A good number of people approach writing as if it is a simple hobby that one can just pick up and put down as easily as pausing the latest show they’re streaming on Netflix or Hulu. I’ve even seen an ad once for an “aspiring author” who was looking for a getaway cabin, either on a lake or in a forest, so they could work on their novel. But one thing that stands out as you delve into the writing life is that you won’t accidentally stumble onto a career as an author. Working at night or on the weekend simply writing won’t make you the next bestselling writer who ditched his day job and started a lucrative publishing career. There is a great deal more to it than that.
There has been much written on the craft of writing. I have at points in my life found and read books, articles, and essays by Clive Cussler, Ben Bova, Arthur C. Clarke, Douglas Adams, and more. While Bova isn't one of my most influential authors (the other three are part of the Big Five) he is a prolific author with much to say on the subject. Recently I found and read a book by another of my Big Five all-time greatest influential authors, James Michener.
This isn’t the first Michener book about the craft I read. My Lost Mexico was great. Just thinking of it makes me think “And there was Gomez.” Powerful, but I digress. The one I recently stumbled upon was one I didn't know existed. It is called James A. Michener's Writer's Handbook.
In it, Michener goes into some exacting detail about his process. As a typewriter-era author, there is considerable time with scissors and paste. Literally cutting and pasting. He also used carbon paper, so when he finished with each draft he could see where it was and what had changed. There are first, second, third, and final versions of some of his stories that show the evolution and some of that is wildly altering the text. Fascinating to see even now. My only complaint about the book is that it has been too long since I read the original—published—versions of the stories he used for me to see the real differences in what he wrote versus what got published.
Michener originally got started in publishing as an editor and had a team of people who edited while he wrote. A very interesting process to see. There was one bit he wrote about editors that really stood out:
Three years into my writing career I dropped any attempt to differentiate between that and which. As a former teacher of grammar I had once known the rules, but I have now forgotten them and to keep in mind the multiple ramifications and niggling niceties is beyond me. I therefore appreciate the help of copy editors who have strong opinions on the matter and encourage them to enforce their rules. For myself, I am guided mostly by the sound of the sentence, and so are many other writers.
One task I have been finding Herculean about my writing is synopsizing it to a marketable blurb that others find interesting. I have no such writer’s block with a synopsis of this quote. A former grammar teacher and editor turned best-selling author says not to concern yourself overly with the specifics, rather concern yourself with the cadence, the rhythm, and the grace that language allows. The spice must flow, if you will. And if you won’t, they’ll catch it in the rewrites.