Writers Tricks of the Trade Volume 7, Issue 4 Winter 2018 | Page 11

WHO OR WHAT INFLUENCED YOUR
WRITING STYLE(S)
F RED R AYWORTH
I’ve talked about writing styles before, but I’ve never approached it quite
this way. The idea is to give a breakdown of the amalgam that makes one a
writer so that you can see yourself and how you fit into your own style.
You’re not me, but I’ll bet you’re not a clone of one writer. Maybe by step-
ping back and looking at all your influences, you can see who you are and get a
clearer picture of where you’re going. Who knows?
EVERY STORY IS AN ADVENTURE
Fred Rayworth
A man of many talents
VISIT FRED’S BLOG
I’ve said this many times not only here, but when talking about any manu-
script or short story I’ve ever written. Everything I write, no matter the genre, is
still an adventure. Period. It may be science fiction, icky bug, adventure/thriller
or fantasy. At least those are the genres I’ve tackled so far. No matter, every
one of them has been an adventure with the trappings of the specific genre.
Why?
How about Mark Twain? Clive Cussler? That’s two of the biggies. They,
among others took me on thrilling adventures, one from the classical era and
one still cranking them out today. Those lifelong influences embedded that
sense of adventure into everything I write. It’s part of my storytelling DNA.
B-MOVIE NIRVANA
I still joke that good icky bug is that half the characters get eaten, they drop
the f-bomb liberally and there’s lots of sex that has nothing to do with the plot.
Okay, there really are some B-monster movies like that, but there are plenty
of outstanding B-movie classics that I just die for when they show on TV. They’re
the ones that you’d find in the dingy corner of the horror rack at the now de-
funct video stores, usually hidden amongst all the slasher gore movies that are
so popular with young adults. Yuck!
I’ve been a huge B-move fan since I was a little kid. My two icky bug novels
are inspired and in the spirit of the good B-movie monster movies of the past
and (a few) from the present. The only difference is that there isn’t any sex that
has nothing to do with the plot!
YEAH, I ROLLED DICE WITH THE BEST OF THEM
When it comes to fantasy, there have only been a few I ever liked, both past
and present. Why? Ahem, how about when half the heroes (not just side char-
acters) die in a popular TV series? Not for me. How about extremely wordy
tomes where nothing happens for a hundred pages, literally (I’m not kidding).
How about an extremely popular movie series based
W RITERS ’ T RICKS OF THE T RADE
P AGE 3
W INTER 2018