Caring
July 21, 2009
You've got to give a damn. I think that's a statement about facing the world, frankly, but that's probably too broad a topic for a blog entry. A good one, I think, because I know an awful lot of very lovely people that don't seem to give a damn about anything outside their immediate sphere, but....
I'm talking about writing, and in this case, fiction in particular. There are certainly novelists that apparently phone it in, and some that can write whatever they're assigned to write for the paycheck and produce something completely serviceable.
But I think for most of us, what hopefully sets our work apart from the unpublished is craft and passion. And let me tell you folks, a novel is a long frakkin' thing to work on if you don't give a damn.
Mark
posted by Mark Terry at 7:04 AM
5 Comments:
So true, Mark! If I don't feel the love, it doesn't write. :-)
Absolutely true. I could write something to sell (Hopefully) of the required length. But right now I feel like I need a better reason to spend the time and effort. An idea that excites me.
Ab-so-lutely!
How could one write diverse and interesting characters if they didn't give a damn? Sure, you could maybe sell books without good characters (look at the majority of recent thrillers), but would it really be good?
Now that I mention it, that only matters if you give a damn about producing a quality piece. Hunh.
At any rate, giving a damn and having a story that wants to be told are essential for me to be satisfied with my work.
Can I get an Amen.
E
I tried to write a mystery that I thought would fit what editors were looking for. It was basically a knee-jerk reaction to losing my agent, who'd been unable to sell my previous novel. (Also, I work in advertising, so I'm used to faking enthusiasm for certain projects.) But I didn't care enough about the story and characters, and I hit a wall at 20K. I realized what a dork I was being and started working on a novel that I was excited about.
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