By Ellie Greenberger
Photo by Simson Petrol on Unsplash
At a session where Richard Ford, a novelist, he gave advice on what it takes to be a great writer. Ford has written A Piece of My Heart, The Ultimate Good Luck, The Sportswriter, Pulitzer Prize-winning Independence Day, The Lay of the Land, Let Me Be Frank with You, Wildlife, Canada, Rock Springs, Women with Men, and A Multitude of Sins.
https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Ford
Something about Ford’s voice was familiar, but I couldn’t exactly place it. His voice was comforting, even if the words weren’t. Not a voice to deliver bad news, but a voice to help you think though a problem and find a viable solution.
Ford talked about working on a piece for as long as possible. Longer than usual because it could help the writer find out what was missing in their story. That measure of time, Ford said, gives the writer time to get everything that he or she cares about onto the page. It shares with the reader something valuable that once belonged to the writer.
Furthermore, Ford talked about turning everything on its head in a story. He said that it is good to investigate what you believe to be true and to work with an ironic premise. Allow yourself to completely change what is going to happen. This strategy may allow the writing to improve according to Ford.
“I like to think of everything I do as being made up of words,” Ford said.
Ford said the power of words is contrarian, because writing and doing are two different things. However, he didn’t suggest writing things that were harmful.
“We can all be idiots,” Ford said. “The opportunity as writers is to not be an idiot.”
Yet as good writers we don’t have to take any responsibility for anything other than what they feel personally responsible for according to Ford.
Interestingly, Ford brought up the use of disinterested in language. Ford focused on the fact that disinterested meant impartial while uninterested meant “I am not interested.” He said that literature must be disinterested in use of language, because as the writer, you must have nothing riding on the outcome.
Ford went onto encourage writers to write whatever they want. He said that an author must have a willingness to say the unsayable. He didn’t mean say things to shock or hurt readers. But instead he willed the author to attempt to describe something as basic as light, something that almost seems like it cannot be described in its simplicity.
“Stories give you the option to set the world,” Ford said.
In addition, he encouraged the writer to appropriate everything. I think that moment that surprised me the most. Today we hear appropriation in a cultural context, something that’s inappropriate. Yet, Ford said that meant the writer should focus on what is interesting to them.
“Take everybody’s everything and make it your own,” Ford said.
Ford said that writers should never let anyone tell them that they cannot write about something. People can tell you that something is bad. That something failed. That something isn’t working. But they cannot tell you that you shouldn’t write.
I sat there listening to him and I was surprised at how intimidated I felt. Not scared intimidated, but more in a respectful intimidation. I was listening to someone who was passionate about something and he knew he was good at it.