How Fiction Works Writing Meme (Index Post)
This meme was designed by pristineungift based upon the chapters of the book How Fiction Works by James Wood, as a gift to meridian_rose , who enjoys Writing Memes. It is meant to aid writers, both of fanfiction and original material, in understanding their writing process through exploring different techniques and styles of writing. This is roughly the first half of the book. If this meme is popular, another will be created using the second half of the book.
How Fiction Works Writing Meme
Section I - Styles of Narration
The house of fiction has many windows, but only two or three doors. - James Wood
1 - What style of narration do you usually write in? Which do you prefer to read? First person singular, first person plural, second person singular (rarely well executed) , third person limited, third person omniscient? Are certain styles superior to others? Why or why not?
2 - Are the writing styles from the first question the only ones we have to work with? Do other styles, as James Wood says, not resemble narration?
3 - How reliable are your narrators? Can we believe everything they say? Or are they unreliable, their narration shaded by their feelings? Do your readers usually have more information than the character narrating? Do you use an external narrator, who is not part of the story? Are they reliable? Do you prefer reading a reliable or unreliable narrator?
4 - How do you feel about "head hopping", that is, narration flowing among different characters within one section or chapter of writing with no delineation? Some critics claim that this free flowing point of view is the mark of a poor author, while others say that this sort of free indirect style is difficult to master and the mark of a very good one. Where do you stand? Do you do it yourself? Do you enjoy reading it?
5 - According to James Wood, the author is always working with three languages: the author's own language of style, perceptual equipment, plot necessities and so on; the character's presumed language and style (for example, a British undertaker may narrate much differently than an elf of the forest); and the language of the world which the author inherits before they even begin - the mechanics of everyday speech. Do you, as Wood suggests, feel the weight of this "tripleness"? Have you ever struggled with striking a balance among the three?
6 - In what tense do you write most often? The present tense? Past tense? Future tense? The past tense has become so popularized in the world of fiction that reading works done in other tenses is sometimes jarring or fails to resemble narration as most people know it. Do you agree with this supposition?
End of Section Exercise: Write a short paragraph or two, either original or fanfiction, in a narration style you would not normally use. As you do so, observe yourself. Is it easier? More difficult? Awkward? Record those thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section II - Modern Narrative and Classical Style
An author in his work must be like God in the universe, present everywhere and visible nowhere. - Flaubert
7 - Are you a modern relativist, or an author of more classical style, or the rare bird that is somewhere in between? The modern relativist divorces themselves from their writing, makes no judgments upon good and evil, lets the reader decide many things for themselves. The classicist has a more clear moral or message, and sometimes speaks directly to the audience. Which are you, and why?
8 - Do you use the passive voice or active voice? Both? Do you make a conscious decision to do it, or is it simply something that happens? When do you use passive voice versus active voice, and why? Example of passive voice: The ball was thrown by the boy. Example of active voice: The boy threw the ball.
9 - The devil is in the details - which ones are important to you? To your characters? Is it you, the author, or the character narrating that notices certain details throughout the story? Is every detail brought to light important to the plot, or are some presented for another reason? Why?
10 - Do you show, or tell? Wax poetic on the emotion of the moment? Or simply describe the moment and let the reader find the emotion for themselves? Which do you prefer reading?
11 - Are you a realist or a stylist? Do you record every detail, every moment indiscriminately, or do you prune your prose for the sake of style and story focus?
End of Section Exercise: Choose one classic author and one modern author. Write a paragraph or two for each, original or fanfiction, mimicking their style as closely as possible. What do you notice about the different styles? Record your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section III - Significant Insignificance
Literature differs from life in that life is amorphously full of detail, whereas literature teaches us to notice... - James Wood
12 - In literature, the well rounded author accompanies the fantastic with details of the mundane. Do you agree? What is an example of your own writing in which you combine the fantastic and mundane?
13 - Have you ever taken a small detail, such as a character rubbing their lips, and given it greater importance through narration? Why? Do you enjoy reading such details?
14 - Thisness and the written word: Do you ever use abstract descriptions in specifying little details? Given an object or interaction a sense of "thisness"? For example, "the clouds were glassy in the sky." Clouds cannot literally have a quality like glass, yet in this sentence they have been given a sense of "glassness" that gives the reader a more specific description of them, and somehow maintains an air of believability. Discuss why this is a believable description, though it is not actually possible.
