Is writing a craft or an art?

To me, writing a novel is more a craft than an art.

Not to get all mystical, but the art is either there or it isn't. It is your creative soul on display.

The craft part, though. That's on me.

I have to learn that part. Some of it comes by instinct, by reading, by copying others.

Most of it comes through experience.

Because I'm lazy, most of the craft part of writing has come by slow accretion. Actually, that's not quite fair to myself. I took a lot of writing classes early on; and I think I read every book on creative writing in the Deschutes Library. (None of which agree with each other, by the way.)

But since then, I just want to get on with the writing, and my weaknesses become exposed in the process and then I try to fix those weakness by learning a little craft.

I've been conscious in writing this book of dialogue, in particular. What sounds natural and what doesn't. How much dialogue can be used to advance the story. To reveal character. And just to facilitate the nuts and bolts of the plot.

I think I've always felt every line of dialogue had to mean something. Say something. But I've been very aware lately of how often in the mystery books I'm reading, there will be a simple line like, "I'll meet you there." "Let's go." "How you doing?"

You know, simple stuff.

And it works.

I was watching Fringe last night. It was the best-written Fringe I've seen so far; up to the best X-Files writing. I was trying to diagnose how they were being so effective at telegraphing emotion and meaning in such a skimpy teleplay.

I noticed that what wasn't said was as important as what was said.

Anyway, that's the kind of learning I mean by craft.

And the even harder part of applying that learning to what I do.