At some point in time I probably have broken every
rule there is in the writing world. Everyone you talk to knows this rule or
that rule. They are always sure to point them out. Then of course, someone says
“Yes, but Nora Roberts breaks that rule all the time.” Then someone says “When
you are as successful as she is. You can do it too.” That usually ends the
conversation fairly quickly.
There are rules regarding margins and line spacing
most writers adhere to. I know I do. The creative side of writing is where
there is more room to look past the rules because after all they do change with
the times. When I started learning the craft of writing, the writer had to have
two spaces after the end of a sentence. Then one day, if by magic, the rule
changed to only one space. The change wasn’t announced unless you went to a
writers’ meeting and someone said “Did you know…”
I try my best to tell my story in a concise and
interesting manner. I always have too many commas. Don’t you know – my writing
friends call me the comma queen. No I don’t have a crown – just a delete button.
Of course it is interesting and amazing, two people can read the same page and
put commas in different places.
If I worried about all the writing rules I have
heard or read about, I would never get something down on paper. So I write my
material, rewrite, and rewrite until I think it has a good flow or what I call
a good rhythm to it. Sometimes I take out words, put more in, and usually
remove some commas. And in truth, now that I am thinking about it, I don’t
think about writing rules when I write. I just tell my story. Because after all
rules are made to be broken. Aren’t they!?!?!
Author of Historical Romantic & Contemporary Suspense Novels
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