Hello, friends! Welcome to this month’s meeting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group, a blog hop created by Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosted this month by Joylene Nowell Butler, Olga Godim, Diedre Knight, and Natalie Aguirre. If you’re a writer and if you feel insecure about your writing life, click here to learn more about this awesomely supportive group!
I felt unsatisfied by my writing last year. I haven’t felt properly satisfied in my writing life for several years now. There were extenuating circumstances. One personal disaster after another. Finding time to write was difficult. But 2024 will be different. That’s more than a vain hope; I have good reason to believe that this year will, in fact, be different, and so I feel confident in making the following New Year’s resolution: I resolve to get back to writing—to get back to writing like I used to write!
To do that, there are some old writing lessons that I need to relearn. The first problem I’ve encountered is the temptation of info-dumping. I’m sure we’ve all come across books like the book pictured below, especially those of us who read fantasy and science fiction.
As a Sci-Fi writer, I’ve developed a vast and complicated new universe for my fiction. This vast and complicated new universe includes new science, new technology, new political institutions, new economic systems, new environmental hazards, new cultural norms, new fashions of clothes, new styles of art and literature and music—and it really seems like I ought to explain all these new things to my readers before I can expect them to understand what’s going to happen in my story… right?
But I don’t. I have to keep reminding myself that I don’t have to explain everything up front. The Hobbit didn’t explain everything up front. Neither did Dune, and neither did the first Star Wars movie. Next time you watch Star Wars: A New Hope, take note of how long the movie waits to tell you about the Jedi and the Force.
So as I try to get back to writing like I used to, I’m setting a new rule for myself: explain only one thing at a time. Just one thing. Yes, there’s a vast and complicated universe out there that my readers will need to learn about eventually. But all of that can wait. The socio-political stuff can wait. The extraterrestrial biology stuff can wait. The fashion choices of the future can wait.
Right now, in whatever scene I’m currently writing, I’m only allowed to explain one thing to my readers. Just one thing. So what will it be? What is the one thing—the one and only thing—that my readers need to know about at this point in the story? Asking myself that question will, hopefully, stop me from info-dumping for 400 pages before my story even begins.
P.S.: It’s the sigma oscillation device. In the scene I’m currently writing, the one thing I need to explain to my readers is what the heck a sigma oscillation device is.
Planet Pailly 
Here’s an idea: a universe bible. I bet you have one for your own reference anyway – to keep things consistent. How about posting it on its own page here on your wordpress site, with a password-protection. Then, add the link and password to the end of your books. Nerds can happily dive into your universe! And it may be easier to fend off the urge to info-dump. I enjoyed The Medusa Effect, and that’s been a while ago. Your blog is fun, but Want More Pailly!
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I have been working on something like that, but it’s a pretty haphazard effort. Hadn’t considered sharing it online, but that could be a fun thing to do. I will take that under advisement!
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Explain one thing at a time – good plan.
Ironically, I never explained how teleportation worked in my series.
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You probably didn’t need to. I’d probably gloss over it, unless I was doing a transporter accident story.
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“Any sufficiently advanced technology appears to be magic.” That saves a lot of headaches and a lot of words for an author 🙂 Believable, too. I can’t tell you how my cell phone works except in terms of how I use it.
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Thanks Kate. Perfect, A universe bible and deeply impressed acceptance of magic. .
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In your world, these new gadgets create moments of wonder. A good thing. I bet they’re shiny and well described, so most of your readers are already guessing how they work.
If you want a free reminder course on writing, try this: https://www.writersofthefuture.com/courses/writers-of-the-future-online-workshop/. I loved it and you get to sign up for webinars with Orson Scott Card as the speaker. He’s just wonderful.
Anna from elements of emaginette
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I’ll check that out! Orson Scott Card wrote a book about how to write science fiction, and it’s one of the books that got me started way back when I was a kid. Seems appropriate to turn to him again for lessons.
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One thing per scene sounds like a good rule. I think it also has to be balanced with the other (non-wonder) info that needs to get conveyed. I know I read something once (or tried to read) where five characters were introduced in quick succession, together with physical descriptions, biographical summaries, and other attributes. The author then depended on me retaining that. Of course I didn’t, and ended up building my own image of each character through their interactions, and got thrown out of the story later when it misled me.
I think it was Orson Scott Card who recommended not explaining much of anything in the first draft and seeing what we can get away with the reader figuring out on their own. I’ve seen authors take this too far, but we can probably push it farther than feels comfortable when we’re initially writing it.
I also read a book on self editing which had the acronym RUE throughout (resist urge to explain). They do admit that historical fiction and SFF have to do *some* explaining, and that in limited quantities, it’s part of the appeal.
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I definitely agree with you about characters. I just finished reading a fantasy series (which came highly recommended from a friend) that had waaaaaay too many characters. And since most of them came from the same tribe, most of the names were kind of similar.
I kind of like that idea from Card. I’ve done something similar in the past, where I left something experimental or unconventional in a manuscript and waited to see if beta readers or my editor would call me out for it. I do think readers are smarter than we writers expect and can figure a lot of things out for themselves.
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I had that too-many-characters problem with George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire books. I could keep the viewpoint characters straight, but most of the Sir thises and Lady thats blurred together until they had a pivotal role in some scene. Some didn’t really congeal until I saw them on Game of Thrones played by a particular actor.
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While I nodded away at your post and the idea of one thing at a time, the comments have really built on that idea and the how it could/does work. A really enjoyable read, thanks all 🙂
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Thanks, friend! Yeah, I really enjoy getting this kind of dialogue and feedback. It’s the kind of dialogue and feedback that turns good thoughts into great ones.
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If only books could talk like the one in the cartoon above, it would make things much easier for us writers. They could tell people what page the story finally gets started! However, I’d rather put the little bit more effort into the work and get the story started earlier on in the boo.
It’s all too easy to info dump! I’ve done it myself before.
I’m glad your returning to your normal writing routine and hope the new year will be better one for you.
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Thanks, friend! I do, at least, appreciate the honesty of the book in that cartoon.
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Good on you for having a new goal for the New Year! All power to you! 🙂
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