What rules do you believe writing should follow?

Too often, I hear the advice imparted to new writers is along the lines of "don't write a Mary Sue" or "make sure your grammar is consistent". Although I am rather opposed to teaching writing in such a way, I am also interested in what sorts of rules people believe are never broken in good writing.

Along the lines of my last topic about the biggest problem in writing, this time I'd like to know what rules you think stories should follow. I'm not talking about what makes a good story, mind you, because a piece of writing could follow any rules you throw at it and might still be garbage. For the sake of this hypothesis, assume that the grammar has no problems, as I am focussing more on the higher-level content of the story rather than the technical ability of the writer.

Rules are meant to be broken. This applies to writing as well, IMO.

I only came here to say what Legacy said.

I will add a little to his comment, though. If there is a widely accepted rule about writing, don't be afraid to break it. However, make sure you are breaking that rule for the right reasons and this might be redundant but breaking these rules is generally only positive if you are conscious of the fact that you are doing it. Generally, if you are unknowingly breaking rules of writing you are just falling into the same old traps that many writers before you have fallen into.

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Originally Posted by Gama

I will add a little to his comment, though. If there is a widely accepted rule about writing, don't be afraid to break it. However, make sure you are breaking that rule for the right reasons and this might be redundant but breaking these rules is generally only positive if you are conscious of the fact that you are doing it.

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Yep. You need to know the rules before you can break them.

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Generally, if you are unknowingly breaking rules of writing you are just falling into the same old traps that many writers before you have fallen into.

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But usually this is only because in the beginning, you don't know what you're doing, and this causes you to "break the rules", so to say.

Make sure the plot is coherent and you maintain continuity through the story.

That's pretty much it for me.

Find your own style, and be as original as possible. Don't be afraid to borrow from or allude to other authors, though.

Have some semblance of a plan before you begin--building the world on the fly makes for a lot of headaches.

That said, your plan for the story is not set in stone--you can add to it, delete from it, or change things around at any time

I think writing can be anything, with no rules, except perhaps grammar- excluding dialogue, of course, since not everyone speaks correctly. Otherwise, other people may have trouble understanding what you're trying to say. If you don't know proper grammar, get a friend who does and have them help you out.

The only rules I believe that should be followed are these:
1. There needs to be a beginning(exposition, introduction of characters), a middle(rising in conflict, the introduction of the conflict, and the climax) and an end(decrease in action, resolving of all the things that happened in the book, perhaps even a set up to the next book?)
just because you're writing a series or even a sequel/prequel doesn't mean you're exempt to these rules, there needs to be some sort of introduction and an ending, even if you're continuing on the conflict.
2. The main character shouldn't be super powerful and in complete control(if in that kind of story), or completely perfect, in the beginning anyways.
Why? because that's boring, and the point of the book is to make them go through a challenge and make them better, or in the end destroy them. Either way is fun.
3. Don't be afraid to kill off characters.
4. Try not to move too fast.
this can vary depending on your story or your writing style. A pace in one story by one writer might be fast for a different novel. Just make sure you don't overwhelm them.
5. Lastly, write first, edit later if you want, but ALWAYS edit.
It will make your life easier, that's also how people get through NaNoWrMo, it helps you get all your ideas out first, even if it's pathetic, that's what editing is for.

That's about it. :3 You don't have to follow these, it's just my honest opinion, and it doesn't really matter to me if you follow them, it's just what I prefer. Except for rule 1, always follow rule one.

I believe that a great story is simply one that is gripping, in other words when you pick it up, you just can't put it down unless a external force is applied. Basically, it has to have great flow, great pacing, it has to be original (as not to lose interest), the characters should either be relate-able or very interesting, it must have an ironclad plot (absolutely no holes) and in the end it, and most of all it should have a great impact on you, preferably a positive impact. :)

In general other than technical rules, writing doesn't have any set of unbreakable rules, but a writer mustn't prioritize rule-breaking over quality.