Writing - best practice

[James Marinero]

I'm kicking myself because yesterday I saw a very humorous illustration of the ten rules for good writing, and I didn't save the link. Anyway, one of the rules was to avoid the use of cliches (sic), similes and metaphors - like the plague.

After giving this some thought, I felt bound to disagree, it was way off piste. The characters I develop in my writing are 'real people', and real people use all these devices in everyday speech. Whatever! Having them talk as if they were experts in 'high' English would be unnatural, know what I mean?

Do your characters use normal language or do you purge them of sinful speech styles and syntactical sloppiness (oh yes, alliteration was another crime)? Just as well that Dylan Thomas didn't know that one or no-one would sleep well in Llareggub.

 

[Jennifer Stone]

My characters speak as I feel suits them individually, you wouldn't want to read a working-class hero talking like an aristocrat, or vice versa. With writing fantasy, I'm not stuck to historically accurate language. It's one of those individual choices.

 

[Carol Rose]

I think there's huge a difference between treading lightly when it comes to using similes, metaphors and cliches in your writing, and making sure your characters' speech patterns fit their personality, where they live, what they do, etc. I don't speak in cliches, similes, or metaphors all day long. I might use one here or there to illustrate a point, but honestly I don't know anyone in real life who uses them in everyday speech.

As far as using correct grammar, or speaking in complete sentences, most people don't. But you need to be careful when infusing dialogue with colloquialisms or choppy sentences. A little goes a long way, otherwise your readers will be pulled out of the story trying to decipher what your character is saying.

But that's a different topic altogether.

 

[Marc Joan]

My suspicion is that all the devices you mention can be done well or done badly. In the end it is subjective. I also suspect that cliches and alliteration rarely work; but sometimes they will. Dialogue needs to be realistic, in my opinion, in the sense that it needs to feel appropriate [when being read] to the character in question. If the character in question requires incomprehensible dialogue, you might need another character. I know I do.

 

[EPHahn]

Personally, I find the lists found everywhere of "writing do's and don'ts" to be pretty useless. For every bit of advice, there is the well known exception. It can be exhausting to keep up. I could sum them up in one: "Stay in character as you write that character." If your Character is someone who likes clichés and it's obvious, then by all means... cliché-away!

I suppose if I had to pick another piece of writing advice I have found universally helpful, it would be to read your dialogue out loud. In doing so, you should be able to tell if your speech patterns are accurate and natural to the character and real life conversation.

 

[Carol Rose]

Actually, reading the entire manuscript out loud is useful, but especially the dialogue. You'll find repeated words that way, dialogue that doesn't read as natural, as well as awkward sentence structure.

 

[Karen Gray]

I also feel that many of the do's and don't's of writing are pretty useless. Ok, fair enough if you are writing something like Little Women, but most of us aren't.
I have many characters from all over Scotland and England, one from Russia, one from Norway, and one from Japan. There are a few (older army Generals) who are particularly well spoken, others who are not and one in particular who swears like a trooper
At the end of the day, to have a great story, you need believable characters, and to have believable characters, their speech needs to be natural. Natural speech is made up of vast and varied querities (yes I made that word up) to each particular person, and is in no way robotic, which, is what would result from sticking close to the many lists of do's and don't's.

My characters speech is full of fun little idioms and quirks, particularly the Scottish characters. It makes the story far more entertaining

 

[tabby3]

It has to sound natural or it's irritating.

 

[Frances Gow]

Agree with all the comments about characters staying true to themselves in speech.

This is my favourite - 8 rules from Neil Gaiman: http://maxkirin.tumblr.com/post/92478828861/neil-gaimans-8-rules-of-writing-a-remake-of-this

 

[Karen Gray]

Agree with all the comments about characters staying true to themselves in speech.

This is my favourite - 8 rules from Neil Gaiman: http://maxkirin.tumblr.com/post/92478828861/neil-gaimans-8-rules-of-writing-a-remake-of-this

Love that @Frances Gow

 

[tabby3]

Agree with all the comments about characters staying true to themselves in speech.

This is my favourite - 8 rules from Neil Gaiman: http://maxkirin.tumblr.com/post/92478828861/neil-gaimans-8-rules-of-writing-a-remake-of-this

Love that rule #5.