Lesson 1: Why and What to Write?
What to Write? (1). Non-fiction.
You may already know what you hope to write, but it's always useful to consider the different options. These can be roughly divided into Fiction and Non-fiction, Verse and Other.
Creative writing is usually understood to be synonymous with fiction, but non-fiction can also be creative. As Constance Hale puts it in her excellent "Sin and Syntax" guide, 'writing does not need to be fiction to be full of voice'.
In this section, we'll have a quick look at some of the different types of non-fiction you might choose to write.
AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
Autobiography is a biography of yourself. It is, literally, the story of your own life, written by you, or by someone else acting as a ghostwriter.
The subject of an autobiography needs to be very unusual in some way before a commercial publisher will consider taking on the work. Are you a celebrity, a household name, a hero or a notorious villain? If your name is already well-known to the man or woman in the street, then you might be able to sell your autobiography. If not, then you probably won't. That fact need not prevent you from writing it! If you have led an interesting life, then by all means write your life story. It will make a lasting memento for you, and an heirloom for your family. When my father turned seventy, I gave him a posh pen and binder and told him to write his life story. Within a week, he had produced 15,000 words. The story is a special one to the whole family and Father, recently turned eighty, has added another chapter.
To write your autobiography, begin by organising your material. Make notes of key happenings and assign dates, then add details as you remember them. Before you begin the actual writing, decide on your beginning point. Will you give some family background? Will you set your life in its historical context? Will you start with your birth, or with your earliest memory?
While organising your notes, make three columns. In one, list facts such as birth, first school, siblings, illness, marriage. These are events affecting you and your family. In the second, add wider happenings, such as the coming of decimal currency, war or policy changes which affected your neighbourhood or the country. In the final column, add events with an emotional impact for you (and, perhaps, only for you). These might include losing your favourite marble, overcoming a fear, falling in love or silent achievements.
When writing your story from your notes, draw from these three columns. This will ensure that your life story is seen in sharp focus against its family and cultural background.
BIOGRAPHY.
Many of the comments about autobiography apply equally to biography. Generally, a subject must be famous in some way for his/her life story to be of interest to a commerical publisher. The exception is the local hero or historical character, whose adventures might be of interest in the local community. In this case, a small or local press might produce a short-run edition.
As with the autobiography, lack of commercial interest need not prevent you from writing a biography. The main things you need to consider are research and approach. Even if you interview the subject or immediate family you will be getting material from someone other than yourself, so you should seek a variety of sources to allow for personal bias or prejudice. You should also decide whether your biography is to be admiring, warts-and-all or debunking. The most honest method is to approach the subject matter with an open mind, and allow your research to dictate the treatment.
COOKBOOKS.
Cookbooks are creativity twice over, as you will be writing about a subject that is itself creative. If writing a cookbook for domestic use or for some other purpose (such as a local charity) you will choose from your own family recipes and, perhaps, from those of other people. In any case feel free to annotate your recipes with their source, any appropriate history or interesting association.
HISTORY.
As with writing biography, history should be properly researched from different sources. If possible, find contemporary resources. When presenting historical events or characters, they must be put into the proper context. It is of little use to apply 21st Century ideals to people who lived in earlier centuries. When reading material about a particular period, event or character, ask yourself three things.
Who wrote this? (i.e. was it an eyewitness, a friend of the protagonist, an antogonist or a later historian?)
How did s/he come by the information? (i.e. s/he was there, s/he was told about it by a grandson of the protagonist, it was common knowledge.)
What was his/her purpose in passing on the information? (i.e. to set the record straight, to whitewash a reputation, to put a stop to rumour.)
If you suspect the source of your information had some strong bias, it is important to hunt out other sources which may uphold or contradict the given impression.
HOW-TO.
The how-to is devoted to teaching others to do something. It can be very interesting to write, especially as you often discover things you didn't know you knew. Writing a how-to is excellent practice for your analytical brain. It makes you notice things you usually take for granted.
JOURNALS.
A journal is similar to an autobiography, except that it is more a record of day to day doings, recorded while the events are fresh in your mind. Keeping a journal can be valuable practice for other writing. Just as an example; if you record the first hawthorn blossom for the year on October 10th, you will know not to write a story in which the thorn tree begins to bloom in August. Thoughts, emotions, scenes and anecdotes can all find their way into a journal, and all can be recycled later.
TRAVELOGUE.
As with the other examples given here, travelogues may be written for your own or family enjoyment or for a wider audience. Before you begin, organise your material in chronological order and decide on the tone of the piece. To some extent, this will be dictated by the kind of travel you experienced. A backpacking holiday in your own country will be less formal than a trip to a politically uncomfortable region, just as a millionaire's yachting adventures will differ from those of the weekend kayaker. Try to work in interesting or emotive anecdotes as well as factual information.
Of course the examples of non-fiction given here are by no means exhaustive. I have not mentioned essays, letters, articles or newspaper reports. Generally, I have stuck to the type of non-fiction that is most closely related to fiction; truly creative writing.
