Writing Rules and When to Ignore Them

Hello Internet!

As you may have noticed, my class has focused a lot of attention on "the rules of good writing"--for example, that writers of nonfiction should understand their biases and that all elements of a story should serve at least one purpose. Well, last week, we specifically discussed the rules of narrative movement. For those who have never heard of narrative movement (like I hadn't until recently), there are two types of it: horizontal and vertical. Whereas horizontal movement involves the forward pace of a story (i.e. the plot), vertical movement involves all of the little details that add depth to the work. This includes elements such as backstory, figurative language, descriptions, and characters' thoughts. 

Because horizontal movement is relatively straightforward, my peers and I spent most of our time analyzing vertical movement. We first discussed why vertical movement is important, then searched for examples of it in a published piece. Once we were finished with this, we were instructed to write a short story that included at least five different types of vertical movement.  

This exercise was challenging for me, and not just because I misguidedly chose to write about a character with amnesia. Rather, it was difficult because vertical movement is something I instinctually include in my writing. Because I am so invested in my characters and their lives outside of my stories' immediate plots, I incorporate thoughts and backstories into my writing almost without thinking about it. Therefore, when I had to actually think about including vertical movement in my writing, doing so became much more difficult. 

This led me to consider an interesting question: is it possible that learning the rules of writing can damage one's ability to write? On one hand, this question seems foolish; if you want to master a profession, of course you need to learn its rules. Yet on the other hand, if writers focus too much on following the rules, they could lose sight of what inspired them to write in the first place. 

I think the solution to this dilemma lies in finding a balance between knowing the rules of writing and knowing when to ignore them. There's no harm in new writers learning the basic rules of writing; in fact, doing so can help them improve, just as it's helped me. However, writers also need to understand their strengths and weaknesses so that they can learn when to adhere to the rules and when to ignore them in favor of instinct. 

I understand that this might be a controversial statement, so I would love to hear your thoughts on it. Please feel free to comment your opinions below. 

Thanks for reading!

Abby Bethke

Writing Advice: When writing narrative movement (or something else you are naturally good at), feel free to ignore the rules in favor of instinct. However, when writing dialogue (or something else you naturally struggle with), don't hesitate to check the rules or ask for advice.