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Bec Says

One of my recent posts dealt with the YA writing scene and different literary organisations you can join, writing competitions you can enter, and online writing resources you can access. Today, I thought I’d blog sage advice & inspirational quotes from some prominent speculative fiction writers…

About.com have outlined some of Stephen King’s writing tips. King’s book, On Writing, is a remarkably insightful and inspiring read for anyone interested in the craft of writing.

JRR Tolkien:

If you’re going to have a complicated story you must work to a map; otherwise you’ll never make a map of it afterwards.

Neil Gaiman:

Well, I used to have lots of pieces of advice for writers, and these days, I’ve whittled them down to two pieces of advice. Which are, (1) if you’re going to be a writer, you have to write. (2) You have to finish things.

Kim Wilkins:

The most important philosophical point I’d like to make about writing is  that you absolutely must do it for its own sake. That is, you must write because you love what you’re writing, because not to write it would hurt. It is fine to have dreams or goals or whatever you want to call them, and they may be about publication or huge sales or instant celebrity. But dreams can’t sustain you on a daily basis. The sheer joy of writing must sustain you, because in the end it’s all you have any control over.

Charles de Lint:

Write from the heart, what has meaning to you personally; have the  patience and discipline to sit down and do it every day whether you’re feeling inspired or not; never be afraid to take chances, in fact, make sure you take chances. As soon as you become complacent, you become boring.  [...]  Read as much as possible, not simply in the genre, or what you think you’re interested in, but other things as well.

Kate Forsyth:

Write the kind of book you like to read.

George R R Martin:

The most important thing for any aspiring writer, I think, is to read! And not just the sort of thing you’re trying to write, be that fantasy, SF, comic books, whatever. You need to read everything. Read fiction,

non-fiction, magazines, newspapers. Read history, historical fiction, biography. Read mystery novels, fantasy, SF, horror, mainstream, literary classics, erotica, adventure, satire. Every writer has something to teach you, for good or ill. (And yes, you can learn from bad books as well as good ones — what not to do)

Isobelle Carmody:

Don’t choose a genre before you write, and don’t think of publication. Don’t write something that you think will sell or make people take you seriously or gain you attention. Write something that interests and intrigues and torments you. Write something about which you have many questions. Write in order to discover what is inside your idea. Do not think about publication.

Lauren Kate:

Eavesdrop! I mean: draw inspiration from as many things around you as you can. Once you start writing a story, finish it. Don’t give up. Someone told me that once and it’s the best writing advice I’ve ever gotten. Just finish it. That way you’ll know you can. When you’re finished, find a writing friend to share your work with. Constructive criticism is the greatest gift to your writing. Take a few suggestions and try your hand at revising. My books get about twenty times better between the first draft and the second. That’s my formula: 1. Eavesdrop. 2. Don’t give up. 3. Share your work with someone who can help you make it better.

Terry Pratchett:

I’ve learned one or two things over the years. One is that the best time to  work out a book is in bed, just after you’ve woken up. I think my brain is on timeshare to a better author overnight. (A notebook is vital at this point.) And if you think you have a book evolving, now is the time to write the flap copy – the blurb, in fact. An author should never be too proud to write their own flap copy. Getting the heart and soul of a book into fewer than 100 words helps you focus. More than half the skill of writing lies in tricking the book out of your own head.

J.K Rowling:

I feel there’s an expectation that I should know what the magical  formula was, but in truth I wrote what I liked reading. I wrote about characters I was deeply interested in.

Alison Goodman:

The real work of an author is in the rewrite. Getting down the first ideas   in a rush of inspiration is great fun, but the real work is crafting those raw words into a cohesive story with compelling characters and fully realised themes. Learn to love the rewrite because that is where a serious author lives.

Over at Marianne’s main website, she shares some of her top writing tips. Check them out!

Author Richard Harland has a whole site dedicated to writing tips here.

Vids: Neil Gaiman Advice For Young Writers

Stephanie Meyer Writing Advice

Geoffrey Zimmerman Advice To Aspiring Writers

Kate Forsyth: Process of Writing

Music: Just Jack ‘Writer’s Block’

Elvis Costello ‘Every Day I Write the Book’

Bec Says:

Are you a budding author? Are you working on a short story? A novel? Have you always wanted to be a writer, or do you even just write for fun? If you’re interested in developing your craft, there are a whole slew of resources out there for you. 

The National Young Writers Festival is about to kick off (30 Sept – 4 Oct) and promises to be a *lot* of fun.  Join their mailing list for more event info, notifications, and other goodies. (A bit about the festival, from their website):

It is the country’s largest gathering of young and innovative writers working in both new and traditional forms including zines, comics, blogging, screenwriting, poetry, spoken word, hip hop music, journalism, autobiography, comedy, songwriting and prose.

NYWF presents ‘writing’ in its broadest sense through panels, discussions, workshops, launches, performances and readings. NYWF gives young writers a place to present their work and share ideas, to learn about the industry in which they write and to meet with like-minded people in a friendly festival atmosphere.

Check out your state writing centre for courses, resources, and news about communities and competitions. WritingWA currently has some good info about writing groups and events. The QLD Writers Centre regularly holds courses for young writers, such as the recent boot camp with Tristan Bancks. If you sign up to the Express Media mailing list, you’ll learn all the latest about some fantastic workshops, journals, and prizes, including the John Marsden Prize for Young Australian Writers.

COMPS!!!

There are also competitions for young writers that you might want to investigate: 

Somerset National Novella Writing Competition (secondary school students under 19)

Sydney Youth Writing Comp

Sydney Morning Herald Young Writer of the Year Comp

Perth’s Tim Winton Award for Young Writers (5-18 years)

State Library of QLD Young Writers Award (18-25 years)

Australian Fabians Young Writers Comp (young political thinkers & activists aged 18-28).

(They’re just some to get you started… Get Googling!)

WEB PAGES!!!

Here are some websites that might get your writerly juices flowing…. 

Teen Ink (Magazine, website, & books written by teens since 1989)

TeenLit (Promoting Teen Literacy Worldwide)

The Young Writer’s Society Online Writing Community

Young Writers Online Net Online Community

Wordtrip Junior Youth Writing Forum

Grammar Girl – Quick & Dirty Grammar Tips

Scholastic – Writing Basics

Book-In-A-Week For Young Writers Who Like a Challenge!

Teen Voices Young Writers 13-19

The Story Starter Random Story Generator!