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Literature Is More than a Sum of Its Parts

August 3, 2019

art, meaning, symbolism, visuality, writing

I have often mentioned this in the blog: Literature is more than a sum of its parts. In other words, a literary text – like any self-respecting art form – provides you with more than simply all of its words, paragraphs, and chapters.

To talk about literature being more than a sum of its parts is another way of saying the following two things:

The creation of meaning is not only the author’s job.
Symbolic power is exclusively (think about that for a moment) found not in what you see but in what you don’t.

I was pondering on today’s topic while listening to a song – as I mentioned above, all self-respecting art is more than a sum of its parts. And so, I decided to use this song as an example case.

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Colors in Writing: How To Use Them in Your Novel

June 28, 2019

Fiction Writing Tips, Writing

feelings, fiction, manipulation, symbolism, writing

Vision is one of our most important senses. We use our eyes to interact with much of the world around us. Unsurprisingly, colors reveal a vast universe of beauty and meaning. Why should they be absent from your fiction? Colors in writing are far more important than many authors give them credit for.

Since colors are so important in our everyday life, it’s only natural that we respond to them in fiction, too—ῥοδοδάκτυλος Ἠώς; Eos rhododactylos, rosy-fingered Dawn, says Homer.

colors in writing — Colors in writing often convey rich symbolic meanings

My personal favorite from modern English literature is a description in Pamela Zoline’s “The Heat Death of the Universe”, referring to a land that, like California(!) is “Cunt Pink and Avocado Green”.

Learning how to use colors in your writing can add significant depth to your fiction. So, let’s get started!

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How to Write Realistic Characters

June 15, 2019

Fiction Writing Tips, Writing

characters, creativity, fiction, literature, reality, writing

How to write realistic characters is something most fiction writers worry about. This is for good reason. Writing realistic characters, with realistic dialogues and inner worlds, is the key to writing realistic fiction.

Of course, before seeing how to write realistic characters, you should perhaps ask yourself whether it’s necessary for your novel to have realistic characters.

You might find that question a bit odd. Surely, what’s wrong with realistic characters? Why would anyone not want to write realistic characters?

We’ll take a look at this little detail, too. Sneak preview: it has to do with what I mentioned above, referring to “writing realistic fiction”.

After we get that out of the way, I’ll give you concrete tips on how to write realistic characters. Here’s another sneak preview: To write realistic characters, with believable dialogues and rich inner worlds, you must think like them, individually.

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