When I was starting out as a writer, experts would tell me again and again, “write what you know.”
Great advice… Unless you’re barely in your twenties and what you know is that D&D is your jam. While I’d be happy to share my notebooks of paladin adventures and gelatinous cube attacks, I thought it would be better if I stuck to writing advice that is less reliant on 20-sided dice and more practical.
First off, writing for yourself is awesome. With limitless imagination, anything is possible. When I worked with little kids, I was always amazed at their creativity. Talking unicorns led heroes into a world where rivers of chocolate never ran dry and stars were made from expired Pop Rocks. Of course, the kids were less concerned about structure, but who cared when the moon could randomly drop from the sky and crush any obstacle that stood before our hero?
First off, writing for yourself is awesome. With limitless imagination, anything is possible. When I worked with little kids, I was always amazed at their creativity. Talking unicorns led heroes into a world where rivers of chocolate never ran dry and stars were made from expired Pop Rocks. Of course, the kids were less concerned about structure, but who cared when the moon could randomly drop from the sky and crush any obstacle that stood before our hero?
Revise, Revise, Revise
Once you have a first draft, however, the real work begins. I’m going to use the dreaded ‘R’ word… Revision. Yes, writers revise. It’s part of the job. Some authors revise after they have their first draft completed, while other authors rework their story as they write their initial draft. No one method is better than the other, but the key is to go over your manuscript to make sure that the story works both for you as the writer as well as your reader.
Try this as an exercise. Tell a story to yourself. Then tell the same story to a friend. I’ll bet that how you tell the story to your friend will change based on how they respond to the story. That’s what revision is—adjusting your story to reach the reader. Yes, you might deviate from the original story, but to paraphrase a line from Casablanca, “You’ll always have your first draft.”
Trouble should be your story’s middle name
Where stories tend to get "flabby" is the same place those of us who fail to keep our New Year’s resolutions go flabby—the middle. The reason for this is a lack of conflict. As writers, we’re so focussed on setting into motion the events that we forget that the story gets interesting when our best laid plans go off the rails.
When I get to the middle, I always ask myself how can I get this character into trouble. And once I come up with a problem, I tell myself that I can come up with something better. In real life, most of us try to avoid trouble, which is why often times our fictional problems are so tame. We have to turn off the part of us that wants to get along with others and hurl our protagonists into the deep end of the pool. Yes, I know this makes it harder for you to rescue your character from her problems but trust me, more trouble makes for a far more interesting journey for the reader.
WOW your Readers
There are three things that have steered me in the right direction when I create conflict.
1. What does my character want? If I know their objective or goal, it gives the story a direction to go.
2. Obstacles: Think about what or who can get in the way of your character’s mission. External obstacles like objects and other characters will shape the story, but don’t forget emotional/internal obstacles. They will develop your character.
3. Why does your character want to do all of this? Knowing the character’s motivation helps to solidify who your character is and makes them relatable to your readers.
Having WOW playing in the back of your head as you write will always help you create the kind of conflict readers want in a story. Just remember, trouble is your story’s middle name.
Writing Lessons for Kids
Check out these YouTube videos for kids who want to write but need some guidance.
What does a Rubik’s Cube have to do with Writing? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NM6l44H6V64&t=5s
How to make setting come to life? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVviZzfQVTg&t=11s
How do you tackle a first draft? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJ50wOPLslw&t=1s
Want to hear from other Canadian kids authors? https://voiced.ca/project/i-value-canadian-stories-the-podcast/
My thanks to Marlyn for lending me the space on her blog to share my thoughts on writing. If you’re interested in any of my books, please check out my website: www.martychan.com.
Marty Chan writes books for kids and plays for adults. In theatre, he’s best known for his hit plays, Mom, Dad, I’m Living with a White Girl and The Bone House. His kids books range from True Story, a funny picture book about his stressfarting cat to his steampunk fantasy trilogy, The Ehrich Weisz Chronicles. Marty’s latest book, Kung Fu Master, is available online and in bookstores. He works and lives in Edmonton with his wife Michelle.
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