Because of the new hobbit movie coming out in December, I decided to read the book again (I’ve already read it multiple times), but as I got home to pick up the book, I decided to reread the Lord of the Rings trilogy instead. I haven’t read them since I was thirteen, and from the mind of a thirteen-year-old who was reading them only for the sake of seeing the movies, the books weren’t very good.
I read The Fellowship of the Ring before spring break, took a break to blaze through the Hunger Games trilogy, and have now started reading The Two Towers. The thing was, because of my first experience with the books, I was braced for the worst, but I got quite the opposite. I found books rich in character, story, description, etc. Yes, they aren’t short stories or books about the writing process, so they don’t really pertain to my capstone projects, but the books were written by one of the best. I couldn’t put them down.
My favorite thing so far? Finding all of the little nuggets hidden throughout. Tolkien has these moments with descriptions that just make you catch your breath. Some like, “The sun crawled over the shoulders of the earth.” Shoulders. Wow, I’ve been writing for how long and have tried to find a fresh way to describe the horizon, but man, he nailed it.
This brings me to the thing I have taken to heart as a writer: imitating other writers. I mean, that’s why we read other writers, right? To learn from them, learn how to craft a memoir, story, poem. In fact, we’re encouraged to imitate them, and we can even use a small tidbit or phrase here and there. To me, that’s one of the highest compliments if another writer decides to use the same word you used to describe something. That means you were great. It would be like me using the word “shoulder” to describe the horizon like Tolkien did (which, in fact, I do plan on doing eventually). That’s not plagiarism. That’s flattery. Granted, if you take whole sentences or paragraphs, yes, that is plagiarism, and I am not condoning it. Do not do it! But, we can still imitate. Use other writer’s styles. Try out some of their wordplay.
As I work my way through the trilogy, I am constantly amazed at how well-crafted the books are. Again, it may not be a short story, but it has given me a lesson on how to use description, dialogue, and summary scene. I should be keeping a notebook full of the brilliant descriptions and phrases that I find, but so far, it's in my mental notebook, and I'm thoroughly enjoying the books!
So what do you all think? How much should we be imitating, and do you think it’s okay to borrow short descriptions or great word combinations? Thoughts?
That's a really interesting concept, that copying or imitating is flattery. I've seen so many descriptions that make me want to grab them and keep them in my pocket, so that I can pull them out later and really look at them. This is especially true when (like the example you gave) the description is of something that has become really cliche or overdone.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's just my academic side, but I always feel guilty about borrowing phrases or words from other writers without citing or quoting them. I need to graduate and stop writing essays and get back to expressive writing, where the rules aren't as strict.
I think borrowing is a great idea, though. It's the words of others that inspire us when we read; they want their words to inspire, and they also want others to read their words. I don't know how I'd feel if some other writer used my descriptions. Especially if they were to receive wide acclaim for it and be remembered as the one who coined it. But in a way, I might be secretly flattered that they thought my turn of phrase was exciting and bold yet relatable enough to be used again. After all, there was a time when cliches were new...
On a totally unrelated topic, I love the picture from the Hobbit, and I am so excited to go see it! **Nerd moment ends here**
i agree with ya: taking a choice phrase is a compliment to its creator. i take phrases, tones, ways of joking from my roommates. Albeit, sometimes i feel like a plaigarist, but isn't that the way most humor or metaphor gets around? So as a principle, i would agree.
ReplyDeleteAnd i think i'm with ya in the proportion you seem to be indicating—just a dash here or there. If you're using a whole line, you might as well allude to or quote your author. But if you're just going to throw in the horizon's "shoulder," why not?
In my opinion, and give Tolkien his due, every good metaphor is a tribute to God.
Much like Stacy, I really struggled with my academic side on this one. I agree that it's a form of flattery, but I'm still hesitant to use it on my part. For some reason, it wouldn't sit well with me knowing I'm using a unique phrase coined by a different author. But for some reason, if a phrase sticks in my mind but I can't remember where it came from or who wrote it, I have no problem using that imagery in my own writing. (kinda backwards from the whole flattery thing. Go figure.) In general, I'm fine with taking a word here or there, but I would definitely strive to phrase it differently or twist it somehow to make it my own.
