Well, today I finished reading Orson Scott Card’s widely-praised How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy, so I feel that I must comment. Not just on Card’s book in particular, but on how-to-write books in general. I have heard many pros and cons from all over the spectrum regarding the subject of books on writing, and having read three–a modest number, really–in the past few months, I must say that if you pick the right ones to read, it is indeed worth doing so.
A few months back, I read Stephen King’s acclaimed On Writing. Sufficient review of the memoir/how-to book would be to simply say that anyone who desires to write fiction, in any genre or to any degree of professionalism, simply must read this book. It is considered an instant classic by most critics and is so admirably honest, concise, and practical. Its conversational style, coming from the soul of one of the absolute greaters writers of fiction in our time, makes for one of the most satisfying reads of a writer’s life.
Throughout the book, King makes frequent reference to Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style, which I had no difficulty in finding at the nearest Barnes & Noble; I immediately grabbed it up, then read it the following afternoon in nearly a single sitting–it’s that condensed. I consider it to be, now, the greatest go-to guide of stylistic aspects of writing. It’s hard to consistently follow all of its “rules,” but I am endeavoring to do so, even as I type these words–though they are not nearly as important as, say, the prose of a fictional work. Highly recommend it to any writer; it’s more important than the dictionary!
Today, as I mentioned, I finished reading Orson Scott Card’s guide on writing speculative fiction, How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy. I read the bulk of it in two sessions, roughly getting halfway through during the first read, then finishing the second in a 1-2 hour timeframe. I’ll be brutally honest, here: The first half of the book had me questioning everything about my ambition to become a writer of speculative fiction. I wanted to ritualistically destroy the book in Bradbury-an fashion, calling in the Firemen to purge me of its filth. It spoke of rules and things like types of story arcs; it spoke of world creation and the work that must be done, sometimes taking years to fully develop. This angered me, feeling as though I were being told that most of what I’ve already written is, as Card states in a later, unrelated axiom, worthless drivel.
However, as I ventured further into the final pages of the book, I discovered that what Card had been doing in the first half of the book was whipping the reader into shape, figuratively; a sort of boot camp, to make any amateur writer aware that good speculative fiction writers can always tell when someone is “faking it,” referring to the “research” any speculative fiction writer must invariably do. As the book goes on, you learn that this daunting set of tasks he presents you with in the earlier sections lead to an inspiringly optimistic resolution. He ulimately concludes the book by assuring the reader that, if you are able to overcome the obstacles presented earlier on, by perseverence and patience, you will eventually end up with a finished work. He writes extremely personal, insightful essays toward the end that discuss the most intimate, perhaps inobvious elements that contribute to the eventual success–or failure–of a writer who adheres or deviates from the absolutes regarding success. After all, he explains, there is a degree of luck involved, but it is ultimately the quality of the fiction that will drive a work toward publication. Only courage, patience, and perseverence can hope to cultivate any modicum of luck.
I highly recommend any writer to read the first two aforementioned works religiously; the third is for speculative fiction writers in particular. All three of the books (eventually) filled me with immense inspiration and courage. As of today, my first story submission, “Taken by Darkness,” is making its way to a total of five potential publishers (Fantasy & Science Fiction, Asimov’s, Weird Tales, Electric Literature, and Dark Discoveries).
