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This week: Overwriting, Details and "Chekhov's Gun" Edited by: esprit  
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"There is no rule on how to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly: sometimes it's like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges."
(Ernest Hemingway)
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Overwriting, Details and "Chekhov's Gun."
Playwright Anton Chekhov famously once said, "If a gun is loaded in Act One, it must be fired by Act Three."
I wrote a letter on Overwriting last July, regarding writing freely in the creative, first draft stage. When we let our self go during the first draft, we purposely add more detail than we need because we expect to cut redundancy, wordiness and useless details during revisions. That's the way to end with a tight, polished story--right? But that leaves us with a whole lot of loaded guns to deal with. Did we fire them all or not?
During revision, don't be too quick with the delete button when you wonder, "Why in the world did I put 'that' in?"
Chekhov's Gun theory isn't limited to mystery writers.
It provides a good general rule about revising, one that forces us to pay attention to the level of detail we put into our stories. Have you ever received a review that mentioned a need to answer all the questions brought up in the story? Did a character do something that was never explained? Was a simple detail brought in but never mentioned again? Did you leave a loaded gun in the drawer?
In one of my 'Rick' stories, I had a character who wore a hat. It looked foolish and he was laughed at. That's all that happened. It added nothing significant to the story, but I put it there hoping to help 'show' the character. It didn't.
During revision
After writing the first draft and reading for revision, you'll probably come across details that make no sense to you. You'll wonder why you put them in, and maybe cut them as extra and wordy. Wait and consider.
Remember, your details meant something to you when you were flying in the grip of creativity. At some level of the subconscious, they were the right details at the right time and you should consider keeping them. Think of these details as examples of Chekhov's Gun. Before you cut them out, ask yourself what they could mean in the larger context of the story. Do they say something about your characters that can be expanded, that will deepen the reader's connection to the characters?
For instance my hat. My character is a child, and he could've gotten the hat from someone special that is no longer in his life. If I'd go deeper into his development, I would learn why he loves that silly hat so much, and it will result in showing a side of the boy that no one knows. I might begin to feel the sputtering of a tiny heart beat--he might come to life!
Don't leave the gun in the drawer
Not all of the little details you spontaneously throw in will lead to bigger story elements, but some of them probably can. There doesn't even need to be a huge expansion, but they might be what brings life to a character or reality to a story. Don't leave them hanging.
After all, if you're going to trust your creative side to do the writing in the first draft, trust it during the revision too. You wrote the details there for a reason. Sometimes they mean nothing at all, and that's why you've got your delete key. But they could lead you farther and deeper into your characters or plot and you should follow those leads with imagination.
Chekhov's Gun theory means don't fail to wrap up the story neatly; you owe it to your reader. There should be some sort of payoff for drawing the reader's attention to a detail or an action. Reaching the end with questions left unanswered leaves readers peeved off.
Thanks,
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Drama: December 23, 2009 Issue [#3451]
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