ReplyDeleteI had an experience with this last summer when I was learning how to write screenplays. I went online and found a few samples from a show I watch, and I decided to copy them--not just borrow from them, but actually copy them word for word, comma for comma. I was shocked at how much I learned about writing from that exercise. Just by saying something commonplace in another writer's words can give you such a completely different view on the subject! Not to mention the lessons on pacing, dialogue, etc. that come from studying larger pieces.
ReplyDeleteI do get a bit lazy about this at times and keep things in my mental notebook, but thanks for your reminder--it's great to take out your observations and put them into your own writing! (Plus, The Lord of The Rings is awesome!!)
I really like how you described that--imitation as flattery instead of plagiarism. I agree with that! I think I would be flattered if someone really liked a particular turn of my sentence and remembered it well enough to use part of it again. It only becomes plagiarism when we use whole plot lines and long phrases maybe. "The sun crawled over the shoulders of the earth" is such a great description! I was writing about the sun the other day and I just didn't have anything original. Phrases like "the yellow orb rose" or "the pale sun crept skyward" just weren't cutting it. But sometimes less is more. Make it real! ...I should read Lord of the Rings again too. Jess, you have inspired me.
ReplyDeleteLike some of the others have said, I don't think I would feel comfortable taking someone else's metaphor. That makes me wonder, though--how do we get our cliches and common expressions? Someone had to start them, right? We learned in Writing Theory and Ethics that Shakespeare invented the word "eyeball." I have to ask myself... was he offended when another person used his word? Did he feel it was stolen, or is that the way language works? Maybe in 50 years we will all be talking about the earth's shoulders because you were unafraid to spread Tolkien's imagery around culture. Who knows?
ReplyDeleteI think I would enjoy reading other authors more if I knew I was doing it out of my own accord and not only for the purposes of imitating them. When the pressure is gone, I can stand in awe of their words better. I can saturate them and eventually emulate them because I have allowed them in instead of force fed them. I think the natural writing style I have must be influenced by Vitorian authors, fed to me by my mother throughout my lifetime, but I can't be sure. Whatever it was, that is what has stuck because I allowed it to come in over time. I look forward to the days of exposing myself to varying authors and oozing out their creativity by default.
ReplyDeleteI love collecting great phrases! Or at least knowing they're out there--there's too many to keep with me.
ReplyDeleteI've heard it said that, just like there's infinite combinations of letters, words, and books possible, so there are always new ways of phrasing things. Old, repeated, much-loved phrases become cliches we no longer hear, and then we've got to come up with new ways to see what we already know and love. But it is possible! (I just keep telling myself that.)
I think a lot of the time, we are imitating other writers without even realizing it. All of the literature each person has read over the years, little by little, is a million little pieces that make up this individual's writing style. It seems that something specific to each person is sprinkled in there as well. I love that God made us creative in that way.
ReplyDeleteObserving how other authors write and then working to write in the same style is such a great practice. I've found that the times I can write the best are right after I've read something spectacular, and it seems that most every other writer feels the same way. I wonder why we were created to absorb other creation and reproduce it in new and beautiful ways? I like it.
I always think it's interesting to hear where other people are getting their inspiration (even when it doesn't count toward hours!). I think it can be scary how you can accidentally end up mimicking another author's style or word choices when you're deeply invested in reading them! Doing it more intentionally has always been a hard thing for me to deal with. When it comes to style, I don't think imitation can be called bad. But I know that I'd hate to see that awesome, epic phrase or description I came up with repeated in someone else's work. I'd feel like I had been robbed. However, I also agree that it *is* a form a flattery. I'm conflicted, I guess. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this post Jess! You're echoing some of my thought about the classics. I have been re-reading The Great Gatsby for American Lit. I have been blown away by some of the imagery and rich language of Fitzgerald.
ReplyDeleteWhen imitating an author I am often hesitant that I will loose my voice in the process. But from what I remember from Writers Style, this is not true. A writer can imitate another writer to launch them into some rich bank of treasure that would otherwise have been left undiscovered. I would never suggest taking direct ideas and crafting it slightly different and gaining credit from that. But let a certain picture "stew" in your mind and see what it conjures up to.