End of Section Exercise: Write one sentence that includes detail. Is it a compelling sentence? Is it long? Short? What kind of details did you include? Record your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section IV - Character
Very few brushstrokes are needed to get a portrait walking, as it were... the reader can get as much from small short lived... characters as [they can] from large, round towering heroes and heroines. - James Wood
15 - How do you try to bring a character to life, or "get them in" as James Conrad says? Where do you start? Is how you begin different with fanfiction and original fiction? With original characters within fanfiction?
16 - James Wood writes that the inexperienced writer clings to the static - they describe a photograph, a person standing still, a snapshot of a moment rather than a dynamic moment itself. It is getting a character in action, in motion, that is the difficult part, he says. Do you find this to be true in your own writing? Do you agree with his assessment?
17 - We can tell a great deal about a character by how they talk and who they talk to. Are you aware of any changes you make from character to character in either narration or dialog? Show us an example. Is this something you choose, or do without fully realizing it? Do you do this at all? Why?
18 - How much time do you take to "get in" your character? In your opinion, is it possible to "get a character in" in one sentence? Is it different for original fiction and fanfiction?
19 - How much time must be spent on a character for them to be a character? Does a character have to be living, have a voice, or can it be a place, an era, a coffee cup? Do characters exist at all?
20 - An absence of characterization can be as powerful as characterization in knowing a character. Agree? Disagree? Any examples in your own writing?
21 - The Myth of the Solid Character - even "well rounded" or "fully fleshed" characters are less solid the longer we look at them, writes James Wood. Agree? Disagree? Is there always room for more? In canon? In fanfiction?
22 - Are the characters you create like you? If you write fanfiction, are there shades of yourself in the characters you choose to write about? Some people suggest that the mark of a great author is the creation of free and independent characters that are separate from the author. Can an author who writes characters similar to themselves still be a great author?
23 - Static and Dynamic Characters: By definition a static character possesses one key attribute and does not change, while a dynamic character is possessed of several characteristics and changes over a story. Is one superior to the other? Do these categories really exist, or all characters simply characters? What kind do you use most often?
24 - Does characterization change depending on who a character is seen by, much like how a child sees their father much differently than their mother does? What are examples of this in your own writing?
25 - Is there only one correct way to interpret or view a character? What makes a character 'out of character' ? Is everything created by the original author 'in character' ?
End of Section Exercise 1: Create an original character. Use one sentence to "get them in." Now use one paragraph. Do the same for a pre-existing character, and compare the two. What do you notice? Write your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
End of Section Exercise 2: Choose a pre-existing character that you do not like. Write a paragraph or two from their point of view. Is your writing shaded by your dislike of the character? Has writing from their point of view changed the way you view them? Write your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
How Fiction Works Writing Meme
Section I - Styles of Narration
The house of fiction has many windows, but only two or three doors. - James Wood
1 - What style of narration do you usually write in? Which do you prefer to read? First person singular, first person plural, second person singular (rarely well executed) , third person limited, third person omniscient? Are certain styles superior to others? Why or why not?
2 - Are the writing styles from the first question the only ones we have to work with? Do other styles, as James Wood says, not resemble narration?
3 - How reliable are your narrators? Can we believe everything they say? Or are they unreliable, their narration shaded by their feelings? Do your readers usually have more information than the character narrating? Do you use an external narrator, who is not part of the story? Are they reliable? Do you prefer reading a reliable or unreliable narrator?
4 - How do you feel about "head hopping", that is, narration flowing among different characters within one section or chapter of writing with no delineation? Some critics claim that this free flowing point of view is the mark of a poor author, while others say that this sort of free indirect style is difficult to master and the mark of a very good one. Where do you stand? Do you do it yourself? Do you enjoy reading it?
5 - According to James Wood, the author is always working with three languages: the author's own language of style, perceptual equipment, plot necessities and so on; the character's presumed language and style (for example, a British undertaker may narrate much differently than an elf of the forest); and the language of the world which the author inherits before they even begin - the mechanics of everyday speech. Do you, as Wood suggests, feel the weight of this "tripleness"? Have you ever struggled with striking a balance among the three?
6 - In what tense do you write most often? The present tense? Past tense? Future tense? The past tense has become so popularized in the world of fiction that reading works done in other tenses is sometimes jarring or fails to resemble narration as most people know it. Do you agree with this supposition?
End of Section Exercise: Write a short paragraph or two, either original or fanfiction, in a narration style you would not normally use. As you do so, observe yourself. Is it easier? More difficult? Awkward? Record those thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section II - Modern Narrative and Classical Style
An author in his work must be like God in the universe, present everywhere and visible nowhere. - Flaubert
7 - Are you a modern relativist, or an author of more classical style, or the rare bird that is somewhere in between? The modern relativist divorces themselves from their writing, makes no judgments upon good and evil, lets the reader decide many things for themselves. The classicist has a more clear moral or message, and sometimes speaks directly to the audience. Which are you, and why?
