ATTN JMS: Writting Difficulty:(

[B5JMS Poster]

Subject: ATTN JMS: Writting Difficulty:(
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 No. | DATE        |  FROM
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+  1: Aug 11, 1996: The Nugents <nugent at ix.netcom.com>
+  2: Aug 11, 1996: jrholmes at execpc.com (Mary Jean Holmes)
*  3: Aug 11, 1996: jmsatb5 at aol.com (Jms at B5)

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From: The Nugents <nugent at ix.netcom.com>
Lines: 23

Mr Straczynski,

	I have an interest in writing and feel that I write decently, but I have a 
problem which I thought maybe you could help me with.

	I try to write but find my work greatly influenced by outside sources such as 
other written works, movies and television shows.  I seem to be unable to write 
something that hasn't already been done or write something that has been done in a 
different way.  Does that make sense?

	How do you overcome this or do you use these influences somehow?

	I am almost 18 and have been trying my hand at fiction for a while now but seem 
stuck.

	I really appreciate how active you are with us and I realize you are very busy 
so please do not feel like I expect any in depth help.

				Thank You For Sharing Your Creation With Us,

						John Nugent



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From: jrholmes at execpc.com (Mary Jean Holmes)
Lines: 78

The Nugents <nugent at ix.netcom.com> wrote:

>Mr Straczynski,
>
>I have an interest in writing and feel that I write decently, but I have a 
>problem which I thought maybe you could help me with.
>
>I try to write but find my work greatly influenced by outside sources such as 
>other written works, movies and television shows.  I seem to be unable to write 
>something that hasn't already been done or write something that has been done in a 
>different way.  Does that make sense?
>
>How do you overcome this or do you use these influences somehow?
>
>I am almost 18 and have been trying my hand at fiction for a while now but seem 
>stuck.
>
>I really appreciate how active you are with us and I realize you are very busy 
>so please do not feel like I expect any in depth help.
>
>				Thank You For Sharing Your Creation With Us,
>
>						John Nugent
>
John, begin by understanding that there *is* no such thing as a
completely original story.  All the archetypes, sterotypes,
essential plots, etc. have been told before, in many and various
combinations.  The trick is to find new and entertaining ways of
putting different pieces together, in a manner that will speak to
the here-and-now, if not to the ages.

The creative process can be very different for each writer.  I've
been writing fiction since the sixth grade (sf/fantasy and a
little bit of adventure), have quite a bit of prose under my
belt, have edited fanzines, helped amateurs become pros, and
pestered the heck out of my professional mentors when I was still
trying to master the basics of my craft.

There's a lot I could tell you about my personal evolution as a
writer (and the growth process never ends, believe me.  If you
think you have learned all you need to know and can't get any
better, then you have even more to learn than you realize).  But
as to your particular question....

We are all influenced by what we see and read, and to deny that
would be to lie.  But the more you have read and seen, the more
any single influence is sort of "watered down."  Do research.
Study legends, folklore, mythology.  Learn as much as you can
about any area upon which you intend to touch, or in which you
are interested.  Build a deep foundation of knowledge so that
even though you are influenced, you are not *imitating* others'
works.

When you find yourself being influenced by the works of others,
study them as closely as you can.  Try to identify what it is in
these stories that is touching you, and in the process, you will
begin to find your own inner voice.  *That* is what you want to
put into your writing.  Use your imagination to invent characters
and places and peoples that embody those elements with which you
identify, but don't make clones of things you have already seen.

And while you're learning, try to avoid doing fan fiction.  I
wrote dozens of short stories, novellas, and novels of my own
imagination long before I felt I was a sufficiently mature writer
to attempt derivate fiction.  Because when you're writing
something based on another's creation, you have to try to not
only understand that universe and the mind of the one who created
it, you also have to find a way to make your own voice sing in
harmony with theirs.  It is *damned* difficult, and although it
can be a tremendous and satisfying challenge, it is not an
experience for novices (unless they're just playing around for
practice).

Good luck!  And I hope Joe can provide you with some better
insights than I.

MJ


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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com (Jms at B5)
Lines: 47

I try to write but find my work greatly influenced by outside sources such
as other written works, movies and television shows.  I seem to be unable
to write something that hasn't already been done or write something that
has been done in a different way.  Does that make sense?"

There's a quote, I forget who said it: "Of course everything has already
been said, but since no one was listening, we must begin again."

The problem, I see, in what you've described...and this is on the benefit
of three paragraphs and ten seconds thought, so take this with a grain of
salt...is that you don't actually know what it is you want to say as a
writer.  Or that you need to say.  You're drawing sources from outside
wriers, TV shows, "unable" to do otherwise, by your statement.

Let me toss another quote in here, again from a source I can't recall:
"Too many people mistake a passion for reading with a desire to write." 
It's possibly you may fall under this category.

See, the problem with the writing biz is that everyone has access to
keyboard, and we all think we can write, if we just had the time to do it.
 Not true.  Give me a warehouse full of paintbrushes and easels, and 100
years, and I may in time become adequate, but never more than that.

Writing is a mug's game.  It's heartbreak.  It's pain and struggle and
rejection and isolation and the only reason...the ONLY reason...to do it
is if you've got something to say, something that burns in you so that you
can't *NOT* write.  If you're doing it on a whim, as a curiosity, as you
say "trying your hand," then this may not be the field for you.  This is a
hardass, hard-work, lifetime job, and if you're not driven to say
something, maybe you should consider something else.

On the other hand...you're 18.  Sometimes it takes us a while to figure
out just what the hell it is we want to say, or want to do.  What it is
you need to say may not have occured to you yet.  On a third hand, I think
all writers begin by playing around with other writer's voices, using
techniques of other writers as sort of training wheels while they hone
their own voice, dropping them by the wayside as new personal techniques
are perfected, until the writer's voice is unique.

Decide what it is you want, and what you *need,* not what seems like
itmight be kinda interesting...the rest takes care of itself.


 jms



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