When I wrote my debut novel I could already write pretty well. However, I was oblivious to the fact that, when it comes to writing a novel (or even a work of non-fiction, for that matter) there are rules I had to follow.
Rules for writing? I thought I already knew about those – use correct spelling, grammar and punctuation; don’t make your paragraphs too long; have plenty of action. What I didn’t know was that there were a myriad of other ones that publishers demand today – show don’t tell; strict rules about point of view; not too many words that end in ‘ly’; favouring the word ‘said’ when carrying dialogue.
Even more confusing was the discovery that every country has a different way of styling a book. Sure, I knew that in the US people spell a number of words differently from the way they’re spelled in Australia, but I didn’t know that we used single quotation marks for dialogue instead of doubles, spaces both sides of ellipsis, and a number of others as well. Even more confusing was the discovery of just how often the little details can vary from publisher to publisher, not to mention that, since there are so many self-published books out there, there can be any number of variations there as well.
At first I scoffed at this. Who makes these rules? Who says we need to obey them? My writing communicates what I want to say. That’s all that mattered! Sure, I can write in whatever way I choose. Unfortunately, that won’t make a publisher agree to publish me. I discovered quickly that not following these rules can be the difference between being considered by a traditional publisher and being rejected.
Being hired as a profession editor, first for non-fiction, and then to edit fiction as well, I had to learn all these rules in detail, and since my trilogy was done in US styling, since the first book was set in America, I had to learn American styling quickly too. I don’t think I got it all right (and in one case it was deliberate) but I learned a lot along the way, also learning just how much more readable books are when they follow a lot of these rules. For instance, I like it when point of view doesn’t dart all over the place, and show don’t tell does make a novel easier to read.
Are you an author? What do you think about following these rules? Do you follow them? Are you a reader? Do you notice any of these things? Leave a comment below and let me know.
Great post Lynne. I think I had a similar experience and also the rules have changed since the 80s and 90s, when I first started writing my novels. While some of the rules are fashion, I think many of the rules do make a book more readible, more immersive. Good to know what they are, so if you do break them, you know why – and are aware how it might affect your chances of getting published.
Yes, I think they improve books too.
As a writer I’m sometimes perplexed to find out I’ve missed certain rules – e.g. the space before and after an ellipse – but as a reader I find I’m jolted out of a story when someone breaks the rules. I wonder if it’s a matter of familiarity with what should be there (according to the rules) or if its a function of the rules themselves. Probably a bit of both. I think the rules evolved because our brains like order – in order to make sense of what we’re reading. 🙂
Yes, I agree that it’s a bit of both.
Oh yeah, it was a steep learning curve for me too, Lynne, and one I am still journeying through. As an English teacher, I too thought I had a pretty good understanding of how this writing gig went. But it soon became pretty evident that I still had a long road of learning ahead of me. 🙂
I think authors always have new things to learn.