I follow Elizabeth Bear’s blog and she had a really interesting post recently. I’m fascinated by the distinction between a character being acted upon by the story and a character being in control of themselves in the story. The idea that just changing a few words can give the power back to your character, make them stronger and make the story more engaging seems almost like magic to me.
I think that this is one of the reasons that I’m so interested in writing. Anyone can throw down some words and call it a story - I don’t think that there’s much skill required to just put words to paper and string a narrative together. It’s the quality of the narrative and its holding power where the magic lays.
The correct words evoke a vision.
The better words evoke a feeling.
The best words put you in the story.
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June 25th, 2006 at 11:59 am
Learning these things turn a mediocre writer into a great one, but they also spoil you for casual reading. You’ll no longer be able to read inferior literature for pleasure (which isn’t exactly a bad thing).
June 27th, 2006 at 5:33 pm
While my casual reading has definitely been on the decline lately, I think that I’ll be able to exercise a variant of “willfull suspension of disbelief” when I’m reading the simpler stuff for fun.
I guess only time will tell.
-Matt