Doing the story justice? - Writers Forum

Verago · 11-03-2005, 06:38 PM

I'm pretty young, and it'll be a long time before my writing skills blossom to their fullest extent...I have an idea for a story, an epic, with a great plot and characters (I've been told this by others. I agree.

)...But how do I know if, by writing it now, I'll be doing the story justice? Will my current writing skills suffice to bring the story whatever glory it deserves?

Does the writing style and quality matter as much as the quality of the plot?

I'm truly at a loss.

SeattleGhostWriter · 11-03-2005, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Verago

I'm pretty young, and it'll be a long time before my writing skills blossom to their fullest extent...I have an idea for a story, an epic, with a great plot and characters (I've been told this by others. I agree.

)...But how do I know if, by writing it now, I'll be doing the story justice? Will my current writing skills suffice to bring the story whatever glory it deserves?

Does the writing style and quality matter as much as the quality of the plot?

I'm truly at a loss.

Actually, you want to write and keep on writing. Write a 50 page story, if you don't like it, keep it but write something else. If you don't like them then set them aside and keep writing.

Refer back to them (trust me, years later seeing your writing from when you were in highschool to when you are in your midthirties) and you will see how your style, your voice, and your structure developed.

What you have to find is your writing voice and style. This comes over time.

Much like exercising. You are not going to become strong by one push up every great blue cheese moon. But you will get strong by challenging yourself and doing 10 one day and build from there until you are able to do 1 million pushups.

LoCo · 11-03-2005, 06:44 PM

I'd say start writing it now. You can't start too soon, and many people belive that the real writing only starts with the first edit.

If you start now and feel that (When you are done) it doesn't reach what you had in mind, then by all means, read it through again and change what you don't like. By doing such you will also see how your writing has grown and where you have improved and where you are not improving. You can fix that all up while making the story better at the same time.

Verago · 11-03-2005, 06:49 PM

Thanks.

And I'd like to point out your sig. "Even nothing is a thing."

Apt for the topic.

JustJim · 11-03-2005, 06:50 PM

Rule # 1: Don't talk your story out to others; write it.

No writer is ever really a judge of her or his (please notice fems, I'm being nice to you today

) work. The only true judge is the reading public. But before that you have to get past editors and the rest, so you'll need to have a good idea of what is acceptable and what isn't. Critques on line or in a class or in a group can be good at times because errors in an author's work can be revealed. There comes a time, however, when these crits can do more harm than good.

What I like to do, is crit the work of others (whether I post the crit or not) as this often shows up the errors in my own work.

mammamaia · 11-04-2005, 08:03 AM

"Does the writing style and quality matter as much as the quality of the plot?"

yes... imo, even more so...

the greatest plot of all time won't go over with a publisher or the book-buying/reading public, if the writing is terrible... sure, there are exceptions, but they're rare... and to succeed in getting a book published, you need to maximize your chances, not minimize them...

on the other hand, even a so-so plot can succeed wildly, if the writing is superb... or even just compelling enough to capture and hold the reader's interest...

if you really think that concept of yours is so hot, i'd advise setting it on the back shelf till you've honed and perfected your writing skills... or, at least gotten them to a marketable level, by writing all kinds of other stuff, while you learn the basics, and acquire your voice...

Erudite · 11-05-2005, 12:05 AM

Not a whole lot will change. The idea will stay the same but the structure will be different. If you write it now then you will be preserving the moment of newly discovering your story. The fun of every new thing you put into this masterpiece. Let yourself have fun with it now so that when you do come back to it with a bit more experience you'll remember how you felt when you first wrote it and can go back to that feeling a little wiser this time around.

tanmay · 11-10-2005, 10:58 AM

Write it now. Edit and publish it when you master the skills. All the best!

amusinglackoftalent · 11-10-2005, 01:55 PM

Forget about your age, forget about your experience, forget about your voice. SIT DOWN AND WRITE YOUR GUTS OUT.