Chuck Q & A - April 2004

1. From hereticblue:

Is there a point when writing a novel that it becomes okay to start using "I" a bit more? Such as after the reader has already become well acquainted with the character? Or should "I" be reserved mainly for dialogue and excluded from narration throughout the entire novel?

Chuck Responds:

Sorry, there is no set “point” where you can swim in the “I.” You can do it anytime, but you risk losing the reader if you do it too early, before you’ve proven your narrator is interesting. In effect, before you’ve “set the hook” in your reader fish. First, consider establishing your authority – see the first essay in this series. Then, get that big machine of plot moving faster and faster. Then – okay, you can have a little character hissy fit and say I, I, I. Again, the ultimate goal is to let the reader become the “I” of the story. So the reader can be interacting with the characters and situation. This doesn’t mean “No I’s”… it just means being aware and not overusing that pronoun.

2. From JupiterFrost:

It’s easier said than done to hide all the I’s in a story that features a strong leading character as a narrator. For example: in Craig Clevenger’s ‘The Contortionist’s Handbook’ the first chapter begins with the line: “I can count my overdoses on one hand.” There are countless I’s in that story and yet it never seems to lose focus or its grip on the reader.

Is it absolutely necessary to go to any lengths possible to hide the I’s, and if so then how does a narrator in such a story as Clevenger's cope with telling a story centered solely on the narrator?

Chuck Responds:

IMPORTANT: Nothing I suggest here is absolutely necessary. This isn’t a blueprint or formula for “perfect” writing. These essays are about tricks or techniques to consider, like the spectrum of colors you’d paint with. You never have to use every color, all the time, but it’s good to have the option and the skill when you do want to use one. If your writing seems flat and loses even YOUR interest, use these essays to help find ways to write in a more effective way.

About Craig’s story, he writes with such well-researched authority that he holds your attention. Most people who use the “I” a lot never achieve that kind of authority; they stay too obsessed with the narrator and forget to create the world and characters around that central voice. In The Contortionist’s Handbook, the narrator has such a compelling Body of Knowledge, about forging and drugs and mental health, that most of the time he’s talking about the world instead of himself.

As the “I Nazi”, I would’ve said: “You could count my overdoses on one hand.”

3. From Parkaboy:

I read your essay and absorbed it. I wrote a piece for the month, as I was doing so it occurred to me that there is also the necessity, to one degree or another, for the author to submerge his or her "I" as well. Let's call it submerging the Chuck for our purposes here. What I am getting at is whether or not you employ specific techniques to do this. When writing in third person one can comfortably reside in their own voice, yet when doing first person that voice must bend to become the character who is serving as narrator. So that Shannon doesn't sound like Tender doesn't sound like Victor. The "Chuck" still comes through but it is diluted by the narration vehicle. Like acting to some degree. So when you sit down and "Submerge the Chuck" to be Victor or Misty or whomever, what do you do? And how important do you feel it is that you do it to portray a distinct alter-ego?

Chuck Responds:

Okay Parkaboy, you might not want to hear this… Here’s the Devil’s Bargain of Anything Celebrated… Once you get your work recognized, you’re faced with the balancing act of keeping the aspects your audience likes, yet changing aspects to keep it interesting for yourself. If you change or not, you’re still screwed. Some people will gripe because they wanted a duplicate of the last thing they loved. Some will gripe because they wanted something entirely different.

Imagine what it’s like being Radiohead and having everyone shout: “Play Creep…!” Think of those bands in Las Vegas condemned to playing their hits from thirty years before – because that’s what the audience wants. This is why the actor George Saunders (All About Eve) killed himself – he was tired of playing nothing but greasy cads in every movie.

So, what do you do? Well, you can settle in and write Fight Club II, or you can experiment and vary your storytelling – while still adhering to your core rules of Minimalism. Me, I vary my topics. I vary the Body of knowledge that each character uses to portray their world. Since Choke, I’ve dicked around with third-person and then second-person in Diary. Other style ticks, I’ve kept. Especially the choruses, because most people like them – and because those “techniques” are based on the way people communicate in the real world. To lose those devices could even make my work seem More artificial or mannered. Look for an up-coming essay on the choruses, and you’ll see why they work.

Something else to consider, most people have very, VERY limited vocabularies. Most of us begin your announcements with a few (usually just one) type of “bumper music device.” You’ll say: “Listen everybody…” or “You will NOT believe this, but…” So for each narrator, I create a limited list of these “throat-clearing” phrases. What’s more important than deciding the words a narrator will use is knowing the words a narrator WILL NOT ever use. Too often, stories where the writer sat with their Thesaurus open and used a million different words on every page – those “writerly” stories showcase the writer without serving the story and the reader.

4. From JKabol:

While Submerging the “I”, one of the devises that we seem encouraged to use is to change the narrative stance; i.e. 1st person to 3rd person to 2nd. But isn’t that an easy way to lose the interest of the reader? I understand that the personal references -- I, me, my, etc. -- detract interest, but at the same time does the “I” not engage the reader on a personal level as well? I just re-read Diary (not my favorite your-book, but I think it is your best written yet) and you did this quite a bit (changing the narrative). But your narrator was a book. Would you give a thought on a solid way to apply this to a 1st person work that is broader than short story?

