Perhaps one of the most common arguments I hear from people about
their desire to write a novel stems from their personal experiences. Every bartender I meet (and there have been
many, although far fewer recently), says that someone should write a book about
their bar. Certainly most of the cops I
know feel they have enough experience to fill more than one book and a number
of lawyers have approached me about writing both novels and nonfiction books.
This makes perfect sense. Everyone would like to take advantage of a life spent creating another
career. From reporters like Carl Hiaasen who wrote many of his early novels from the perspective of a reporter
or a photographer to doctors like the late Michael Palmer writing about
physicians, there is a proud tradition of novelists turning their previous careers
into fiction.
When I talk about experiences, I don't necessarily mean work experiences. Augusten Burroughs
turned his personal experiences growing up in foster homes to the nonfiction
bestseller Running With Scissors. Everyone has a set of personal experiences
that are somewhat unique. Whether it's
growing up in a quirky Southern family on the banks of a slow-moving creek or
in a family of close but loud and tough immigrants on the streets of Brooklyn,
there are comic and dramatic events everyone can weave together to create a
compelling story. The trick is in the
weaving. I can't tell you how many
people I hear say they are going to write a book. Frankly, it's more likely they will produce
a book. Writing takes focus and
talent as well as a degree of study. If
statistics are any indication, then it’s more likely by more than 10,000 to 1
that a book someone produces will not be compelling enough for someone to
publish. For the purposes of this
discussion I am still talking about traditional publishing. E-books and self-publishing are topics for the
future.
You can look at the contributors to this blog and see the
influences of our day-to-day lives in our books. Jackie writes a wonderful series set in
England during the first world war in the 1920s. Obviously she has a grasp of what it's like
to grow up in England, but also the remarkable research tool of talking with her
older relatives and friends who could give her insight to the time period. She used her personal experiences, although
not necessarily her work experiences, to craft remarkable novels that are
compelling and a pleasure to read.
Patty Smiley is a perfect example of using experience to put some
zing into a novel. Her Tucker Sinclair
is a business consultant, which gives her leeway to get involved in virtually
every business but always involves crime or criminal investigation. Patty knows that the setting, Los Angeles,
because she has lived there for many years and understands what goes into a
criminal investigation from her work with the Los Angeles Police Department. More than that, she worked
at a number of different jobs including acting which gave her the basis to
create realistic backdrops to excellent novels.
Paul Levine is a very nice fella and we're very proud of him.
Obviously, not only do I try to use my police experience to
provide the reader a realistic view of how an investigation might unfold but my day job has been a useful promotional tool for me as well. I've never had a publisher who didn't want to
make use of the fact that I had worked in both federal law enforcement and as a
law enforcement agent for the state of Florida. My earlier novels took experiences I had and generally turn them on their
head. But those experiences were still
the basis for the plots of the novels. Like any cop, I constantly come in contact with interesting and odd
characters. I'm not confined to one area
geographically or professionally. I
regularly spend long hours with corrupt politicians, drug enforcers and
lawyers. (I won't say who I prefer to
spend my time with.) That gives me a
broad background from which to pull both characters and plot ideas. But the books don't write themselves. I spend more time reading and studying the
craft of writing than I do actually writing a novel.
So when you're at your job as a dental hygienist or a airline
pilot or a firefighter in Duluth, Minnesota, keep your eyes open for something
out of the ordinary that makes you laugh, or cringe, or cry. Anything that makes you feel a strong
emotion. That might be the basis for a
novel.
Today's quote is:
“Anybody who has
survived his childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest
of his days.”―Flannery O'Connor
I agree with "write what you know," but I like imaginative ideas as well.
ReplyDeleteRobert Ellis
Great advice, James O. I consider everything I do "writing." This past week I encountered a character-known-as-loudmouth. You know the type: monopolizing the conversation at dinner, playing bigshot, shouting, stream-of-consciousness blabbing (about himself). I took mental notes. He will appear in a novel.
ReplyDeletePatty,
Deletehere is a mystery: WHY is this person monopolizing the conversation?
Unless I am mistaken, I wonder if that person is dealing with sudden hearing loss? Clues; shouting and monopolizing conversations.
When I lost my hearing suddenly, I thought I was invisible because there was no eye contact when I talked so I started yelling. Yes, I apologized for that. Once I learned other ways of communicating (e.g. waiting until I gain eye contact before I talk), there was no need for me to shout.
His problem wasn't a hearing loss. He claimed to be an "expert" on everything and spent the evening bragging that he was a special ops jungle fighter, wine expert, chef extraordinaire...you name it. If I had to guess, I'd say he was insecure and tried to be a "big shot" to overcome these feelings. At least, that's how I would construct a character in a book. I'd make up a motivation and a backstory. He'd also had too much of that wine he knew so well.
DeleteI call that character "Paul."
ReplyDeleteJames, my writing teachers often advised us to write what we knew.I always am "writing" like Patty. Please forgive me for a little fact check here. Although the first book starts in 1929 with flashbacks to the years before and during the first World War, Jackie's series is set in England during the 1930s, not 1920s.
ReplyDeleteWriting about what you know resonates with me, I was thinking about Alexander McCall Smith's series.
I get what you meant about writing and producing a book. Although I've been told that I could write a book by people who think my life is unique, I believe your heart has to be into writing the book. If I was going to write a novel, I want to write as well as authors whom I admire.
When I was a kid, my 4th grade class had to write a sentence for each new vocabulary word we learned. I remember that sometimes I would make up stories with all of the words on the vocabulary list. Hmmm...perhaps I could try that again....