Yeah, I write like that famous guy

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Do you think you write like Ernest Hemingway? Or maybe Stephen King? Now you can find out. Sort of.
 
Public discussion about a new tool called “I Write Like” made the rounds of the cyber-sphere while I was away on medical leave, so I’m sure I’m the last person on Earth to discover it.  It purports to be a “statistical analysis tool, which analyzes your word choice and writing style and compares them with those of famous writers.”

Even though IWL has been mocked by many in the media, the idea of comparing one’s own writing to famous authors is actually appealing. It’s as if we could run a DNA test of our writing. Who is our real parent: William Shakespeare, or (gasp) a James Patterson clone?

When I ran the first page of my WIP through the tool, it said I write like Dan Brown. I was actually shooting for something closer to Michael Crichton in my current work, but okay, no complaints from me. Then I ran a few paragraphs of an earlier draft through the program, and it told me I write like Arthur C. Clarke. That’s closer to Crichton’s neck of the solar system, right? I got stoked about that result. Until, that is, I read someplace that Lindsay Lohan also writes like Sir Arthur. And unless her writing shows depths not heretofore displayed in her public Tweets and twitterings, I think there may be a fundamental problem with the IWL’s algorithm.

Heck. I don’t care if it’s accurate or not. I can dream, can’t I? Give me Clarke’s reputation with Brown’s sales, and I’d be one happy camper.

Have you tried IWL? What was your result? 
     
— KL

The Homeward Stretch

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by Clare Langley-Hawthorne

My family and I are on the homeward stretch after visiting over ten national parks in the West over the last seven weeks. We’ve made our way from Yosemite to Yellowstone and are now in Denver en route to Tucson. Hard to believe, but this time next week we will be on a plane crossing the Pacific on our way to Australia (!). We are certainly on a huge adventure but, as we still have only limited internet connectivity, I will have to wait until next week’s blog to give a full round up of the trip. Suffice to say we had an incredible experience and one that I hope my twin boys will never forget. They have some fourteen junior ranger badges to remember it by at least! So stay tuned for my full account over the next few weeks…

In the meantime, a question for you – what was the most unforgettable journey you have ever taken? How has it influenced you as a writer? Is there a trip you would love to take and, if so, where? I have warned my husband that Africa is next on my list but I have to say I would be quite happy to retrace our steps from this trip – the national parks are awesome and a true reflection of this amazing country!

Writing Quote for Sunday

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Hope you’ve enjoyed our week of writer quotes. We’ll return tomorrow with our regularly scheduled blog. Feel free to revisit the quotes we’ve put up since Monday and add to the conversations.

Here is today’s quote, from that fellow pictured on the right.
“I write to entertain. In a world that encompasses so much pain and fear and cruelty, it is noble to provide a few hours of escape, moments of delight and forgetfulness.” – Dean Koontz
Source: How to Write Best Selling Fiction (1981, Writer’s Digest Books)

Writing Quote for Saturday

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Here is today’s quote. Would you give this same advice to someone?
“If you want to write fiction, the best thing you can do is take two aspirins, lie down in a dark room, and wait for the feeling to pass. If the feeling persists, you probably ought to write a novel.” – Lawrence Block
Source: Writing the Novel (1979, Writer’s Digest Books)

Writing Quote for Friday

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We are taking the week off, but each day posting a quote about writing to spark discussion. So discuss!

“You must avoid giving hostages to fortune, like getting an expensive wife, an expensive house, and a style of living that never lets you afford the time to take the chance to write what you wish.” – Irwin Shaw
Source: Writers on Writing (1990, Running Press, ed. John Winokur)

Writing Quote for Thursday

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Here’s a biggie. A controversial quote from a well respected writer/teacher. What does it say to you?
“I think that the difference right now between good art and bad art is that the good artists are the people who are, in one way or another, creating, out of deep and honest concern, a vision of life . . . that is worth living. And the bad artists, of whom there are many, are whining or moaning or staring, because it’s fashionable, into the dark abyss.” – John Gardner
Source: The Writer’s Chapbook (1989, Penguin, ed. George Plimpton)

Writing Quote for Wednesday

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Here is today’s writing quote. Check each day this week for a new one. Don’t forget Monday and Tuesday, either. Reactions?
“When I was younger and first beginning to write, I’d think I was going to get the Pulitzer and the Booker and the Nobel Prize. Now I don’t give a damn. I’m content to know that I write . . . good. I’m a good writer and that’s all I care about.” – Evan Hunter (aka Ed McBain)

Source: Writer’s Digest, Sept. 1996

Writing Quote for Tuesday

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As mentioned yesterday, we Kill Zoners are taking a week off, but posting a writing quote each day. Fill up the comments section with your reactions!

Here is today’s quote:


“Do not look toward writing as a profession. Work at something else. Dig ditches if you have to, but keep writing in the status of a hobby that you can work at in your spare time. Writing, to me, is a hobby—by trade I’m a farmer.” – William Faulkner

Source: On Being a Writer (1989, Writer’s Digest Books, ed. Bill Strickland)

Writing Quote for Monday

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The Kill Zoners are taking a week off, so each day we’re posting a provocative quote about writing to spark a little discussion. Talk amongst yourselves. Tell us what you think of the quote. Agree? Disagree? Riff on what it might mean to you. You may even find some of us popping in to join the conversation.
Here is today’s quote:
“You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.” – Ray Bradbury


Source: Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

Twitterati: Is There a Writer Inside You?

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James Scott Bell
I’ve been dispensing writing advice on Twitter for a year and a half. You know, 140 characters or less of timeless wisdom on the art and craft of fiction. At least that teaches one to write tight!

So from time to time I’d like to draw on the archives and post a nugget, and start a conversation. Get your feedback. See how we can form a “collective mind.”
In that spirit, here is today’s Twitterati:
Don’t ask, Do I have a book inside me? Ask: Inside, am I a writer? If the answer is yes, write and don’t stop.
Questions:
Do you see yourself as a writer, or do you have doubts? What do you do about them?
What does “being a writer” mean to you?
Is there one book inside you, or are there more where that came from?
Have at it. We’ll talk.