We all know plenty of pitfalls hide between the start and finish of a story. Everyone has rules to avoid them when writing. Here is Elmore Leonard’s famous list:
- Never open a book with weather.
- Avoid prologues.
- Never use a verb other than “said” to carry dialogue.
- Never use an adverb to modify the verb “said”…he said gravely.
- You are allowed only three exclamation points per 100,000 words of prose.
- Never use the words “suddenly” or “all hell broke loose.”
- Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
- Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.
- Don’t go into great detail describing places and things.
- Leave out the parts that readers skip.
https://crimereads.com/celebrating-elmore-leonards-rules-for-writing/
What principles have you discovered to guide you? Gather up a few of your favorites and share them. We’d also like to know why you think they are good rules.
The next Arizona Mystery Writers Meeting is Saturday, August 8th, at 10am MST. The meeting link will be sent to our newsletter list of members and active participants. Watch for it.
It’s ok to share the zoom link with trusted friends who are interested in mysteries. If you want to be added to the newsletter list, send your name and email to amwmembershipchair@gmail.com.
Status Reports
In our live meetings, we used to ask everyone about any achievements in writing: publications, awards, even really nice rejections. And we ask about book-related events, such as readings, conferences, and podcasts.
Let’s start doing that online. We’ll ask you how you’re coping with the pandemic, and also about what’s going on in your book world. Even if you haven’t won a Pulitzer Prize, maybe you can tell us about the best novel you read this month.
See you at the meeting!
