10 Rules

On the whole, I don't like talking about writing rules. But rules are better than trying to "teach" someone how to write fiction - that's an impossibility. You can give pointers all day long but in the end, to become a writer you've got to read a lot, write a lot, and be a completer. Finish what you start. Many people are the first one, reading lots of books, and this leads them to believe that they can write. And yes they CAN write. And usually well. But then they don't have discipline or willpower to do the second because WRITING IS HARD. For any meaningful work of literature, it truly is like opening a vein on the page.

The last thing - being a completer - I just made that up. But I guess being a completer is the difference between knowing a bunch of martial arts and breaking boards and jumping around in leotards and...well, killing a man with your bare hands. There's the martial spirit and then there's the killer spirit. And you need to kill that story, choke the fucking life out of it. Until then, you're just a wannabe writer jumping around in a funny outfit and karate-chopping at boards, if that makes any sense.

FINISH THAT MANUSCRIPT.

Oh, yeah. So I talked at this blog about 10 rules of writing noir. I'm not really a noir writer, but if "The Death Fantastique" is any indication, I can write it, if I want to.

So go check out my rules at DEAD END FOLLIES.