said with one of those patented Irish sneers. (Tagging with description.)
"You're a rattlefink." She scooped the chips from the table and dumped them into her handbag. (Tagging with action. And we know it is Fiona because we know it is her action. )
"You're a rattlefink." This comes as no surprise, does it? (Tagging with an internal. Works only with the POV character.)
"You're a rattlefink." The assessment came from the shadows behind the door. (Tagging with placement. We know where Fiona is.)
There are five or six other ways to tag dialog. Lots of opportunity.
And this 'don't use physical characteristics' is just plain wrong.
Don't collect rules. Just don't.
What might be happening here is not enough variation in dialog taging.
Let's say you don't want to used 'Fiona said because you used it six times in the last six pages, and you don't want to use 'she said' because it's unclear in context.
So you resort to 'the other woman said,' or 'the blonde said, or 'the tall woman said', 'the only one who knew the answer said, or ' the woman beside the davenport said.
It could be the Beta is seeing an awkward circumlocution.
What you may want to do
instead of finding another subject for the 'she said' line
is to drop the whole 'she said' schtick
and go with an action tag or an internals tag or a description tag or one of the other ways to tag dialog.
"You're a rattlefink," Fiona said. (Tagging with a saidism.)
"You're a rattlefink." It was said with one of those patented Irish sneers. (Tagging with description.)
"You're a rattlefink." She scooped the chips from the table and dumped them into her handbag. (Tagging with action. And we know it is Fiona because we know it is her action. )
"You're a rattlefink." This comes as no surprise, does it? (Tagging with an internal. Works only with the POV character.)
"You're a rattlefink." The assessment came from the shadows behind the door. (Tagging with placement. We know where Fiona is.)
There are five or six other ways to tag dialog. Lots of opportunity.
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The blonde at the end of the bar said.
I wouldn't use it with characters that play a larger role in the ms.
I wouldn't use it with characters that play a larger role in the ms.
It all comes down to sentencing. Do you need the sentence to be short, or, is it leading into some greater description of "the blond?"
It doesn't matter what you call him/her. Could be a one-eyed blond. Might have three arms, two tongues or fourteen nostrils. If the blond is not in the story long enough to merit a description of lasting interest, ot the presence of the blond does not affect the surrounding characters in any way then it's destined to spend it's life as "the blond."
It doesn't matter what you call him/her. Could be a one-eyed blond. Might have three arms, two tongues or fourteen nostrils. If the blond is not in the story long enough to merit a description of lasting interest, ot the presence of the blond does not affect the surrounding characters in any way then it's destined to spend it's life as "the blond."
I would use a descriptive like that just to avoid repetitious "Mary said, Sue said, or Joe said in a passage.
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You're posting a lot of questions and they all suggest one thing to me; you're extremely self-conscious and petrified to make a mistake. So, I'm going to give you the best piece of writing advice I know.
Let go.
-Jason
I thought it was an eagerness to learn. Hell, that's why I ask questions.
Nevertheless, that's excellent advice.
One of my favorite authors once wrote the sentence, "Ferocious mad-killer sorcerers do not whine because nobody likes them."
There are those who would pick that sentence apart and call it bad structure or a misplaced modifier or dangling participle. But, ya know what? I knew what he meant and it was funny, so why linger over one questionable sentence?
He was able to let it go. So can I.
There are those who would pick that sentence apart and call it bad structure or a misplaced modifier or dangling participle. But, ya know what? I knew what he meant and it was funny, so why linger over one questionable sentence?
He was able to let it go. So can I.
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