“Talking as a Tool for Writers”

by Waverly Fitzgerald
Spring 2005Talking as a Tool for Writers
By Waverly Fitzgerald
Spring 2005

Write. Write. Write. Of course, that’s the heart of what we do. It’s the best way — actually the ONLY way — to produce writing. It’s also the best way to improve your writing skills. Someone (Dave Eddings?) once said that you have to write a million words before you are writing well enough to be published. I know that’s not entirely true, but it certainly can’t hurt. Still I’m always surprised that few writers use another tool that I’ve found invaluable for my writing: talking.

Over the years, I’ve read many writing books that warn you not to talk about what you’re writing, suggesting that you’ll dissipate the energy around the story and be left with nothing to say. I’ve certainly seen this happen. Sometimes a story that thrills an audience when spoken out loud falls flat on the page. But more often I see the opposite: A timid story that has great potential but the characters are clinging to the wall, afraid to step forward and take center stage, circling around each other, exchanging pleasantries, instead of engaging in verbal swordplay.

The technique I’ve found that works faster than any other to blast a story or a scene into full color is the simple act of brainstorming with a partner. In other words, talking.

In one of my recent classes for the Popular Fiction program at the University of Washington Extension, I asked my students to think of the next scene they planned to write. I gave them a few minutes to scribble notes on paper while I did the same for the next scene in my historical novel. Then I asked the students to write down the purpose of the scene and pointed out that “providing background” or “revealing character” were weak choices unless combined with a more dramatic function that moved the story forward. Looking at the scene I had outlined, I immediately saw that this was true for my scene. Out it went and I forged ahead to the next scene, which did advance the plot.

Meanwhile, I paired my students up and asked them to discuss their scenes with each other. The role of the “reader” was to suggest ways the writer could increase the conflict, drama or entertainment value of the scene. Where were the opportunities the author had missed? I’m not sure exactly what happened for my students although the room buzzed with energy and I got a great batch of scenes the following week, but this exercise really improved my novel.

Because we were an odd number that night, I paired up with one of the students and she gave my scene the benefit of her attention. I had sketched a scene in which the village white witch goes to the home of a young girl who has fallen ill (and will later claim to be bewitched). Susan’s penetrating questions about the girl’s father and his status in the community helped steer me in an entirely new direction, adding depth to the back story (a conspiracy related to the English Civil War).

The value of working with a partner is that it pushes you past the easy first choices. Author Sue Monk Kidd in her March newsletter says that it’s often the third thing she comes up with that works the magic in her writing. Batting about ideas helps you get past the obvious choices to reveal deeper aspects of your story.

Even a reader who doesn’t know anything about your story or your genre can offer helpful suggestions but the ideal partner is someone you meet with regularly. I meet with my novel buddy once a week and we know each other’s novels so intimately that we talk about the characters as if they were our friends. I’m sure sometimes other patrons of the coffee shop in which we meet might wonder about us when Janis casually suggests, “What if you kill Tony instead of Monica?”

“What if?” is the key phrase to use in this kind of brainstorming. Either the reader or the writer can ask “What if…?” questions which the two can then toss back and forth. What if the invalid girl is motherless? What if her father is a merchant? What if he’s working for Parliament? The authority to make the decision rests with the writer but for the purposes of your discussion, as in all brainstorming, anything goes.

Sometimes my sessions with Janis end in a stalemate. We can’t figure out any way to get this character from Point A to Point B. But the discussion seems to stir up my creative imagination. Inevitably the next day, while walking the dog, I realize how to solve the problem.

Will this same technique work for non-fiction? I don’t know. I’ve never tried it. But I’m suddenly inspired to try.

References:
Kidd, Sue Monk, “Ten Most Helpful Things I Could Ever Tell Anybody about Writing,” March 2005
www.suemonkkidd.com/Newsletters/200503.asp

Waverly Fitzgerald
Supporting you in meeting your writing goals
206.325.1452
waverly@waverlyfitzgerald.com

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More articles on writing by Waverly Fitzgerald:

Finding Your Readers

My Life as a Publisher

Getting the Most Out of Summer Writing Conferences

Networking for Writers

Imitation: Conscious and Unconscious

Talking as a Tool for Writers

Filling the Well

The Rejection Game

Time and the Writer

Writing Rituals

Writing the Summer Novel

The Rejection Game

Writing Heresy