Tag: Close-Up Editing & Assessment

Magic – it’s got to be more than a deus ex machina in your story

On By closeupeditingIn Tips and Advice

In fantasy fiction, and any fiction that plays with reality, the way a writer uses magic is vital. It can both create a sense of wonder and the necessary suspension of disbelief. For those of you creating your own worlds, the way you employ magic as a story element has to feel reasoned. As if you as the author have considered the impact of magic on your world, not just the plot.

Over the years, best-selling fantasy author Brandon Sanderson has written a few essays on aspects that he feels constitutes a great magic system. They’re incredibly useful posts and we wanted to draw your attention to them.

Below is a quote from the ‘laws’, but it’s worth reading the whole of each essay.

The First Law

An author’s ability to solve conflict with magic is DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL to how well the reader understands said magic.

The Second Law

Limitations > Powers

Or

Superman is not his powers. Superman is his weaknesses.

The Third Law

Expand what you already have before you add something new.

Hemingway & Short Sentences

On By closeupeditingIn Tips and Advice

Today, a short post on Hemingway’s four writing rules. His sparse, direct style is much-emulated and will no doubt remain so for a long time.

There are some interesting claims, especially the idea of being ‘positive’ instead of ‘negative,’ but perhaps the simplest ‘rule’ to embrace when working toward a minimalistic style is Hemingway’s first:

1. Use short sentences.

Long sentences have their place in writing. Complex ideas require complex construction, but remember, the more sub-clauses used, the more information you force your reader to store within their temporary or ‘working’ memory. Overload that memory and the reader has to re-read a sentence, and in fiction particularly, this can risk breaking ‘suspension of disbelief’ or pulling the reader out of the story.

So wherever possible, keep ‘em short.

Point of View

On By closeupeditingIn Tips and Advice

Clear and engaging use of Point of View (POV) is vital to good writing, especially in fiction.

Not just a question of who is best suited to telling your story, it is also a micro-level series of choices made by the writer to build and develop character at the same time as developing plot or setting scene.

There is a wealth of advice out there on how to handle POV, but we feel Australian author Karen Miller describes point of view very clearly in her post on Voice and Point of View, in addition to providing a clear comparative example.

Is your point of view working for you?