7 Lessons on Writing by Margaret Atwood
#5: How to work with time in fiction
© George Whiteside
“Writing is a way of recording the human voice.” — Margaret Atwood
There are few writers as skilled conjuring up believable speculative fiction stories as Margaret Atwood. I’m amazed by her writing skills and I’m ashamed to admit that I only got around reading her work last year.
I’ve been a fan of The Handmaid’s Tale on TV, but I hadn’t read the books prior to watching the show. Until she published The Testaments. I had to read both books.
How her dystopian world unfolds is breathtaking to read as a writer. She’s so subtle in her worldbuilding. She makes the unbelievable believable. When I finished both books, I read her writing memoir ‘On Writers and Writing’ and then I followed her Masterclass. The 80-year-old writer reveals the tricks of her trade with charm and wit.
I highly recommend both reading her book on the craft and following her course. The following are the lessons I’ve learned from this enigmatic writer and how I apply her lessons to my work. We can learn a thing or two from Atwood when it comes to drawing in readers, composing well-researched stories and creating unforgettable characters.
#1: On the importance of the first five pages
The first five minutes of a film, your first encounter with a painting, the first few pages of a book. All these art forms can ignite something in you as a spectator that leaves you with wanting more.
According to Atwood, the first five pages of a book are the most important. This is where you draw in agents, publishers, and ultimately, the reader. Atwood: “If you can’t get the reader at the first page, they will never read the brilliant insights in the rest of the book.” You can write a gem of a novel, but if the start doesn’t surprise or intrigue the reader, the rest of your wonderful story will never conquer a reader’s heart.
It sounds straightforward, right? But it doesn’t hurt to critically look at your beginning. Is it really the beginning? I’ve often moved around scenes back and forth to create a compelling beginning. Write how it comes, but have a critical look at it when you edit the start of your story. The first page, the first scene even, is the door into your book.
Make the reader want more. Start off with a strong character moment or a conflict or a fascinating idea that shakes the reader to its core. The original beginning of The Handmaid’s tale was actually chapter two. Atwood realized that something was lacking. Who knows if we all cared so much for June and her journey if she started differently.
In the novel I’m working on, I’m telling my story from three viewpoints. In the initial draft, I started with another character, only to realize later that it didn’t work. I switched POV and I think it works better now.
Take your reader by the hand. Don’t overload them with too much information and descriptions.
“If nothing is happening by page ten, you’re in trouble. There’s no story.” — Margaret Atwood
#2: How to create believable speculative fiction
Margaret Atwood mostly writes what she calls “wonder tales”. By this, she means speculative fiction, sci-fi or fantasy.
I’ve written about crafting good fantasy or science fiction stories before. Now, I want to dive into speculative fiction, a genre I often turn to with my short stories. Mine are usually closely tied to science fiction. It’s all about creating a story that deals with inherent issues or possibilities that exist in our present society but are not fully formed yet. It’s up to the writer to project a scenario that is believable and accurate. So take a look around at what’s happening. Read the news, be inspired by everything that’s going on in the world, from technological advancements, religion, climate change, politics and more.
Atwood makes a distinction between utopias and dystopias. She studied both literary artforms diligently. While 1984 by George Orwell might be a clear dystopian novel, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley might be considered somewhat utopian to some characters in the book (and even some readers), even though most are convinced that the world created by Huxley is, well, messed up. Which is one of Huxley’s true superpowers in his writing.
The Handmaid’s Tale belongs to the speculative fiction genre. Atwood lived in West Berlin when she started writing the book. While she was there, she noticed things that inspired her story. Apparently, SS officers could have multiple wives. Biological wives were to produce offspring with. (Mind blown, by the way).
Fertility, theology, and totalitarianism further inspired her idea for the book. A thing she noticed when she devoured every speculative fiction novel she could find, was that they were all written from a male perspective. Enter June.
One of the things that make The Handmaid’s Tale so powerful, is that Atwood based the novel on things that have happened. She took stories from the bible, history, philosophy, technology and… clothing. Which leads to the next lesson: the power of research.
#3: How to research your story
Atwood builds her novel on thorough research. She dived into the habits and beliefs of the Mormons and the history of slavery. The term “handmaiden” comes straight out of the bible. She read about a form of electronic tagging that allows control over people. Look around you, we are heading in that direction. Some countries are already putting this into practice. She found reports of women who weren’t allowed to own money or credit cards anymore. I can go on and on about what inspired her. If you love this as much as I do, Google is your friend!
In creating believable stories, one of the writer’s superpowers lies in research. A lot of it. However, it should serve your story, not determine it. You want stuff to be accurate but not to overtake your plot. It all (again) comes down to creating a believable story.
For the novel I’m working on, I researched the elements, alchemy, Ayurveda, and history. Perhaps an odd combination when you read it like that. To keep it subtle and serving your story, try researching on the go. In my experience, this has two advantages: you won’t get stuck with your writing by researching before you start writing, and you knick-pick only what’s serving your story.
Another helpful lesson is to turn to the building block of stories in western or eastern culture. Turn to the religious texts, the myths and folk tales, history, etc. There’s a reason that many of our most beloved stories work because they rest on the foundations of age-old stories.
