Comments on: Writing Lesson #1 http://www.barryhutchison.com/2008/04/writing-lesson-1/ Children's author and all round top chap Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:02:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: BarryHutchison.com » Blog Archive » Writing Lesson #2 http://www.barryhutchison.com/2008/04/writing-lesson-1/comment-page-1/#comment-172 BarryHutchison.com » Blog Archive » Writing Lesson #2 Sat, 08 Nov 2008 18:03:14 +0000 http://www.barryhutchison.com/?p=34#comment-172 [...] back on April 1st, I posted my first Writing Lesson.  In it, I encouraged you to do a bungee jump.  Okay, so it wasn’t the most conventional of [...] [...] back on April 1st, I posted my first Writing Lesson.  In it, I encouraged you to do a bungee jump.  Okay, so it wasn’t the most conventional of [...]

]]> By: Pete Larkins http://www.barryhutchison.com/2008/04/writing-lesson-1/comment-page-1/#comment-158 Pete Larkins Tue, 09 Sep 2008 05:34:45 +0000 http://www.barryhutchison.com/?p=34#comment-158 Any advice for turning a first draft (all 55,000 words or so) into a publishable second / final manuscript ? That's the part that's had ME stumped since the start of this year (and had me turning making short films, writing music, scoring other people's short films - anything to avoid the start of the re-writing basically) ! Any advice for turning a first draft (all 55,000 words or so) into a publishable second / final manuscript ? That’s the part that’s had ME stumped since the start of this year (and had me turning making short films, writing music, scoring other people’s short films – anything to avoid the start of the re-writing basically) !

]]> By: Tommy Donbavand http://www.barryhutchison.com/2008/04/writing-lesson-1/comment-page-1/#comment-37 Tommy Donbavand Tue, 01 Apr 2008 13:25:23 +0000 http://www.barryhutchison.com/?p=34#comment-37 Despite Baz's self-effacing intro, this is very good advice indeed. Your readers must empathise with your characters, and your main protagonist in particular. How can you expect them to keep turning the page if they don't care about what the characters are going through? Now, unless you can reach back into your memory and pluck out a moment that gave you those same feelings, you can't accurately describe them. You don't have to experience the same situation as your characters, but feelings like fear are universal enough to transplant them just about anywhere. The hero in my new books is a werewolf and, while I've never stretched and ripped into a snarling, howling monster, I have been in painful situations and even broken bones. I can use that memory to describe how much the transformation hurts my character. Right, I'll stop now before this comment becomes longer than the original post. Just remember, dear fellow blog visitor - Barry's words are wise. You would do well to heed them. Tommy Despite Baz’s self-effacing intro, this is very good advice indeed. Your readers must empathise with your characters, and your main protagonist in particular. How can you expect them to keep turning the page if they don’t care about what the characters are going through?

Now, unless you can reach back into your memory and pluck out a moment that gave you those same feelings, you can’t accurately describe them. You don’t have to experience the same situation as your characters, but feelings like fear are universal enough to transplant them just about anywhere. The hero in my new books is a werewolf and, while I’ve never stretched and ripped into a snarling, howling monster, I have been in painful situations and even broken bones. I can use that memory to describe how much the transformation hurts my character.

Right, I’ll stop now before this comment becomes longer than the original post. Just remember, dear fellow blog visitor – Barry’s words are wise. You would do well to heed them.

Tommy

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