How many folks here have written a novel?

[Octave]

King's been such a machine he has no memory of writing Cujo. Four-hundred-page novel and he has no recollection of it.

 

[wicked]

Might have something to do with the coke, no?

 

[swingline]

Or being run over on his bike ride.

 

[Neutral Corner]

Can't imagine it. Writing dialogue is difficult. No one better than Stephen King at that.

Elmore Leonard lived in that neighborhood as well.

 

[Octave]

Coke, alcohol and Class A drugs.

 

[OscarMadison]

Can't imagine it. Writing dialogue is difficult. No one better than Stephen King at that.

You either hear your characters or you don't. I think it can be learned.

Not a single wasted line

You say he wants to take on the JEWS! at their own GAME!​

One of these days it will be revealed that Tom Stoppard worked on IB.

 

[swingline]

Coke, alcohol and Class A drugs.

Sounds like a great three-day weekend. Who needs sleep?

 

[micropolitan guy]

Coke, alcohol and Class A drugs.

I would prefer MLB drugs, were I so inclined.

 

[justgladtobehere]

What kind of novel would people write?

 

[User 149557]

I got 300-some pages into writing a coming-of-age navel-gazing monstrosity between ages of 21 and 26 entitled “Napkins Shaped Ohio.” I have no idea what the **** “Napkins Shaped Ohio” even meant. It went downhill from there. I won’t even let my wife read that thing. It’s like Jerry Lewis’ clown movie. It’s never seeing the light of day.

 

[Azrael]

I got 300-some pages into writing a coming-of-age navel-gazing monstrosity between ages of 21 and 26 entitled “Napkins Shaped Ohio.” I have no idea what the **** “Napkins Shaped Ohio” even meant. It went downhill from there. I won’t even let my wife read that thing. It’s like Jerry Lewis’ clown movie. It’s never seeing the light of day.

We all have one of those. That's the buy-in.

The question is, what do you do next?

 

[Azrael]

Elmore Leonard was second to none.

Leonard was very good at it.

Best dialogue I ever read was "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" by George V. Higgins.

Elmore Leonard lived in that neighborhood as well.

You either hear your characters or you don't. I think it can be learned.

One of these days it will be revealed that Tom Stoppard worked on IB.

Elmore Leonard learned the architecture of his dialogue from . . . WC Heinz.

Wrote him a fan letter to thank him.

 

[da man]

Seymour the violin playing giraffe.

Just have to start it. Or have AI do it.

How does a violin play a giraffe?

 

[Songbird]

Without a hyphen for starters.

 

[Azrael]

We all have one of those. That's the buy-in.

The question is, what do you do next?

Worth noting here how many famous authors got a late start.

Wilder didn't begin the 'Little House' series until she was 65.

Frank McCourt was 66 when 'Angela Ashes' was published.

I shared an editor with this guy, Charles Chadwick, whose debut novel was published when he was 72.

Norman Maclean was 74 when he published 'A River Runs Through It.'

Get to work.

 

[justgladtobehere]

Worth noting here how many famous authors got a late start.

Wilder didn't begin the 'Little House' series until she was 65.

Frank McCourt was 66 when 'Angela Ashes' was published.

I shared an editor with this guy, Charles Chadwick, whose debut novel was published when he was 72.

Norman Maclean was 74 when he published 'A River Runs Through It.'

Get to work.

Or write something great and kill yourself before you are 32.

 

[Azrael]

Or write something great and kill yourself before you are 32.

It's a great trick, Ignatius, but you can only do it once.