5 tips for novice writers from Chuck Palahniuk - Ordentop

Chuck Palahniuk is a modern American writer and freelance journalist, known as the author of the award-winning Fight Club book.

Today we have prepared an article with 5 tips from a world famous author.

  1. Alternate literary work with life.

“Two years ago I wrote the first of an essay on my“ kitchen timer method. ” The method is as follows: when you do not want to write, you need to set the kitchen timer for one hour and write until the timer rings. If in an hour there is no desire to continue, you are free for an hour. But usually, at the time when the timer is triggered, the work is so fascinating that you enjoy it and you can not stop. Instead of a kitchen timer, you can load a washing machine or dryer – to track work time. By alternating literary work with thoughtless washing of linen or washing dishes, you take breaks for new thoughts and insights. ”

2. The reader is smarter than you think.

“Do not be afraid to experiment with form and time. It seems to me that young readers do not like most of the books, not because they are dumber than readers of previous generations, but, on the contrary, smarter. Cinema has made us sophisticated in storytelling. And the reader is much harder to surprise than it seems. ”

3. Ponder.

“Before you sit down and write a scene, you should turn it in your mind a little and understand why it is needed. Which of the previous scenes will she explain? And how will the next development? How will she move the story forward? At work, driving, playing sports, keep in mind only these issues. When thoughts appear, take some notes. And only when you think over the basis of the scene – you can write it. ”

4. Surprise yourself.

“Take the story away, or let the story take you away, to a place that will surprise you, then you can hit your reader as well. At that moment, when you discern a well-planned surprise, a plot twist, and an intelligent reader will not miss them. ”

5. Reread

“If you are stuck, reread the previous scene, return to the abandoned characters or details that can be resurrected. While writing down “Fight Club”, I had no idea what to do with a skyscraper. But when I reread the first scene, I came across a piece about mixing nitro with paraffin, which says that it is an unreliable method of preparing explosives. This little digression was a great “buried cannon” and saved my ass. ”

 

We think that any advice from successful individuals is a great opportunity to learn something new and improve your creativity. Do you agree?