To Write or Not Right, Purple Prose is the Question

Purple Prose got its name because the color is representative of royalty. Therefore, the language associated with this flowery representation of the writing craft is considered by many to be too fru-fru, overly sensitive, and exceedingly descriptive. Others say that the demise of purple prose is due to common readers unable to associate with colorful, well developed descriptions. Charles Harrington Elster made a case for the erosion of our collective vocabulary and general disdain for purple prose in the following quote.

"Purple prose doesn't seem to have become wholly pejorative until the twentieth century, when steep declines in the vocabulary and reading comprehension of college-educated Americans caused a panic in the education establishment and the newspaper industry, which together launched a campaign against prose that displayed royalty, grandeur, and power. This led to the disappearance of the semicolon, the invention of the sentence fragment, and a marked increase in the use of words like methodological."
(Charles Harrington Elster, What in the Word? Harcourt, 2005)

I must confess I like purple prose, especially in specific doses that you might consider purple patches or passages. Sometimes, as a reader, I want a description of the dawning sun against a colorful backdrop of landscape, clouds, and sky that makes me believe it was a work in progress being created in the moment on some magnificent canvas being painted by God.

When a basic description of a person, place, thing, or action lacks color and excitement purple prose can breathe in new life. Imagine how dull and mundane his work would have been had Shakespeare written Romeo and Juliet in the following way:

“I wish I was her glove. That way when she touches her face it would be just like me touchin’ it.”

Perhaps Paul West said it best:

"It takes a certain amount of sass to speak up for prose that's rich, succulent and full of novelty. Purple is immoral, undemocratic and insincere; at best artsy, at worst the exterminating angel of depravity. So long as originality and lexical precision prevail, the sentient writer has a right to immerse himself or herself in phenomena and come up with as personal a version as can be. A writer who can't do purple is missing a trick. A writer who does purple all the time ought to have more tricks."
(Paul West, "In Defense of Purple Prose." The New York Times, Dec. 15, 1985)

Purple Prose is not for everyone. However, before you take up arms against it, remember sometimes a little color is good for the soul.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD
Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

Novel Characters Need Their Own Voice

Entry Four “Let them be true to themselves”

I have read book reviews that plainly stated the author’s use of dialogue was unrealistic. Certainly there are times when this is true. However, it is important to remember that just as dialogue was created by one writer the review was created by another (both flawed humans). In other words don’t always take another person’s opinion as fact. Decide for yourself, read the dialogue in the context as written, consider the background of the characters as developed, and then decide if characters of a particular age, socio-economic level, academic preparedness, and geographic upbringing would actually say those things as purported.

Mark Twain is renowned for his characters and their use of language. Perhaps if Twain were a newly published author today his critics would not be so fond of his use of language, dialect, and vocabulary. In fact I am certain many would say it was unrealistic. Of course Twain would have laughed them off and probably advised that they try not to drown in their own ignorance.

Most writers work hard at creating realistic settings, language, characters and stories. Let’s not rush to judgment and assume to know what is right or wrong. When in doubt give the author the benefit of the doubt.

Stay tuned, next entry I plan to take on “Purple Prose or no Purple Prose, that is the question.”

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD
Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

Novel Characters Need Their Own Voice

Entry Three

In my last post, Entry Two, I mentioned that how characters in a book look and sound is not always the author’s decision. I probably should have said, not completely the author’s decision. When we begin a new novel we have a story in mind, which should make its way to outline form along with the establishment of the cast of characters. Then we create what we think is the physical description of each and develop a first draft of each individual’s speech patterns and dialogue style.

I think most authors begin the actual writing at this point. In this way the characters are allowed to flesh themselves out. With first draft pages in hand we have an image of how the characters interact with each other. If too many characters are blonde, it creates confusion. Likewise if every character uses the same words, expressions, and has the same accent the reader is unable to discern who is who. Of course we can specifically write “Peter said” after every dialogue entry, but how unimaginative is that?

When the characters begin to speak to each other we hear the differences in their voices and their choice of words. Every character does not need to sound like he comes from a different part of the world; the differences can be quite subtle, especially when creating family members. After all, being raised and educated in the same environment by the same set of role models will cause us to in many ways sound the same. This too can be a useful tool. We might hint to the reader that two individuals are brothers by the same use of some unique phrase.

At the same time, overuse of a particular hard to read accent, or an annoying phrase can alienate the reader. Too much of a good or a bad thing does not create interest. I cannot overemphasize the importance of salient dialogue that represents the individual characters and makes them real in the reader’s mind’s eye.

When we focus on believable we can see and hear if the characters work together. When they effectively communicate with each other the reader is drawn into the conversation. Whether writers test dialogues in model situations or begin writing and see how they work, they will always depend upon the characters themselves to establish their uniqueness in the novel.
The next time you have your nose in a book try to imagine the characters in the setting as described, having a conversation as written, and ask yourself one simple question. “Is this realistic?”

Stay tuned for my next entry.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD
Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

Novel Characters Need Their Own Voice

Entry Two

Beginning at the beginning in character development means a physical description. I like to start with the Protagonist, quite likely the most important person in the story, and then move on to the antagonist. Following these two characters with the rest of the cast in order of importance is very helpful when visualizing how they will interact in the execution of the plotline (plot is a completely different conversation, which we can discuss at a later date).

