Some Thoughts and a Little Bit of a Writing Rant :)
One way to write well, I think, is to ignore (some) writing advice. Of course the writer must be confident enough to do that. I recall when doing a writing course twenty years ago that a respected Australian author instructed his class to start a story with action or dialogue. I ignored this as I thought dialogue a cheesy way to begin. Lately I've been noticing many writers advising against opening with dialogue, so it has become a 'no-no' rule.
The trouble with writing to rules or formualas - except in the case of grammar or punctuation - is then everyone writes in a similar, predictable fashion. Consider the dating of styles from one generation to a next. Often you can pick the era where something was written from the writing rules that story is following. As these rules are always changing, it shows that nothing is set in stone.
One rule I dislike is having conflict as the main thrust and highpoint of a novel. Conflict does catch one's attention, and it is dramatic. However, as we all hate conflict in real life, why not think of replacing conflict in our entertainment with something more appealing and productive? Instead of characters with problems, why not characters with answers? Instead of fighting and despair why not show how people can live with peace and hope - and how much fun that would be? What we focus on we tend to manifest, so if the media could influence the masses with positive messages then our awareness and behaviour might be lifted to new levels.
