#I'm really not saying 'agonize over every aspect' but like... idk understand WHY you're doing things | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

essektheylyss · 2 years ago

Text

So often I consider writing a post on various different ways of using point of view and tense and why you would use any of them and how it might affect what you're trying to say, but honestly there is no way to write that post that would not be only a minute sample of uses and rationales and circumstances, and in the end the meaning would simply boil down to, "Literally everything a writer puts down on a page is a choice that has meaning and effects so you might as well make the choices intentionally before you inadvertently step on your own story."

#and really at that point you might as well go read body work by melissa febos instead #I've said it before and I'll say it again: I do mean LITERALLY everything.#I am actually EXACTINGLY intentional in my writing #to the point that I can fully identify EXACT things that I chose to do for reasons I didn't much like #and still now am annoyed at myself for doing.#like there is ONE specific thing in luminous worlds that I did out of lack of confidence and yanno what? still annoyed about it.#(it's published and done tho and that was the choice I made so I have left it and moved on cuz the lesson was learned.)#I was editing the piece I mentioned this weekend and there was one point where the manner of address was in dispute #and the editor had said to explain if I really felt strongly about not making a change #and I did take many of the changes suggested cuz they didn't do anything to the meaning OR they actually clarified a meaning #but this one which I had done somewhat unconsciously I realized like. no that actually has a purpose and meaning.#I'm really not saying 'agonize over every aspect' but like... idk understand WHY you're doing things #do! not! ever! compromise! on your intentions in a story!#anyway this is my only only only hard rule of writing #every time I have compromised on this rule I have regretted it #but I still love things I wrote years ago because I judge all pieces on whether or not they did what I intended.#if they accomplished that? they were good and they're still good.

16 notes · View notes