January 25th, 2010 in Communication, Featured

Nonfiction and Fiction Writing – Worlds Apart

One of my role models is Cory Doctorow. Cory’s the co-editor of Boing Boing and the author of Little Brother, a teen sci fi adventure set in San Francisco in the near future.

I love Cory because like me, he has about ten jobs, and I admire him because he’s made a successful transition from nonfiction to fiction writing. You heard it here – this year I’m hoping to publish my YA (young adult) novel, Doubtful Sound. The book is in editing right now, and here are some things I’ve learned about how writing fiction for teens is different from writing career advice for the over twenty set:

Good fiction writing does not happen on command: When I’m on deadline for a Wall Street Journal piece, I just sit down and write. It doesn’t matter if I’m not in the mood, I produce anyway, and I’m fortunate in that the quality does not suffer. For my fiction to be any good, however, I have to feel inspired, and such a feeling is often difficult to pin down. If I had to earn a living every week based on how many decent fiction paragraphs I could churn out, I would probably starve.

Good fiction writing is an art form: To write my journalism articles, and even my nonfiction books, I follow a strict process that begins with research, continues with interviewing and draft writing, and finishes with one – maybe two – edits. When my editors provide feedback, it’s usually in the form of nips and tucks. Novel writing, on the the other hand, involves mixing a pallet of characters, settings, and plot lines. Sometimes you get lucky and you come across something brilliant, and sometimes it all goes horribly wrong. And the editing is often done by chainsaw.

An objective style will kill you: My nonfiction editors balk when I insert too much of myself in my material, even when it’s an opinion piece. My job is to be a non-partisan distributor of information, and I am to do that job as parsimoniously as possible. As a fiction writer, though, I am expected to possess an artistic style that is unlike anyone else on the planet, and to feel comfortable expressing that style fully. A removed, unrelatable author and/or narrator is the kiss of death. This takes some getting used to, and I’m still working at it.

Immersion helps: I write nonfiction pieces on so many different careers and aspects of the business world that if I were to go onsite and experience each and every one for myself, I would never get anything done. I rely instead on the accounts and experiences of others to make my material true to life. As a writer of YA fiction, I can’t get away with this. In order to accurately portray the lives of teens in the early 2000s, I need to be among them. For this reason, I workshopped my novel at a private school in Chicago among 60 eighth graders. What I lost in time, I more than made up for in authenticity.

Maybe it’s different for everyone who writes both nonfiction and fiction, but for me, the latter is much, much, more difficult. Fiction writing is more creative, but you shouldn’t be fooled. The effort and strategy that go into every strong novel are immense and sometimes overwhelming. I am humbled to think that someday my book can stand alongside the novels of authors who make it look easy.

Alexandra Levit

Alexandra Levit's goal is to help people find meaningful jobs - quickly and simply - and to succeed beyond measure once they get there. If you're struggling with what to do with your career in the New Year, visit www.newjobnewyou.com for free guidance and resources.

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Comments

Bamboo Forest - PunIntended says on January 25th, 2010 at 1:37 pm
The only fiction writing I’ve done has been short stories, which I enjoy quite a bit. I have to agree with you on the inspiration requirement. I come up with my ideas when they sail through my head. But I haven’t been able to just sit down and construct them through will. They must come to me.
Cynthia says on January 25th, 2010 at 8:25 pm
Man, you are singing my song. I used to write a lot of fiction, but now that my non-fiction writing has taken off (as in, it’s my full time job) my fiction work has taken a dive off a high cliff.
I’m always frustrated with the things you mention in this post. I can create a blog post on demand but if I demand fiction I get a string of horrible sentences or worse yet, a blank piece of paper.
Fiction and Non-Fiction come from two different sides of the brain – I’m convinced of that – and switching between them simply isn’t as easy as it seems. Sigh. I miss my fiction.
Helen says on January 26th, 2010 at 3:44 am
Great article. I’ve found that I’ve been a lot happier about my fiction writing when I accepted that having writing as a hobby was perfectly acceptable. If I should ever get published, that will be a nice, if unlikely, bonus. There’s too much emphasis these days on making a living from the things you love – often it’s just a way to kill off your affection.
Amateurs of the world, unite! I say…
good luck with your YA, kids always need something good to read :)
Colleen says on January 26th, 2010 at 5:13 am
I write/edit how-to books full-time. I wish I could say that I gracefully sashay between working on the how-to books and creating stories, but that’s simply not the case, and I feel a lot of angst because of it.
Immersion therapy works for a lot of people. I am a bit shy for that approach and opt instead to read, read, read.
Also helpful: getting fresh air, trekking it to the grocery produce aisle, making a fresh pot of coffee (regardless of whether I drink it), and tidying up my desk to eliminate any evidence of my how-to projects.
Thanks for this blog today. I’ll return to it often.
Richard | RichardShelmerdine.com says on January 26th, 2010 at 5:25 am
Very thought provoking article. I know exactly what you mean when you say being objective cannot work for fiction work. You have to tell a story, not give out information.
All Women Stalker says on January 26th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
I really liked how you differentiated the two types of writing. I myself jump from one kind to another. However, I really do find it hard to take away the romantic voice I use (for creative fiction) when I write non-fiction. Maybe when formality is imposed on me, then I’ll write in a more rigid and academic style.
Nacho Jordi says on January 27th, 2010 at 6:36 am
Nice post, and what a work of research you have done for your novel! As you say, writing it is surely different for every human being. In my case, for what it is worth, both fields encourage each other: when I write non-fiction, I miss the “adventure” of fiction, and after writing fiction, I go back to non-fiction for shelter and to heal my pride :)
Marisa Birns says on February 6th, 2010 at 10:23 am
The way I try to get inspiration to visit and flow is to write a weekly short piece of fiction. It’s called flash fiction because the story must be 1,000 words or under. I’m a member of a writing community on Twitter, and we post a link to our blogs and read/comment on stories. It’s been very, very helpful.
Also, just like a commenter mentioned, getting outside, sitting in a coffee shop people watching/listening, etc. is a rather good way to “get” the experience that might find its way into a story.
I used to be a journalist, too. And also have done newsletter/speech writing. Yes, non-fiction doesn’t require the same tools as fiction.
But I’ve also thought that writing, any kind, helps a writer keep those writerly muscles oiled and available.
Teresa says on February 16th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
Thank you for sharing this! I’ve been doing quite a bit of non-fiction writing for work these past few years. I started writing a little fiction when I was younger, but I wasn’t able to keep it up. I’ve been looking to pick it up soon, and these insights would definitely help me to at least get started.
I agree though, fiction seems harder to write than non-fiction. With non-fiction, you have research and other resources to pull material from, and you can be as straightforward as you need to be. With fiction, however, you can do a lot of research and preparation, but in the end, it all depends on the strength of your style and story.
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