As important as each character’s degree of beauty is how that character will react to others in the story. If the protagonist and antagonist are a couple is it important which is taller and by how much. For example, if the female is the antagonist perhaps it is beneficial that she tower over her mate both physically and emotionally. Conversely, if she is the weaker of the two she could be diminutive and frail in all senses.

The same consideration of interaction, as explained in the previous paragraph, can apply to many, if not all, physical as well as evolutionary characteristics. Strong, self assured, characters can have gone to good schools, had loving parents, learned their lessons well, and can be well spoken and even avoid regional accents and dialects. Weak or despicable characters can have had the opposite experience, which could result in a completely different view of everything that surrounds the characters.

Weak characters may maintain the continual use of profanity as an important element in their vocabulary. Strong, well educated, characters can avoid profanity or in certain circumstances use it to make a point. If the author only allows this character to use a particular expression or word once, in the making of a point, it seems more like a mistake. Should we choose to use this tool it is important to establish a pattern of use, which will provide the reader a certainty of purpose.

In “The Great Gatsby” F. Scott Fitzgerald allowed Gatsby to use “old sport” so much that even Nick Carraway grew weary of its use. This was part of Fitzgerald’s characterization of Gatsby as a man who needed an anchor to a superfluous life. Like the planned creation of his history and surroundings, Gatsby used this expression to camouflage certain other longings and the heartache that haunted the character since childhood.

How characters look is not necessarily the author’s decision. Often they are a product of their purpose and everything about them is created to enable them to serve their function. Love them or hate them, they all have their place.

Stay tuned for my next entry.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD
Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

Novel Characters Need Their Own Voice

Entry One

Reading a novel has the potential to be more fulfilling than watching a movie. A skilled author can put you inside the characters’ minds, describe surroundings in minute, explicit detail, and provide insight that may not be noticed on the big screen. However, if the writer falls short of good characterization, meaning insufficient physical descriptions and inadequately developed personalities, the story becomes unbelievable and very often two dimensional.

In this and subsequent blog posts I will endeavor to explain some of the considerations in the development and continuous delivery of characters in a book.

I have read many explanations of how other authors create their characters and give them their unique voice. Once I read an interview with a bestselling author wherein he explained how he often tests his characters’ voices by writing multiple versions of the same dialogue, while experimenting with different expressions, word usage, and verbal characteristics. In the end he chose the version that best represented the essence of each character. I like this process and have experimented with it myself.

Before we can get to the voice (meaning each individual character’s choice of words, accent, delivery, favorite expressions, and any other elements that make the character unique) we must first know the character and understand his/her role in the story. In any book primary characters will receive more attention, and greater detail, than other individuals with a much smaller role. Too many primary characters in a story often confuse the reader and distract from the plot.

First, before we can know how a character sounds we must develop basic information through which we can imagine, or hear in our mind’s ear, his/her unique voice. It begins with the simple stuff: gender, height, weight, hair and eye color, ethnicity, education, upbringing, propensities, geographical culture, and how we envision the character in the story.
Once we have a mental image of the character we can begin to listen to what he might say and how he might say it. From there we can actually write a few versions of the aforementioned sample dialogue and see which entry best represents the character.

Stay tuned for my next entry. In future posts we will discuss accents, word usage, grammar, profanity and the importance of individualism in truly memorable characters.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD

Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

The Value of Reviews, Good and Bad

Authors, Artists, and Performers build their reputations and their name recognition on reviews, word of mouth, and a general buzz. The ability to create and produce their art is dependent upon the artist’s creativity and flair. However, the same personality traits that allow one to be creative also foster a certain degree of fragility in the creator’s emotional make-up. There is no greater feeling than a positive, uplifting five star review and nothing more devastating than a one star. This is particularly true when that lone star comes with acidic words sans tact.

Creative types establish their own ways of dealing with these situations. Some avoid bad reviews altogether (much easier said than done), it is akin to trying to look away from a train wreck. Others allow advisors to read the reviews and only relate what the artist needs to know. Sadly, most artists read their own reviews, obsess over the bad ones, and bask in the temporary solace of the good ones. (The latter fits me.)

I offer this suggestion for artists and audiences alike; consider the quality and accuracy of the review before you choose to believe what has been said or written as a true representation of the work. Reviews that include some criticism of the facts as portrayed by the artist can be judged by the accuracy of the reviewers’ use of the same or related facts. In books, if a reviewer is critical of composition, grammar, or spelling consider the quality of the review itself. The bottom line is simple, if a review is poorly written or inaccurate how can it be considered a fair judge of someone else’s work?

Remember the artist cannot defend himself without being bombarded by the wrath of sour grapes. It is up to us, the audience, to defend those whose work we like and respect.

Defend your favorite artists, performers, and writers today!

Elizabeth’s Secrets http://amzn.to/IoXLgD

Dark Star http://amzn.to/KsXYOr

Today is the beginning of a new series of blog posts and corresponding tweets about writing and the writing life. Stay tuned!