Literature Writing Tutorial

Author: / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-08-01
Features: Compared to the perception of ordinary people, a literary artist's perception is an aesthetic perception. He can feel a sense of solace in solitude from the lice crawling on his body, and perceive the kindness and beauty of humanity from the protruding two fangs of others. Meanwhile, a poet's perception differs from that of novelists. For example, a novelist's perception of social life is generally concrete, detailed, and profound, and is often influenced by a utilitarian perspective. In contrast, a poet's perception tends to be more aesthetic, more inclined toward the expression of emotions and the association of images. For instance, if one wakes up early in the morning and sees sparse raindrops on the steps, an ordinary person's perception would be: "It rained last night." If the rain is not particularly extraordinary, a novelist might not pay close attention to it either. But a poet is different. His perception would direct itself toward emotional expression, soaring on the wings of imagination, transcending existing knowledge and experience, and creating vivid and novel artistic scenes. For example, Li Qingzhao's "Like a Dream" (《》): "Last night the wind was brisk / Thick sleep did not dissipate the wine / I asked the person / But she said the plum blossoms were still the same / Do you know? / Do you know? / They should be green and red." Novelty, uniqueness, and perception are the "capital" of a poet's writing. Who can capture unique feelings from life is likely to write well. For example, Ai Qing wrote a poem titled "Echo" (《》): "You call her, she calls you / You curse her, she curses you / Never argue with her / The later sound is always hers." Echo, as a natural phenomenon, is very ordinary, but Ai Qing, with a poet's sensitivity, gained a unique perception. From the echo, he seemed to see a tyrannical and willful social archetype; this perception was unique, and when written down, it became poetry. Another example is Chen Jiamei's poem "Shadow" (《》): "It is the shadow of a tree, / It moves step by step, / Perhaps it has some thoughts, / Perhaps it is not willing at all. — The moon moves from east to west. / At first it sleeps in the mud, / Then it seems to want to stand up, / Slowly it hugs the tree trunk / And then it falls back to the bottom. — The moon has already set to the west." The poet strolls along the night beach of Qingdao, and the movement and changes of the shadow of a tree under the moonlight inspire him— it seems to have the thinking of life, stubbornly walking through its own life journey, sensitively discovering and capturing poetry in subtle changes. This is the law of poetic creation. To gain aesthetic perception, one must fundamentally improve one's ideological, cultural, and artistic attainments through long-term social life practice, immerse oneself in real life, and avoid superficial impressions gained from a hurried glance or fleeting observations. Only then can one write true poetry.
II. Theme and Perspective
Poetry pays special attention to composition. Original and unique composition can enhance the beauty of poetry. Emerson said: "The mark and proof of a poet is that he says what has not been said before." Tolstoy said: "The more poetic, the more creative." The Song Dynasty poet Jiang Kui also said, "If a poem is not well-crafted, it is only because it lacks careful thought. To write without thought, even if there are many words, is of no use?" The originality of poetry is reflected in many aspects. First, let's discuss the refinement of theme and perspective. Does poetry need refinement? The answer is yes. In real life, when we are moved by something, touched, and gain a certain feeling, this is still. It needs to be nurtured, processed, refined, and explored. Why are we moved? Is this feeling universal? How can it be elevated to a universal emotion? This process is what the ancients called "refining the theme." If the exploration is deep and the refinement is good, it lays a solid foundation for composition. Therefore, after capturing a certain feeling, one must pay special attention to elevating it to something typical, discarding the trivial, the mediocre, and the unhealthy, and exploring the beautiful, healthy, and typical aspects. For example, a poem titled "Pursuit" is written as follows: "I wish the whole world had only one piece of gold / But it happened to fall into my hands / I wish all beautiful women were one face / Pressing close to my lips every day / I wish history had only one throne of power / Smiling as it approaches me / My shoulders carry countless pursuits" Such poetry, no matter how it is, cannot give people a sense of beauty. Yu Guangzhong's "Nostalgia" has very simple language but has won the readers' favor, the key being that the emotions he expresses are very universal.
The setting of a novel includes social and natural environments. The former refers to the social system, political structure, economic form, cultural state, customs, etiquette, and the era atmosphere that arise from them in a certain historical period. The latter refers to the specific places where characters are active, including descriptions of natural scenery, activity spaces, and arrangements. The social environment is composed of people's social activities and relationships. It is often reflected in the overall content of the novel and is not determined by a single section. Some people treat the social environment as an expression method, which is actually inappropriate. When writing a novel, one should describe and portray characters and events in a specific social environment while also revealing the content of the specific social environment through characters and plots. A successful novel should be a scroll of a specific society and era. Only by truly grasping the broader social environment can one successfully write characters and events. The natural environment and the social environment are both connected and distinct. Successful descriptions of the natural environment, including natural scenery, activity spaces, and arrangements, can naturally reflect a specific social environment if handled well. If not, they may not reveal the content of the social environment. However, the description of the social environment clearly goes beyond the description of the natural environment. But in actual works, the two are often intertwined. The setting description in a short story can be done in various ways. It can be a static description, a dynamic description, a direct description, or an indirect description. It can also be expressed through a character's perspective, feelings, clothing, actions, dialogue, or a specific detail to convey the environment. Good setting descriptions should showcase the characteristics of a specific era, reflect regional features, and blend with characters and plots. For example, the setting description in "In the Tavern" not only implies the social background of the time through its natural scenery but also creates a correspondence between the external form of the scenery (light, color, shadow) and the internal movement of the plot. At the same time, the inner meaning of the scenery is in harmony with the tone of the characters' fate, playing a good role in highlighting their personalities.
V. Mastering Certain Narrative Techniques
To write a short story, one should also master some basic narrative techniques. In addition to the above, we briefly introduce "detail description" and "narrative perspective."
(1) Detail Description
Anyone who writes a novel emphasizes the importance of detail description. What is detail description? It is generally understood as the description of the subtle and trivial aspects of things. However, this definition is not entirely accurate. First, "detail description" is not necessarily "description" but also includes "narration." Lu Xun wrote about Kong Yiji dropping literature: "Is it much? Not much!" This is a detail; describing Kong Yiji as "the only one wearing a long gown and drinking while standing" is also a detail. The former is a description, the latter is narration, but we still call it "detail description." Second, the definition of "subtle and trivial aspects." Ah Q avoids words like "light" and "bright," which is a detail. Ah Q is still unaware when he dies, and his only concern when drawing his name is whether his "circle" is drawn well, which is also a detail. The former is a typical subtle aspect, and the latter is a small plot segment. There is also a difference between typical details and general details. A novel must vividly portray characters and things by focusing on details. A character's portrait description inevitably involves subtle aspects such as appearance, posture, clothing, and spirit. But what is usually referred to as "detail description" seems to refer not to this type of description but to the prominent and expressive core details in a novel. Writers say: "As long as I have two or three details, I can bring a character to life." We often say, "Chen Huasheng sitting on the sofa is a great detail, instantly bringing Chen Huasheng to life"—here, it refers to typical details. Therefore, some define detail description as a method of focusing on the most typical subtle aspects of things and describing them intentionally to convey emotions and meaning. From the above analysis, we can see that what is usually referred to as "detail description" is quite broad. It can be a description or narration. It can be subtle aspects or small sections or paragraphs. It can be general or typical.