tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post2815288461668654876..comments2024-03-27T10:02:56.747-04:00Comments on Fiction University: The Importance of Commas, Meter, and Reading Aloud for the Fiction WriterJanice Hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-25830869136504502021-11-29T08:40:31.478-05:002021-11-29T08:40:31.478-05:00Rhythm comforts and helps readers as they enjoy a ...Rhythm comforts and helps readers as they enjoy a story. I noticed a pattern during a concert in the changing rhythms and pacing's of several musical compositions. I actually follow certain musical pieces during writing. It helps that I am a musician, but is not necessary. An extreme example is a sunrise scene following Also Sprach Zarathustra, used also in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Worked the Worldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10538054618170388150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-76220812750009404562021-10-15T13:38:24.222-04:002021-10-15T13:38:24.222-04:00Also good points about both the title of Tennyson&...Also good points about both the title of Tennyson's work (I;d not noticed that!) and audiobooks, which last I also touched upon in my answer to Christina, below. --D<br />Dariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18080152840983156849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-5670219340871315982021-10-15T13:36:52.332-04:002021-10-15T13:36:52.332-04:00Christina, I agree, the reading aloud is best left...Christina, I agree, the reading aloud is best left for the later phases of revision. I love that you use character voice *as you hear it,* complete with accents and all. That's the way! <br /><br />It also makes me think of audiobooks, where the best prose and prose rhythm can be destroyed by a voice actor who's not completely in tune with the material they're reading. It works both ways. Those among us who are planning an audiobook of their work should be very exacting in their choice of narrators, even if means dozens of auditions. <br /><br />Best,<br />DarioDariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18080152840983156849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-80313230144988133102021-10-15T13:29:40.029-04:002021-10-15T13:29:40.029-04:00Ken, thank you for commenting. Your observation ab...Ken, thank you for commenting. Your observation about the human mind never forgetting rhythm is very astute, and probably not surprising given that we spend months in the womb listening to the steady rhythm of the mother's heartbeat...<br /><br />Best,<br />DarioDariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18080152840983156849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-52290830948236026122021-10-15T11:45:44.112-04:002021-10-15T11:45:44.112-04:00I like how you think. Early on, I don't always...I like how you think. Early on, I don't always read aloud. If there's a lot to fix it isn't always worth the effort at that point. When I do, though, I lend the characters the voices I hear in my head. Thankfully, no one hears me. I recently read aloud a short story of 5K words. Even though it was fantasy, in my mind I heard the heroine's voice as having a southern accent (I'm sure mine is awful, but it suited my purposes). After, I struggled to go back to my normal voice, which at this point has become influenced by my characters so "normal" should have an asterisk beside it. Therefore, yes, I completely agree. Rhythm is oh so important. When it's right it might as well be music.Christina Anne Hawthornehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11469200451589333014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-42993964899650125112021-10-15T10:56:25.453-04:002021-10-15T10:56:25.453-04:00Ahh, rhythm. It really can matter -- the human min...Ahh, rhythm. It really can matter -- the human mind never really forgets it, and that's not even including the audiobook side of the business. Reading a passage aloud is by far the best simple editing trick there is.<br /><br />Hmm. I hadn't noticed, but there's even a dactyl in the *title* of "Charge of the Light Brigade." That's committing to a pattern.Ken Hugheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02732164204232936705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-70043420134079707662021-10-14T14:26:01.947-04:002021-10-14T14:26:01.947-04:00I'm glad you found it interesting, V.M, and th...I'm glad you found it interesting, V.M, and thanks for commenting. If you write poetry, you likely know good deal more about meter than I do. I used to just read my dialogue aloud, but when I found that several author friends and clients whom I admire make a habit of reading their entire work, I was sold. And bringing awareness of poetic meter to prose can work magic.<br /><br />I don't write poetry, but love it and read it regularly. I have half a shelf full of poetry, mostly the English C17-C20 classics. I always preface a writing session with 15-20 minutes of reading poems, it primes the creative pump wonderfully.<br /><br />Best,<br />DarioDariohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18080152840983156849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-71867379954224955932021-10-14T14:10:50.886-04:002021-10-14T14:10:50.886-04:00Fascinating. I need to go back over my WIP thinkin...Fascinating. I need to go back over my WIP thinking about rhythm now. I also write poetry, and didn't think to apply what I use in that discipline to my books. Thanks for bringing it to light.V.M.Sanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02587346074785148671noreply@blogger.com