- Never open a book with weather.
- Avoid prologues.
- Never use a verb other than “said” to carry dialogue.
- Never use an adverb to modify the verb “said”…he admonished gravely.
- Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose.
- Never use the words “suddenly” or “all hell broke loose.”
- Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.
- Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.
- Don’t go into great detail describing places and things.
- Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.
This made me laugh. I respect Elmore Leonard’s writing, but don’t agree with his rules. Even the thought of literature with rules is preposterous.
Best book on writing is by Stephen King. I learned much.
I was actually going to say that, but refrained because I thought you might think of me as uneducated and poorly read. But I’ve actually had 4 manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals and was once a University Prof. Just goes to show I should be more confident in stating my opinion! (I think you remember I’m Twinkles mom.)
Oh, yes, I remember, Sue. I enjoy your comments, don’t worry about what I might think! But now you got my attention. What subject did you teach?
A 200 level class called Heath and wellness, which was an SAS class (meaning a certain number of SAS class credits were required for graduation) – SAS meant that the class required a great deal of writing. The University (GVSU) had a commitment to ensure all students were proficient writers. In addition, I taught N402 & N410, both senior level nursing courses, one didactic and the other clinical.