for writers: Elmore Leonard Makes Writing Simple

Do not dismiss this posting as only useful for mystery or cowboy writers. "Yup, I reckon, this here posting is helpful to anyone who wants to write well." 

Do not dismiss this as good advice for men writers. Elmore Leonard was a writer's writer. He was asked to write an article about writing for the New York Times, and it was so well received, that he turned it into a book, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing, which sold successfully. If you don't like buying from Amazon, here is the link to Alibris, or use this link to booksamillion. A copy of this tome should never rest on the top shelf of a writer's library, where it cannot be reached at a moment's notice. It is a frequent flyer for a writer who wants to communicate to his audience. 

The New York Times asked him to write the article because, he writes well - and across many genres. He knows his subject, and he is smart enough to know what his audience wants. And then he sells it to them in an honest way so they want to read his works. 

He was known as the master of dialogue, and young writers are always told to read him to see how he makes his dialogue realistic. 
I will save you $11 bucks and briefly list his 10 rules, although just listing them does not have the same educational value, as reading his book.

He calls them tricks to good writing:

1. Never open a book with weather.
2. Avoid prologues.
3. Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue.
4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said"…he admonished gravely.
5. Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose.
6. Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose."
7. Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
8. Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.
9. Don't go into great detail describing places and things.
10. Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

These rules were excerpted from his New York Times article. 

I am not 20% of the writer he is but I also know rules are made to be broken when that breakage serves a very good purpose. So before you write against the above rules one through nine, think hard and think long and never think suddenly. He said assuredly.  

The only rule that should never be broken is number ten. It is worth repeating. "Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip. They are going to skip them anyway, why waste the ink?  

My added warning, especially to writers who have done extensive research and need to amortize their time and energy, be careful. You are walking on creative quicksand. Extraneous, show-off unimportant/insignificant knowledge {all knowledge that does not move the story forward or let the reader know vital information.}, no matter how seemingly appropriate, is just showing off. It slows us down, and makes us wonder if we understand the story. 

Readers hate a show-off. Readers hate being bored. Our answer is something an author does not want to hear. We put down the book, and worst yet, they bad mouth your style.

The best you can hope for is we give you a reprieve and just skip that section, and keep reading. But how many times can we give you a pass. Three strikes and you are out in baseball. When I read, you only get two strikes.  

Some setting and description of place and such is certainly appropriate, but every time a character twitches, we don't need to know the scenery in detail, and described ad-nauseum. If we wanted to read a travelogue, we would have bought one.  

In particular, I have started the book, the Alienist, twice (over the last 18 months), and cannot get past the first thirty-five pages. 

Maybe it is me.

Is it you too? 

Caleb, please, buy Elmore's book and read it. Not so much weather and less of the scenery, fewer hansom rides and more action early please. We know who Teddy Roosevelt was and what he became, but is that so fascinating that it can carry the story? 

I think my answer is clear.  

That's my opinion, what is yours?

-- L. Preschel author of the Sam-Cath mysteries.