Dianne Emley | Ten Commandments of Fiction Writing

Thank you, Fresh Fiction for inviting me to blog today! I’m Dianne Emley, author of the L.A. Times bestselling Detective Nan Vining “thrillogy”: THE FIRST CUT, CUT TO THE QUICK, and, just out, THE DEEPEST CUT. These three are a thrillogy because they have an overarching storyline in which Nan Vining obsessively pursues the man who attacked her and left her for dead, the creep whom Vining and her teenage daughter call T.B. Mann—The Bad Man. The Nan Vining series continues! I’m working on the fourth which will be out in 2010.

I’ve learned a lot about the art and business of writing since the first book hit the shelves. I’ve become not just smarter, but wiser. I’ve developed a few rules that I strive to follow when I’m writing and editing a book and some that govern my behavior when the book is out. I’d like to share these with you. Herewith:

Dianne Emley’s Ten Commandments of Fiction Writing

1. I shall heed good editorial advice, shun bad advice, and learn how to tell the difference.

2. I shall rewrite, rewrite, rewrite until my fingers are crippled and blood drips from my forehead, until being drawn and quartered seems preferable to reading the book one more time, until the book is as perfect as I can make it.

3. I shall heed Raymond Chandler’s advice to never respond to a bad review, no matter how pig-headed, uninformed, and just plain wrong it is. Conversely, I shall remember that good reviews do not make me queen and I still have to take out the garbage and scoop the cat litter.

4. I shall use the most precise words possible, use adverbs with discretion, apply exclamation points with the lightest hand, and seek out the wisdom of the dictionary and thesaurus.

5. I shall verify that all facts, locations, laws, and procedures are accurate, but shall not fall in love with research and overburden the book with excessive details.

6. I shall strive to keep working harder, digging deeper, and pushing the envelope to improve my craft. When I flounder, I shall remember Sue Grafton’s advice to “trust the process.”

7. I shall meet my deadlines and nurture my relationships with my editors, agent, marketers, and publicists, shall curb the temptation to act like a diva, and will never say to a restaurant host or hostess, “Don’t you know who I am?”

8. I shall write faithfully, diligently, and to the best of my ability all the days of my life or until I lose my mind, whichever comes first.

9. I shall never forget that my very respected readers are my employers, the ones who ultimately pay my electricity bill. I shall never write down to them and will always play fair and do what I can to keep them turning the pages.

10. I shall always be grateful for the support, patience, and tolerance of my husband, family, and friends who fully comprehend what it means to have a full-time crime novelist in their midst!

There you have it. Like any good advice, these rules aren’t always easy to follow, but I do try.

Do you have any rules you follow for writing or reading? I’d love to hear them!