Into the Fire

A book, you say? A novel? Okay then. You wish to enter the world of fiction where the words on the page speak of truth but portray it in unique ways. Here are a few things you might prepare to experience:

Novelists write in all kinds of ways. Some of them will tell you what's best for you starting out. It won't be. Well, it could be. There are no universal truths or rules in creating.

You will be inundated with skill books to help you learn to really write. If you read them all, you'll probably decide you're incapable of writing a novel after all. Don't. Don't think it. Throughout your writing life, just as in all of life, there will be value and dross. Use the valuable instruction and dump the dross. If an author listened and obeyed every teaching, novels would be robotic, standard-issue, boring, and unenlightening. There are enough of those novels already published.

Honest evaluation. Do you know proper English? Do you understand plot and crisis and melancholy and climax and solution? Drama and comedy? Science fiction versus fantasy? Do you recognize literary, thriller, cozy mystery, romance, historical? "Proper" English is rarely used in today's contemporary fiction. But to know it means you can manipulate the language effectively, choosing to ignore the more formal forms of the language. It's important to know the right way in order to master the not-so-right way. Dialogue must be authentic. Descriptions accurate. Can you create with words?

If you're disciplined in pursuit of the things you choose to do, you're ahead of this writing game. It's a taskmaster and not easy to apply. Discipline simply means sticking to it. You will form your own schedule, but you need to heed it in order to finish your work. Don't make an impossible schedule. You know yourself. What will really work for you amidst all the other demands of life? You may be limited to once a week. Just keep at it.

Still want to write that Great American Novel? How about just make a niche for yourself in the realm of fiction? How about just finishing one idea for a story that's been nagging you for a long time? Go ahead. Do it. Try it. Can't hurt.

Father, for all those you've called to tell stories, give us what we need to write them. From your heart to ours. Please. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.