Kurt Vonnegut's Rules for Writing

When Vonnegut gathered his old magazine stories into Bagombo Snuff Box in 1999, he opened the book with eight rules for writing fiction. They've been quoted, taped to desks, and argued over ever since.

The Eight Rules

Vonnegut framed the list as advice for writing a short story, though it applies to almost anything. Here they are, in his order:

• Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.
• Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.
• Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.
• Every sentence must do one of two things, reveal character or advance the action.
• Start as close to the end as possible.
• Be a sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them, so the reader can see what they are made of.
• Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.
• Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To heck with suspense.

The Rule He Cared About Most

Right after the list, Vonnegut undercut himself. He said the greatest American short story writer of his generation was Flannery O'Connor, and that she broke practically every one of his rules but the first. That first rule, about respecting a stranger's time, was the one he refused to let go of.

The greatest American short story writer of my generation was Flannery O'Connor. She broke practically every one of my rules but the first.

Kurt Vonnegut, preface to Bagombo Snuff Box

He liked rules the way a carpenter likes a level. Useful, not sacred. For how he actually built his sentences, see the full Kurt Vonnegut writing routine.

What You Can Steal

• Respect the reader's time above all. It's the one rule Vonnegut held onto.
• Give every character a want. Even a glass of water creates motion on the page.
• Start late in the story. Cut the runway and open near the moment that matters.
• Write for one person. Aiming at everyone dilutes the voice.