Well, after trying to catch up on this thread, here's my take on this 
whole thing:

* There is no One True Way to write. Period.*

I've hung out on the Fido WRITING echo for a couple of years, where some 
really good writers hang out, including several pros... and this is one 
point that gets echoed over and over. Some people work best creating a 
very detailed outline and writing from that. Others just sit down and 
plug right in. Some people come up with individual scenes, and then write 
connecting glue between them (I probably fall into this camp as much as 
anything). 

(One rather entertaining almost-flamewar started when someone came onto 
the echo and started asking questions about how the various authors 
worked, and then refusing to accept the answers when they conflicted with 
his preconceived notions. He kept insisting that all writers must, deep 
down, follow a similar set of mechanistic processes while writing; and 
that these processes could be deduced and bolied down into a formula for 
creating good writing. Needless to say, this attempt to create a "Grand 
Unified Theory of Writing" was not received well by several authors who 
had actual experience, and who knew this "gentleman" didn't have a clue.

Okay, I'm exaggerating a little bit. But not much.)

The only thing that really matters is the result: the story that comes 
out at the end. How you get there won't make a difference to the reader, 
if you're doing your job as a writer. Trying to say "*This* is the way 
you should write" can hurt instead of help; especially if you try to fit 
all writers into one writing method, and that method becomes a 
straightjacket.

If you keep beating your head against a wall trying to write something a 
certain way, and don't seem to get anywhere, then DON'T keep digging 
yourself into a hole. Try something different instead. If you can't get 
an outline worked into shape, try sitting down and just writing. If you 
start writing and the story keeps wandering all over the place, then try 
an outline to keep things on a better track. Whatever happens, don't be 
afraid to try something new -- and don't be afraid to say "This doesn't 
work for me, now it's time to try something else."

This is one of the areas where C&C -- and discussion on this ML -- can be 
extremely helpful. If you're stuck on a scene -- or having trouble 
putting together a story -- or have this great idea that you can't seem 
to work into shape -- then a suggestion from one of the other ML'ers 
could be just the spark you need to get things going. 

That being said... 

There are some basics that *do* matter, and are more-or-less universal. 

Grammar, spelling, and punctuation are the obvious ones. While people 
usually forgive problems with these in informal writing, like fanfics, 
mechanical problems can and do get in the way of enjoying a story.

Depending on the kind of story you're writing, characterization will 
usually be very important. If you're writing a "gag" or "problem" story 
-- "I want to build a story around a really awful pun," or "Genom comes 
up with a new boomer design/battle plan/other plot problem -- how do we 
stop it?" -- then characterization is less important than if you are 
doing a "How would Ranma deal with being permanently stuck in cursed 
form" kind of story. But no matter what kind of story you're doing, good 
characterization can help it. There's a moment of delight a reader can 
get when an author does a particularly good character bit, when the 
reader jumps up and says "Yes! *That's* character X!" or "<Chuckle> 
That's what character Y would do, all right." These moments can make or 
break a story, make the reader love it if it works -- or make the reader 
hate it when it doesn't work. 

There were some other points I wanted to make... but <Sigh> I'm afraid I 
forgot them by the time I sat down and started writing this thing.

Frito: Thank Ghu! I can hear da audience cheerin' now!

<Abashed> Getting down off my soapbox now...



Travis Butler
(The Professor, formerly of Myth and Magick!, Lawrence, KS;
 tbutler@tfs.net, now from the Wandering Powerbook;
 <http://www.tfs.net/personal/tbutler/>;
 Mac page <http://www.tfs.net/business/tbutler/>)

..Cats are the proof of a higher purpose to the universe.