Oh the life of the writer: visions spring to mind of days whiled away sitting in cafes, sipping espresso, being paid to type away into a shiny ibook.
But how do you go about making this dream a reality? Get some life experience, take a class, and appreciate that you will probably have to hack your masterpiece to pieces before it sees the light of day, are just some of the pearls of wisdom from Judy Holland, published author and creative writing lecturer at Goldsmiths University.
Fiction is made in the rewriting
Although she was always interested in writing, Judy’s way into the profession was through a publishing job, in which she gained experience proof reading her lecturers’ work at university in the US. By taking this route, Judy has always been aware of the vital role which editing has in the final creation of a work – and this editing might be done by the writer themselves or third parties such as professional editors, friends or family.
Many people believe that the hard work of writing is in getting the book from the imagination onto paper. In reality the majority of works have been edited and re-written countless times. ‘It’s a process, not instant,’ says Judy.
Although the thought of having your work picked apart and analysed can be a daunting one, it is also liberating. In appreciating the editing work which has gone into great pieces of literature, they become more accessible to the aspiring writer. Once you accept that ‘fiction is made in the rewriting’ you may find that your masterpiece is already there, waiting to be edited into greatness.
Writing is a skill, take a course
Although natural talent and a flair for the written word are obviously a big part of being a good writer, there are other skills involved which are vital for the aspiring writer, in order to get work published and earn a living.
Judy, who teaches the screenwriting MA course at Goldsmiths, says ‘all my courses teach things which I wish I had learnt when I became a writer’. Good courses will be oriented to the skills needed to be a working writer, such as how to get published, how the industry works and routes into it, as opposed to just teaching you how to write. They also help you to build a portfolio of work in a controlled environment.
Judy also recommends the study of literature, having read English Literature at University herself. ‘Reading shapes your taste, it educates you on what you enjoy and gives you role models,’ she says.
Live and soak up new experiences
Don’t lock yourself in the library just yet. Judy’s next piece of advice is to get out and live as much as possible. Writers are constantly advised to ‘write what you know’. But you can only ‘know’ if you’ve had rich and diverse life experiences. This experience gives the writer more scope for finding not only a voice that rings true but also one which has vital originality.
‘You want to tell stories that nobody else can tell, even if you are dealing with universal issues such as birth, death or marriage,’ says Judy.
Always be aware that inspiration can come at any time, often at times when your brain is focused elsewhere like when you’re on the bus or just before you go to sleep. A picture, noise or even a smell can be all the creative spark you need to generate a story idea – carry a notebook at all times so that any flashes of inspiration can be recorded.
Be flexible
Judy has written in a variety of mediums from detective novels to radio plays. Compared to her native US she says the UK has a lot more overlap between writing styles. In the United States, there is a physical separation between scriptwriters, who gravitate to LA and novelists or playwrights who tend to settle in urban, multicultural, New York. Britain, on the other hand, tends to foster writers who work on a project-to-project basis, often shifting between screenplay, short story and radio. This overlap has its upsides, as it means aspiring writers can find out which medium suits them the best (or pays the best).
In film, the writer is notoriously neglected and sidelined, even seen as a bit of a nuisance once the script is handed over. Whilst in radio, Judy found, the writer is treated with the reverence he or she is due, with meeting and greeting, warm smiles and cups of tea. Be prepared to look outside what you see as your favoured medium be it short story, script, radio play or novel.
The LA writers’ strike brought to public attention the fact that low pay is an issue for many writers. Shockingly, research conducted recently found that half of UK writers surveyed made less than the minimum wage from their writing. Also, project based work means that financial security can be a struggle to achieve if one relies upon writing alone. Judy advises aspiring writers to be open to applying their skills to other areas to pay the rent, such as teaching or using their editing skills to improve other people’s work, as a script editor in film, for example.
‘You need to be driven, it is an incredibly competitive industry’ Judy says. Young writers should constantly be on the lookout for new competitions, initiatives, anything that will get their work out there and push them up the ladder towards the shiny ibook coffee shop lifestyle. Websites such as BBC’s writersroom are great resources to keep up to date with opportunities available for young writers.
Make the most of new technologies
And finally, for those of you who haven’t thrown your pens aside in disgust at the prospect of constant editing, harsh competition and low pay, Judy provides a heartening note for the young writers out there. The current rapid developments in information technology, she claims, mean that ‘now is a better time to be a young writer than ever before’. Technological innovations such as blogs and digital film mean that it is easier and cheaper for writers to find a mass audience for their work without having to go through the lottery of sending their work off to multiple publishers in the vain hope of someone chancing upon it.
Judy is especially excited about the podcast, which has created a vast market of young listeners waiting to be tapped. Savvy writers can make the most of these opportunities by looking into spoken word or radio play formats. Mobile phones, too, provide a potentially huge audience for short, cheaply made films. Companies are looking for young writers to capture these new audiences, and are willing to pay for the privilege.
In short, the world of writing may be slightly like the new wild west: perilous and unstable but, with brave new frontiers to be conquered, an undeniably exciting prospect.
