Gadhafi, Authors, and Brevity

Gadhafi's long-winded and incoherent speech of defiance the other day put me in mind of the challenge every author faces: coherence and brevity. Every report I heard on the news or read online said pretty much the same thing: the speech was long-winded, rambling, and incoherent. In the world of politics (just as in writing), that's a damning judgment.

I met an author recently who shares some traits with Gadhafi. This man thinks a lot of himself, has boundless confidence in his abilities, is proud of his accomplishments, and fully expects the world to acknowledge and honor them. He commanded my attention.

Then I asked him what his book was about. Whew. Half an hour later, my head swimming, my eyes crossed, I still didn't know whether the man had written a novel or a historical treatise. 

I'm grateful for the experience. Any author who's agonised over a summarization of their 300-page novel knows what I'm talking about. Some agents want a 3-page synopsis of the work; others demand a single paragraph. 

Almost any author who's sweated through their first synposis will say it was the most difficult writing they've ever done. But, boy, is it worth the effort. 

It wasn't until I had tried and failed at the above that I realized my earlier novel, Last Star at the State Line Cafe, was pointless, wandering, and yes, long-winded and incoherent. I put it aside, accepting it for what it was: good practice but not fit for the public eye. It's still on my shelf, and that's a good place for it.

When I began My Name is Grace, that lesson was still fresh. And as I worked through the publishing process, there were more lessons to learn, such as how to write a back-cover blurb, and how to pitch your novel to someone who asks on an elevator, say, or in a restaurant, "What is your book about?"

The first few times that happened to me, I was flummoxed. I stammered and blushed and labored over some probably incoherent response. I doubt if any of those people will be in a great rush to purchase my novel. Obviously, I needed a better approach.

Brevity and coherence. Following the advice of a contributor to Author Nation, I wrote a brief pitch, read it out loud, timed myself, shortened it, and repeated until I had it down to 30 seconds. Now when somebody asks what my novel is about, I'm ready.

Maybe Ghaddafi needs to take a course in writing. Brevity and coherence: priceless in politics and writing alike.