Academic Writing vs. Fiction Writing
As an academic writer and teacher, I have been trained to hyper fixate on the rules and the formality of my writing. However, in fiction writing the rules go out the window. (Not completely, of course! Fiction writing, in fact, has its own rules.) So, if you come from a formal writing background or are a student who must abide by formal, academic writing standards, here are some tips to ease the transition into fiction writing.
Instead of worrying about the perfect sentence as you write, do these:
Turn off your editing brain. Let the words flow and resist going back and modifying your sentences. Creativity is sourced in the right side of your brain, while logic and correcting and editing pulls from the left. If you jump back and forth, you will impair your creativity and hinder your word count goals. Editing comes later!
Read in your genre and study the flow and style of words in your favorite novels. This is important because if you’re immersed in academics due to being a student or in a formal writing field, you need to counter that type of reading to get your brain wrapped around what creative writing looks like.
Takeaways from academic writing that still DO hold true:
Drafting! Novels take LOTS of drafts, so embrace the writing process your professor always harped on.
Peer reviews: Another fresh set of eyes is as important for novels as it is for your essay and thesis writing.
Happy writing!
