Write Like A Pro

Writing like Hemingway.

"Photos are the only way, to hold on to what you knew, because the moments they show never change, when the people in them do." ~ Ernest Hemingway. 

Hemingway's writing style is simple, direct an unadorned prose.

The Iceberg Theory: Sometimes referred to as the theory of omission, is a style or writing coined by Ernest Hemingway. As a young journalist, Hemingway had to focus media reports on events with very little context or interpretation. The function of this was to give distance to the characters created. 

Write in short simple sentences. There is purpose behind this. By writing in such a way the reader can gain clarity and understand points the writer makes. Short sentences add dramatic effect. String together a series of short sentences to add punch and stress a point. Short sentences add variety. Hemingway often mixed short sentences with long sentences. 

Short sentences adds speed. To add speed to your writing write in shorter sentences and omit commas in compound sentences where possible. However, this is a technique you don't want to overuse; by omitting commas sentences can become less clear and not make sense. Another way to add speed to your writing is by using shorter less complex words. Use speed for dramatic scenes and slow writing down for slow pace scenes by using longer sentences and adding commas where possible/necessary. 

To overcome writer's block write one true sentence. 

Always stop for the day whilst you still know what will happen next. This enables you to easily pick up writing the next part. Don;t empty the well of your imagination. Hemingway focused less on word count and more on making sure he never ran out of ideas. 

Don't think about the story when you aren't writing, this will cause you to tire of it. 

When ready to write again, read what you have previously written. Make sure everything flows and ideas mentioned at the start aren't forgotten by the end. Correct as you go along. 

Don't describe an emotion make it. Watch and listen closely to external events. Notice the emotions stirred in you by the event and look back at what caused the emotion and identify it precisely. 

Polysyndeton: The repetition of conjunctions such as 'and'. For instance Hemingway wrote 'the square was hot, and the trees were green, and the flags hung on their staffs, and it was good to get out of the sun and under the shade of the arcade'. 

Write with a particular detachment to the environment you are describing. For instance Hemingway wrote 'In the morning it was raining. A fog had come over the mountains from the sea. You could not see the tops of the mountains'. This focuses on what is important, what the writer wants the reader to focus on. By being selective the reader pays attention to what you are showing and they become attentive to what you aren't. 

Describe tragedy with a sense of detachment. Never describe the face value of sadness and loss. Be indirect and somewhat restricted when describing loss.