I just saw the trailer for Hugh Grant's latest movie "Rewrite" in which he intones...

"When it comes to writing - there are no rules."

What utter bullshit!

Of course there are rules.

How about, don't bore your audience.

How about, end each sentence with a period

How about, create believable characters that your audience can identify with.

Etc., etc.

There are hundreds of rules. Any school girl that's read a single novel knows there are rules to storytelling.

Just like any other craft. The rules of writing effective fiction are the proven methods, techniques, principles and best practices that make stories work. They help writers stay on track towards creating the best product in the shortest amount of time.

Only those who don't know the rules would profess that there aren't any.

Or, perhaps they're just forwarding the standard bullshit in order to protect their territory by misdirecting the competition.

Because, if the actual rules were better and more broadly know then there would be far more novels worth reading and movies worth watching.

Hugh, you're a wonderful actor...

But, whoever put those words in your mouth - should be shot.

Oh... I forgot.

There are rules against shooting idiots.

Write on...

Richard