If it seems like it’s been a bit since my last WOTF post, it’s because I couldn’t figure out how to sum up Scott Card’s pep talk on ending your story- he basically says that we’ve done the hard work already. We’ve set everything up, and now it’s time to defeat the bad guy and tie up the loose ends. Not very helpful, right?
And then there’s just a page with the definition of suspense.
suspense n.
1: the condition of being anxious and uncertain
2: the growing excitement felt as a story, play, etc., builds to a higher point
Webster
Now comes a decent article on suspense- add in the details! Slow down the action scenes, just long enough to give the reader room to feel dread and wonder what will happen.
If you were to take all the suspense out of a story, no matter how many unusual facts and characters you had in it, I don’t think it would be read very far.
If you were to take every blow of action out of a story and still leave its suspense (this is possible, because I’ve done it), you might still have a fine story, probably a better story than before.
L. Ron Hubbard
Most readers don’t just want to watch people fight. They want to care about the characters. and root for them. While you probably established motivations and such earlier, you want to still be able to feel what the characters are feeling and worry over the outcome.
The best way to do that is to slow down the action and add in bits that make you think that maybe- just maybe- our protag isn’t going to win. At least, not without pain, cunning, and timing.
You Are A Factory
L. Ron Hubbard is famous for two things: Writing and cult making. In this essay it’s really apparent- he approaches writing the same way a businessman would approach his product. He tallied up the number of words he wrote for each genre, and divided it by the number of words that ended up being sold.
He then goes through different factors of a business- supply and demand, in which you must be aware of who’s going to buy what, and how much competition you have.
The Plant- some of this, like typewriter ribbons, doesn’t necessarily apply anymore. But it is still important to have a comfortable, professional-ish space to work in. A place you can write for hours in without destroying your mental health. Hubbard wrote in his living room- I write on my bedroom desk or at the library. Stephen King has- or had- a home office. (His house is being converted into a writer’s retreat!)
Raw material- aka research! Go down to the place you whish to write about, and interview the people who work there. This might not be feasible for all types of stories, but try to find a similar place. With the Wild West, you might only have museums, but visiting the museum is better than doing no research at all.
Type of work- whatever you write best, find several different markets for it. That way if one turns you down, you can simply consult your list for the next best place to send it to. I have a masterdoc of everything I’ve submitted in the past year, including rejections. At the bottom of the page I keep a running list of possible places to submit, and their nearest deadlines.
Quality vs Quantity- Here he really shows that he does not have set writing hours. If he can think of nothing to write, he goes out for inspiration. If he feels like writing, he writes through the night and through illness. His idea is that if you do not feel like writing, you won’t be able to write anything of quality.
I personally disagree with this to an extent- if you don’t make yourself write, you will never get used to writing. But you do need to recognize when you need to go out for some inspiration.
Write sincerely and you are certain to write better and better.
L. Ron Hubbard
That wraps up the Writers Of The Future Workshop series! If you want to submit to the contest you can do so at writersofthefuture.com. The next submission deadline is Sept 30th, but it’s open quarterly.
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