WRITING OUR WAY INTO (AND OUT OF) DARK FORESTS
Writer’s Digest|September - October 2023
Using deep characterization for propulsive storytelling.
JENNIFER GIVHAN
WRITING OUR WAY INTO (AND OUT OF) DARK FORESTS

Send up the red flare from the dense, dark forest if you too beat yourself up when you should be writing because sometimes you become so mired in the muck of drafting-even if you've been writing for years and what pours onto the page from the thick scrub is ugly. Or hazy. Or banal. Or all three.

My hands are raised high (in relentless beseeching) with you. You're not alone.

Recently, a reader asked how I steep the propulsive storylines of my novels with such poetry. How do I keep readers turning the page while turning potent phrases and engrossing meditations along the way?

In answer to their question, I reminded myself what it takes to blend evocative, chilling prose with a propulsive plotline.

GET LOST FIRST

We have to get lost in the forests. We have to allow for the ugliness. We have to invite it, even. In the early drafts, your characters may reveal themselves to you in flashes, whispers, or echoes as you chase them through the trees. They might be lost in the mist themselves. It's OK not to see them yet through the fog. That's part of the process. Keep listening and following, and as their voice becomes more distinct, you'll learn how to listen deeper, and their story will begin to unravel before you.

We're often lost in the forest for months before that path out becomes clear, sometimes years. And yet, when we finally find our way through, it feels like redemption. The transformation in my stories often comes from the most vulnerable places because I journey with (and within) my protagonist. We become inseparable at times. And when the story ends, I must wrestle myself free and open my heart to another character who needs me, and I them.

In my newest novel, River Woman, River Demon, this meant following Eva as she tries to uncover the drowning in the river beside her house and its uncanny parallel to her best friend's drowning when they were teenagers:

Denne historien er fra September - October 2023-utgaven av Writer’s Digest.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra September - October 2023-utgaven av Writer’s Digest.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA WRITER’S DIGESTSe alt
What Is Your Story Question?
Writer’s Digest

What Is Your Story Question?

Revision and editing advice to take your first draft to the next level.

time-read
7 mins  |
January - February 2025
Writing for the People We Hope to Become
Writer’s Digest

Writing for the People We Hope to Become

Elisa Stone Leahy's new middle-grade novel, Mallory in Full Color, tackles the in-between moments of adolescence, when who we are and who we want to become collide.

time-read
5 mins  |
January - February 2025
Creating Community
Writer’s Digest

Creating Community

Whether hot off the presses or on the shelves for years, a good book is worth talking about.

time-read
3 mins  |
January - February 2025
Pat Barker
Writer’s Digest

Pat Barker

The Booker Prize-winning author of Regeneration shares the role characters play in developing novel ideas and explains what appeals to her about reimagining mythology.

time-read
10+ mins  |
January - February 2025
How to Write in Different Genres
Writer’s Digest

How to Write in Different Genres

Emiko Jean and Yulin Kuang share tips and strategies for how they successfully write in different genres and mediums.

time-read
8 mins  |
January - February 2025
The Shortest Distance Between Two Points
Writer’s Digest

The Shortest Distance Between Two Points

Ten tips for writing a novel with 100-word stories.

time-read
8 mins  |
January - February 2025
Mayfly Marketing
Writer’s Digest

Mayfly Marketing

How to sell your novel in a short-attention-span world.

time-read
9 mins  |
January - February 2025
"You'll be a great essay".
Writer’s Digest

"You'll be a great essay".

How to write six types of personal essays by finding the funny in your life.

time-read
9 mins  |
January - February 2025
The Idea Factory
Writer’s Digest

The Idea Factory

Tired of staring at an empty screen? Unlock your inner fiction generator with these surprising inspiration techniques.

time-read
9 mins  |
January - February 2025
Seinfeld Was Right: That's a Story
Writer’s Digest

Seinfeld Was Right: That's a Story

Use mundane moments from everyday life to create stories that pack a punch.

time-read
10 mins  |
January - February 2025