Chuck Responds:

The narrator was a book? What’s that mean? That’s not possible because a book always has an author. No, the story was told in very-close third-person with enough anger and judgments to imply a first-person narrator that’s not revealed until the last page. So, again, another experiment in submerging the “I.”

After sitting with a barber, yesterday, who spent forty-five minutes blabbing “I… I… I… stories“ at me non-stop, I stand by my position that overuse of the “I” will bore your reader.

As for a solid way… If I provided one, you’d still find a hole in it. Experiment and find your own.

5. From RWJ:

On "Submerging the I"

Should the "I" also be deleted from secondary characters who talk about themselves in a story? Such as: Gina said, "I got totally wasted last night

Chuck Responds:

For other characters, the “I” is fine. But again, you don’t want any of your characters to be boring and self-obsessed so just be aware. If anything seems flat, look at that page, and count those I’s. That’s a good, quick way to move your focus around and create a better story.

6. From vigorous puppy:

The notion of keeping the "I" behind the camera is nice. Unobtrusive. But to carry it off well in a direct style of narration??? This is perplexing. It seems to me the only way to do so consistently is a style full of missing referents (perplexing from whom?) that quickly becomes disembodied. Either that or a 2nd person style with constant implicit or explicit reference to "you." The latter choice stays particular and embodied, but the "you" can become just as grating as the constant repetition of "I".

Any way around this?

Chuck Responds:

Okay, Vigorous Puppy. Do it your way. I’ve made my case. This is about creating a constantly varied voice – never settling in one tense too long – because that’s how we talk. (But take a look at Bright Lights, Big City, the entire book is written in second person, and it works very well.) My point is, too often, we overuse the “I” and never consider other ways to vary the story telling.

7. From dorireads:

Submerging the I seems to be most effective in stories with some setup at the beginning, like Guts, where you spend a good bit of time establishing your authority before you start telling the actual story. Do you think it works differently, more or less effectively, when you start the story in the middle of the action? And especially if you start with dialog. Is the I acceptable if the narrator is speaking to another character?

Chuck Responds:

“Tyler gets me a job as a waiter, after that Tyler’s pushing a gun in my mouth and saying, the first step to eternal life is you have to die…” Here’s a story where the action starts with the first sentence, yet the “I” is submerged. Again, you want your reader to look away from the camera (the “I”) and watch the actor (Tyler). If the story had started: “I stood still, the gun pressed into my mouth, listening as Tyler told me…” would that work as well?

8. From Dena:

Chuck, Thank you for putting this workshop together. I appreciate all of the information you have given so far, but I have a question about something you may not address in a workshop. I was wondering what do you think about using marijuana to aid in writing. I kind of feel like its cheating, but I have a friend who says its a good tool because it helps you think of things you wouldn't normally think about. He also says it makes you lose your inhibitions, thus your writing becomes more honest. Do you agree or disagree?

Chuck Responds:

Hello Dena. Ouch, I can’t even keyboard when I’m high. Years ago – as a newspaper reporter – I went to a political rally high and tried to write the story. It took me hours longer than it should have, and the story sucked. No, for me writing is about looking at my reaction to a personal crisis then re-creating that crisis within a metaphor. It’s never about just making up a story. Writing isn’t about being honest – not for me – it’s about crafting your deep, personal crap into a story so exploded that other people can enjoy it. I can’t do that high. Still, for the tedium of file naming and sorting and nit-picky copyedit stuff, yeah I can enjoy a Percodan.

9. From bmk:

What are your top five resources you keep by your side while writing?

Chuck Responds:

Music – the same type to create a consistent mood in a story or book, every day I come back to it. Coffee – to keep my teeth a nice brown color. Pens – for line editing my printed hardcopy at the gym, airport, or traffic. A Notebook – for scribbling ideas so I can move on without losing them. And usually an egg timer – for those days I don’t want to write because the sun is out; those days I promise myself “Just 30 minutes, then you’re free” and usually when the bell rings I’m happy to write the rest of the day. Starting is the toughest part of most days.

10. From Malakaiii:

Hi Chuck,

How important is the title of a story/novel? Any tips on what interests/scares away readers as far as titles go?

Chuck Responds:

You tell me. The only books of mine that I’ve named were Fight Club and Invisible Monsters. What became Survivor was originally named Unnatural Disaster and Diary was first called Period Revival. Again, we compromised on Choke. Doubleday is invested in me using one-word titles, maybe to create a consistent “identity” to my novels. Until this spring’s essay collection, which they call Stranger Than Fiction after I’d named it Nonfiction – its title in Great Britain. No, the titles are like the covers, I don’t give them much thought. If a story is compelling, a bad title won’t kill it. And if a story is boring, a great title won’t save it.