Robert Newton Peck talks fiction-writing like a pro

“You’re my replacements,” Robert Newton Peck told a gathering of about thirty-five of FWA’s members and friends in April. But he emphasized that the mantle of writing success would not be passed automatically. “If you tell a story, you’re gonna starve,” said the acclaimed author of A Day No Pigs Would Die. “But if you show a story, you’re gonna be me. And I ain’t starvin’.” The event was organized by New and Beginning Writers Group leader Mike Whisenant, and brought together his group with the FWA’s Orlando Chapter.

Peck, whose latest book is HOW to Write Fiction Like a Pro, dealt with some of the most basic ideas about fiction writing, but he managed to do it in a fresh and engaging way. “You’re in the picture business,” he said, elaborating on the old show-don’t-tell idea. “Write what can be photographed.”

Among the many other experienced observations Peck made was that outlining is just as tedious an exercise for a novelist as it is for a school kid. “Don’t worry about plot,” he said. “You’re not making those decisions.” He believes that the most important thing about a piece of fiction is who’s in it. His approach is to write down everything about the five major characters of a novel before beginning the book. Once the characters are brought to life in that way, they’ll determine the plot all by themselves.

Like every writer, Peck made mistakes along the way in his career. One of his biggest was writing about stuff he didn’t know. As a boy, he palled around with the younger brother of Sloan Wilson. He also palled around some with Sloan, who later wrote The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit. Influenced partly by that relationship, Peck tried to write about sophisticated people like bankers and lawyers, but his efforts didn’t amount to much. Eventually, turning to his own life for inspiration, he decided to write a book about a boy and his dad raising a pig on a farm. He called the book, A Day No Pigs Would Die.

That effort worked out pretty well for him, even if his method of submission was unorthodox. He was working in advertising in New York at the time. One day, during lunch, he carried the manuscript up the street to Random House, handed it to a receptionist, and asked her to show it to somebody who might be interested.

Peck by the numbers

v Two and a half: Weeks he spent writing A Day No Pigs Would Die.

v One: Drafts he wrote before submitting it.

v Ten: Hours between submission and being notified that Random House wanted to publish it.

v Three: Words his editor changed.

v Thirty-four: Years it’s been in print.

v Five: Number of cents by which hardcover price exceeds that of The Da Vinci Code.

Perhaps Robert Newton Peck’s greatest lesson is the one he teaches by example: a clear vision of your craft and goals, and a knowledge of the strength that lies in being yourself can take you where you want to go as a writer.