Treat Writing Like a Job

Alice McDermott said that she treats fiction writing like a full-time job — because it is one.

Alice writes four days a week and treats writing like a real job on those four days. She’s never been exclusively a full-time fiction writer. She teaches, does workshops, and fills her time with other activities as well. Few fiction writers actually write full time … or rather, few of them make it an exclusive job.

“As literary fiction writers, we’re trying to get to something true of us all. So write about common humanity, communal experience, not about a place, plot. Show universal truth to the reader in an interesting way.”

That sounds like a full-time job to me.

Learn more about Alice McDermott and her writing at https://www.alice-mcdermott.com/

Making a Book out of Wrecks and Ruins

 

What, exactly, inspired my forthcoming novel, Wrecks and Ruins? Well, a few things.

This book was actually the joining together of two separate inspirations. I keep a file of ideas and concepts for future books and stories. One of those ideas was that of a husband and wife deciding to divorce and making it a celebration—still good friends, but letting one another go. In their new searches for new mates, they came to understand that what they were looking for was one another.

It was 2018, and I was entering a contest to write a novel in three days. I wanted something that didn’t require a lot of intricate plotting, like my last novel, The Color of Jadeite. This relationship-steeped story seemed like a good choice.

As I began to think of character development, it occurred to me that the characters from a story I had written years before, “Cicadas,” would perfectly fit the roles for the characters in this book. And I realized that Brood X would be back in a few years, making it a perfect “check-in” time. So the idea of a sequel, of sorts, for “Cicadas” meshed with the concept I had originally envisioned as more of a comedy under the working title of “Divorce Courting.” Wrecks and Ruins evolved into something different.

The best way to learn more about Wrecks and Ruins is to read or listen to the original story, “Cicadas.” You can hear or read an abridged version on WYPR or Syndic Literary Journal at the following links.


https://www.wypr.org/show/the-signal/2015-04-23/the-altar-of-innocence-baltimore-mandolin-orchestra-and-fiction-from-eric-d-goodman


https://www.syndicjournal.us/cover-syndic-no-14/story-leaving-by-eric-d-goodman/

Prose is Never Finished

 

National Book Award Winner Alice McDermott describes writing prose as a never-ending endeavor. "Prose is never finished. It's a process that only ends when you allow it to. You can always improve your writing."

She suggests writers feel their way through a novel rather than target a specific destination. "Writing fiction is intuition, the sculpting of material and selection of words. There are turns in a story that writers don't expect, that they don't see coming."

It's that mystery—the not knowing where she's headed—that McDermott finds fascinating. In fact, she always begins without a plot and develops it as she writes.

"There's the danger of losing enthusiasm if you know the plot before you start writing. With literary fiction, it's best to begin without knowing exactly where the story is going."

What do you think: is prose ever perfectly complete? If you are a writer, do you prefer to plot or feel your way through a novel?

New Shelf Life for the New Year

Looking for some books to start off the new year? My latest book reviews were published in the January/February issue of Baltimore Style Magazine.

The three works of fiction reviewed in this issue are all about people who need people.

A House Among the Trees by Julia Glass revolves around a children’s author and illustrator and his assistant.

Making Room: Baltimore Stories by Djelloul Marbrook delves into the lives of very different individuals who come together for a worthy effort.

And The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott is filled with nuns, and a family that lives with them.

Pick up your copy of Baltimore Style, or check it out online!

http://baltimorestyle.com/category/arts_culture/shelf_life/