My 21st post and I want to talk about the difference between creative writing and composition writing. I am finding out as I begin to get into novel writing, how incredibly different it is! Eileen (author known as Eben Reilly of the new young adult novel, "Wolf") really opened my eyes to this situation. I was reading "Wolf" while waiting at The Red Apple for my order of Sesame Chicken to be prepared and it dawned on me, "Holy crap, she is writing dialogue one line after another!" I mean big chunks of information being given between two people over bacon and eggs! That's a good and swift novelist.
I hope I have it in me. I mean, I can blurt out an essay and still know I could glean it more and more, but the raw parts even so are good. But a novel is different. It has to have a rhythm; get the reader to lose him or herself into it. If there's a hitch or too much expository information, the reader might just close up the book and reach for The Daily News or remote control.
I, on the other hand, while reading "Wolf" had to be shouted at, "Miss, Miss, your stinking sesame chicken is ready. Close the book and come pay for it!"
That's a novelist.
1 comment:
Sheela--
That Wolf is right up there competing with a hot chicken dinner for your attention is high praise-- thank you.
And, yes, if I understand you correctly, the story is told in equally mundane places through casual "come get your chicken" exchanges.
Exposition to me is boring. Dialogue is life. Maybe that's why I depend so much on my characters to tell their stories to eachother, and if a reader is an astute eaves dropper, she'll get it.
Much like yourself.
Look so foward to our next live chat about writing, will make do with blogging during the week.
Write on!
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