Susan Cummins Miller gave a great talk at the Tony Hillerman Conference. Here are the highlights:
A Baker’s Dozen: Common Writing Mistakes
- Starting at the wrong point – usually it’s too early. Start just before the really interesting part, or the inciting incident
- Lack of dramatization – beginning writers tend to “tell” instead of “show.” Get rid of “telling” adverbs and adjectives and “show” the action and reaction, and give the dialogue.
- Poor plotting – beginning writers often mistake a great premise (the 2-3 line pitch) for a great plot (what actually happens between Chapter 1 and The End. You should know what your characters want, and make them work for it, with a primary objective plus some smaller sub-goals. Each scene must have conflict, a climax, and resolution, and each incident must have repercussions and reactions.
- A contrived ending – let your characters interact and lead you to a logical ending. That needs to grown naturally from the building blocks of your scenes.
- Point of view errors – remember that, whichever point of view you choose, it must emotionally pull the reader into the story. Avoid the authorial voice (“telling”). Also, be sure that the reader knows whose head they’re in. Don’t switch point of view within a scene because that’s too confusing.
- Ineffective dialogue – dialogue should support and develop the plot, or give a little bit of backstory. Check for stilted or uninspired dialogue, or for cliches. Enliven your dialogue with revealing details.
- Weak characterization – no cardboard characters allowed. Your characters must be three-dimensional and emotional beings.You have your entire novel to reveal backstory, so avoid the temptation to tell everything about the character all at once. Give small, specific details a little at a time instead. Know what makes your character travel (physically or emotionally) toward their goals and remember to place them in stressful situations.
- A pointless story – this is when your reader finishes the book without having an “aha!” moment. It usually means you’ve either failed to define your objective, or neglected to show the development of your protagonist. The solution is to make sure that every action has a reaction and leads inevitably toward the climax and resolution.
- Flat writing – this is caused by “playing it safe” and not digging too deeply into your own emotions, or by fearing the logical reactions in your story. Cut narrative or dialogue that has no relevance to the plot, and be sure that you’re showing instead of telling.
- Lack of vivid, realistic settings – instead of giving paragraph after paragraph about your setting, choose one or two small but vivid details that will stick with your readers.
- Too much backstory and exposition (the dreaded “info dump”) – choose what’s important and present it in “dribbles and drabbles” in a vivid way. Keep in mind that backstory, if used correctly, can actually increase tension by slowing down the pace and delaying the crisis.
- Failing to listen (to what people say about your work) – Susan recommends that you have a first reader who knows what they’re doing, or that you join a good critique group that will actually provide useful criticism.
- Submitting your work too early – don’t send out your first draft. Be sure you’ve edited and polished until you’re sending out the very best you can produce.
More from the Hillerman Conference to come!