Michael Hammersley
I don’t know that I feel qualified to advise anyone beyond passing on the help given to me regarding, ‘show and tell’, that adverbs are rare coins to be used sparingly (!) and of course, that one should hook the reader and not let go.
But the one thing I have learned is that story writing is like eating a bowl of spaghetti. If you spear more than three strands with your fork, you will find that after you have spun the tines a few times, gathering all that meat and sauce with your pasta, you end up with an unwieldy lump that won’t fit in your mouth! Similarly, if you begin your tome with too many threads to your story, by the time you have explored their potential and fleshed out the ideas, you have a novel that’s too long for most publishers – but you may also have two books. Better to have multiple courses to be enjoyed individually rather than one huge meal which leaves you bloated, or worse, makes you want to leave some.
But the one thing I have learned is that story writing is like eating a bowl of spaghetti. If you spear more than three strands with your fork, you will find that after you have spun the tines a few times, gathering all that meat and sauce with your pasta, you end up with an unwieldy lump that won’t fit in your mouth! Similarly, if you begin your tome with too many threads to your story, by the time you have explored their potential and fleshed out the ideas, you have a novel that’s too long for most publishers – but you may also have two books. Better to have multiple courses to be enjoyed individually rather than one huge meal which leaves you bloated, or worse, makes you want to leave some.
More Answered Questions
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more