8 - Do you use the passive voice or active voice? Both? Do you make a conscious decision to do it, or is it simply something that happens? When do you use passive voice versus active voice, and why? Example of passive voice: The ball was thrown by the boy. Example of active voice: The boy threw the ball.
9 - The devil is in the details - which ones are important to you? To your characters? Is it you, the author, or the character narrating that notices certain details throughout the story? Is every detail brought to light important to the plot, or are some presented for another reason? Why?
10 - Do you show, or tell? Wax poetic on the emotion of the moment? Or simply describe the moment and let the reader find the emotion for themselves? Which do you prefer reading?
11 - Are you a realist or a stylist? Do you record every detail, every moment indiscriminately, or do you prune your prose for the sake of style and story focus?
End of Section Exercise: Choose one classic author and one modern author. Write a paragraph or two for each, original or fanfiction, mimicking their style as closely as possible. What do you notice about the different styles? Record your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section III - Significant Insignificance
Literature differs from life in that life is amorphously full of detail, whereas literature teaches us to notice... - James Wood
12 - In literature, the well rounded author accompanies the fantastic with details of the mundane. Do you agree? What is an example of your own writing in which you combine the fantastic and mundane?
13 - Have you ever taken a small detail, such as a character rubbing their lips, and given it greater importance through narration? Why? Do you enjoy reading such details?
14 - Thisness and the written word: Do you ever use abstract descriptions in specifying little details? Given an object or interaction a sense of "thisness"? For example, "the clouds were glassy in the sky." Clouds cannot literally have a quality like glass, yet in this sentence they have been given a sense of "glassness" that gives the reader a more specific description of them, and somehow maintains an air of believability. Discuss why this is a believable description, though it is not actually possible.
End of Section Exercise: Write one sentence that includes detail. Is it a compelling sentence? Is it long? Short? What kind of details did you include? Record your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
Section IV - Character
Very few brushstrokes are needed to get a portrait walking, as it were... the reader can get as much from small short lived... characters as [they can] from large, round towering heroes and heroines. - James Wood
15 - How do you try to bring a character to life, or "get them in" as James Conrad says? Where do you start? Is how you begin different with fanfiction and original fiction? With original characters within fanfiction?
16 - James Wood writes that the inexperienced writer clings to the static - they describe a photograph, a person standing still, a snapshot of a moment rather than a dynamic moment itself. It is getting a character in action, in motion, that is the difficult part, he says. Do you find this to be true in your own writing? Do you agree with his assessment?
17 - We can tell a great deal about a character by how they talk and who they talk to. Are you aware of any changes you make from character to character in either narration or dialog? Show us an example. Is this something you choose, or do without fully realizing it? Do you do this at all? Why?
18 - How much time do you take to "get in" your character? In your opinion, is it possible to "get a character in" in one sentence? Is it different for original fiction and fanfiction?
19 - How much time must be spent on a character for them to be a character? Does a character have to be living, have a voice, or can it be a place, an era, a coffee cup? Do characters exist at all?
20 - An absence of characterization can be as powerful as characterization in knowing a character. Agree? Disagree? Any examples in your own writing?
21 - The Myth of the Solid Character - even "well rounded" or "fully fleshed" characters are less solid the longer we look at them, writes James Wood. Agree? Disagree? Is there always room for more? In canon? In fanfiction?
22 - Are the characters you create like you? If you write fanfiction, are there shades of yourself in the characters you choose to write about? Some people suggest that the mark of a great author is the creation of free and independent characters that are separate from the author. Can an author who writes characters similar to themselves still be a great author?
23 - Static and Dynamic Characters: By definition a static character possesses one key attribute and does not change, while a dynamic character is possessed of several characteristics and changes over a story. Is one superior to the other? Do these categories really exist, or all characters simply characters? What kind do you use most often?
24 - Does characterization change depending on who a character is seen by, much like how a child sees their father much differently than their mother does? What are examples of this in your own writing?
25 - Is there only one correct way to interpret or view a character? What makes a character 'out of character' ? Is everything created by the original author 'in character' ?
End of Section Exercise 1: Create an original character. Use one sentence to "get them in." Now use one paragraph. Do the same for a pre-existing character, and compare the two. What do you notice? Write your thoughts at the end of the exercise.
End of Section Exercise 2: Choose a pre-existing character that you do not like. Write a paragraph or two from their point of view. Is your writing shaded by your dislike of the character? Has writing from their point of view changed the way you view them? Write your thoughts at the end of the exercise.