From
aspiring writers...
I often
receive questions from aspiring writers, and after a time a pattern
emerges, giving me a fairly good idea what sort of questions most of
you have. So I hope you find this area interesting and informative.
And if I don't answer your question here, be sure to write me at kay@kayhooper.com
and tell me what you'd like to know so that I may include the information
here in future updates.
Click
here for my basic primer for first-time novelists
How
do I get started?
If you're asking that question in a business/technical sense, take a
look at my Basic Primer for Aspiring Writers.
If you mean creatively, you get started by putting your butt in the
chair and writing. Seriously, if you have stories demanding to be told,
they will find a way out of you. Your job is to sit in the chair and
do the time: Write.
Will
creative writing courses help me?
They didn't help me. They help some people. Your mileage will vary.
One of the tricks to becoming a working writer is to find out
what does work for you. And nobody else can do that for you.
How
about books on writing?
Again, whether such resources work for you is something you'll have
to discover for yourself. They help some people, but not everyone. One
bit of advice: Don't go running after every writing "fad" book or programÊhoping
to find the magic secret to becoming a writer. There is no secret. And
I've known writers to waste years looking for one rather than putting
in the chair time to actually practice and produce.
Any
advice for aspiring writers?
Read. Read a lot. Read everything you can get your hands on. If there's
a local writer's group, join it. If you're reading this online, you
have access to a huge resource of bulletin boards and various groups:
use it. There are also national writer's organizations that do offer
membership to aspiring writers; check those out. And write. Write a
lot. Keep a journal if that helps you; it does some writers. Watch movies
and TV, looking at character and plot. Drive your friends crazy by figuring
out whodunnit during a murder mystery. Have a favorite book? Break it
down by plot and character until you understand how it was put together.
Do the same thing for movies. Teach yourself to think like a writer,
to mentally ask yourself "what if ..." and begin spinning a story whenever
you encounter an interesting situation or person. And after you've written
something you think might sell to a publisher, go out and get yourself
a current edition of The Writer's Market, which contains all the info
you need on how to prepare and submit a manuscript. And good luck!
Are
there any secrets or shortcuts to getting published?
No. Trust me on this; I've been writing more than twenty years, and
I've known lots of writers who made it — and lots who didn't. The
only secrets I know of are hard work, patience, talent, and a smidgen
of luck.
Do you
accept students or do any mentoring?
No, sorry. Since I make my living writing, and since I'm under contract
to a publisher that expects me to concentrate on my obligations to them,
I don't have the time or excess creative energy left over to teach.
Do you
ever read unpublished manuscripts?
Sorry again, but no. Apart from the lack of time and leftover creative
energy I mentioned above, I've been advised by my agent and lawyer not
to do so. I've been known to judge in a writing contest or two, but
the lack of time makes that a very infrequent occurrence.
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a reader question? Click here
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