It's the first Wednesday of the month and so that means it’s time for another Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG) post! In an IWSG post, we writers bring our writing challenges and problems out into the open to share with each other and try to offer solutions. My challenge this month has been the book of short fiction I've been currently working on. One of the stories I’ve been revising for it has been my most difficult yet since it involves parallel universes and quantum mechanics, an area of science that I’m not good at explaining. So having to revise and re-edit it several times has kept me at behind. I keep telling myself and everyone that it's going to be out in the next month. But when that next month comes I still have several of the book’s stories to revise. I will get it done though. Once I start something I really care about and I tell other people that I’m doing it for them I finish it.
The October 6 question is: In your writing, where do you draw the line, with either topics or language? I don’t use extreme violence, extreme gore or profanity unless the plot or character development calls for them. I don't like to waste my time telling stories that simply shock or disgust people. Many authors, movie and television producers like to shock people to show how far they'll push the boundaries. They also know that many audiences just want to read or watch for self-gratification rather than for a thought-provoking story that gives a new perspective on life. I don't believe in writing simply to gratify readers. I want to tell my story in the way I see the world. Also, I don't write fiction to shove a political point of view in audiences’ faces. If my political views (if that's what anyone wants to call them) come through in a story due to the story’s events then that's fine with me. However, I do not write fiction to get a political point across; I write to show the events and actions of the characters, characters that readers can identify with.
So, what boundaries do you set up for yourself in your writing?
Until next time . . .
Today’s IWSG is brought to you by these super co-hosts: Jemima Pett, J Lenni Dorner, Cathrina Constantine, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, and Mary Aalgaard! IWSG was founded by awesome author Alex Cavanaugh, writer of the Cassa Series of novels!
And it seems like there are so many shows and movies now that are just for shock value. There must be an audience for them, but not me.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not me.
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