In the world you try to create, think about how that world works. How is society constructed? Is it different than ours? Dive into the economic, social, political, philosophical and cultural elements of your world. Turn to the internet, books, documentaries and other art forms.
#4: How to reveal your fictional world through sensory imagery
As said in the introduction, Atwood’s way of introducing her readers to her worlds is impeccable. Subtle, gradual and with surprising twists. No information dumps. No endless description. Bits and pieces are hidden in dialogue, some in actions and movements. She claims she just uses a few meditations in a scene that describes something about her world. She rather highlights the particular, obvious things and turns to the abstract.
An example that struck me while reading The Handmaid’s Tale was when June played Scrabble with the commander. Through her internal monologue, you learn that such a simple game is strictly forbidden, even punishable by death. How June feels while playing it is portrayed magnificently.
Another trick Atwood applies is finding symbols that stand for some of the elements in her world. Let’s stick to The Handmaid’s Tale. Flowers are mentioned often.
This imagery tell something about fertility. Atwood: “Flowers appear to be safe, connected to delicate women. Flowers aren’t always like that.”
What I do in my novel is having the characters discover the world along with the reader in a gradual way. That’s what J.K. Rowling does too in the Harry Potter books. It’s an unobtrusive way to take your reader by the hand. Use the different senses, use dialogue, inner monologue and actions to unravel the myths of your creation.
“Readers assume that everything you put on the page is there for a purpose.” — Margaret Atwood
#5: How to work with time in fiction
“A novel is about time.” — Margaret Atwood
It’s true. Every story deals with time. Whether it be an hour-long or lasts a lifetime. It can begin at the beginning, it can begin at the end. It’s up to you how you want to work with time.
But there’s not just linear time to deal with. Have you thought about the circularity of time? About the clock, the seasons, lunar cycles, etc.
Will your story be gradual or will you move back and forth in space and time? The only important thing is that you don’t confuse your reader.
There are several ways to help your reader stay oriented:
You can simply put the date or time at the start of the chapter
You can put in some indicators: (technological) devices, clothing, currency, vehicles, etc.
Use maps or even timelines for fantasy or historical drama
Use phrases or words like: in the meantime, meanwhile, unbeknownst to X, etc.
Use your characters as a frame of reference
Most importantly, ask yourself: why do I want to play around with time? Does it work with the story you’re telling?
#6: How to write through roadblocks
“You become a writer by writing. There is no other way. So do it, do it more. Do it again. Do it better. Fail. Fail better.” — Margaret Atwood
With the risk of sounding like a broken record, I had to include this lesson. Almost every successful writer whose craft I studied claims what Atwood is saying above. Write every day. Or at least, whenever you can. Teach yourself how to write anywhere, anytime. Or better yet: set up a daily routine and carve out time for your writing.
When Margaret Atwood experiences roadblocks (she prefers not to use the term ‘writer’s block’ because she doesn’t believe in it — just like me), she does one of three things:
Go for a walk. Let your mind wander.
Perform mindless, repetitive and above all, manual tasks. Clean, do the dishes.
Sleep.
Whenever I’m stuck with a story, I just leave it. I look back at it in a day or so with fresh eyes and insights. Or I turn to another writing project. Don’t be too hard on yourself. You can also exercise or meditate. Be kind to yourself.
But there’s another phenomenon lurking in the dark which is far more dangerous: self-doubt or fear. Fear of being a bad writer or having written a shit story. Fear of being mocked by critics, peers or family and friends. Think: What would Margaret Atwood do? Well, she instructs us to always do something to create a sense of progress. Bleed on the page, even if it’s bad. Just move. I couldn’t agree more. You can always polish later.
Also, consider why you want to write in the first place? What’s the motive for telling your stories? Atwood: “It’s like going into a dark room, holding up a lamp and illuminate what’s already there.”
Get better by doing the work. Continue the process. The mere fact that your mind is engaged and you’re doing something is important should be enough to feel worthy. You can throw stuff out later. Just see where it’s going.
“Every form of creativity is doing it and seeing where it’s going.” — Margaret Atwood
#7: On building characters
“A person is what happens to them.” — Margaret Atwood
Your character, behavior, and actions are largely determined by your experiences and your response to any situation. You find out who someone is by how they react to what happens to them, how other people treat them and how they respond to that. This reveals who we are. You have to create instability.
So put your characters to the test! Create conflict. Have them interact with other characters (good and bad). Create dire situations.
Atwood is very particular about creating her characters. She likes to write a timeline in table form with the months on the vertical left and the years on the horizontal ax. Then she dots out the birthdays and world events. She also lists what her character’s astrological symbol is and bases general character traits off of that.
Here are some other great pointers from Atwood in terms of creating characters:
What’s the impression they try to create, what’s the impression other people (or characters) have of them?
Think of the people in your life or people you find interesting. What have they done?
What makes a compelling villain? When you don’t know what he’s going to do next. Unpredictability. Surprise your readers in a convincing way.
Have someone read your book who’s similar to your character. Especially if your character is of the opposite gender.
One last thing you can do to build your characters is to build a character dossier. Just google that term and you’ll get lists of suggestions with questions about your characters you have to answer to get a sense of who they are. These questions vary from what their hobbies are, what political party they’ll likely vote for to answering how they think about love.
