Do you have any advice for us writers, from an artist’s point of view?
When I work on a video game, one of most-important things I have to keep in mind is the Tone of the game. Whether you’re the writer, a concept artist, a level designer, an animator, or an interface designer, each of you are working on the same project, and all your art and design needs to work together to create a consistent Tone.
To do this, we often will put together a “tone” folder where the project directors can put stuff: sample music, sample photos and artwork, a text file with words and descriptions that describe what the game is about (ie. ash, gothic, misty, overcast—you can probably tell what setting I’m describing just from those words alone).
Tone is a very important part of writing novels. I recommend creating your own Tone Folder and adding items that fit with the feeling of your novel. This is your target. This is the emotional feeling you want readers to experience when they enter your world. Now, don’t spend so much time working on your tone that it keeps you from writing, but taking an hour at the beginning of your project will help you create a cohesive world.
(Side note from Trevor: I absolutely love this idea. I’d go even further and add this: If you have room for cork boards or whiteboards where you spend time writing, go ahead and start pinning physical copies of the above to them.)
How about as a writer yourself?
If your lifelong dream is to write, then prioritize your life so that writing takes precedence. I wouldn’t suggest putting this before taking care of your family. If you become a writer but in the process you have also become a jerk, then you really haven’t gained anything worthwhile.
There are a few “rules” I’ve come up with that help me as I work on a writing project.
First Rule of Writing Fiction: Strive for Emotion. You’re trying to make the reader feel something and then care about what they’re feeling. Use the “objective correlative” to master showing. Know when to tell.
Second Rule of Writing Fiction:
If it’s boring, cut it. If the information is crucial, find a new, non-boring way to present it. In essence, write what you think is cool and skip the boring stuff.
Third Rule of Writing Fiction:
Is this the best thing for you to be writing right now? Is it an original, high-concept idea that’s worth spending your time on it? Write what excites, intrigues, fascinates you, and makes you FEEL. If you’re not passionate about it, nobody else will be either.
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