I didn’t give Irvine Welsh the love he deserves yesterday, so I’ll open with little quote from his short story The Acid House
“— Skanko n Leanne’s suppose tae be gittin engaged, she said, — that’s what ah heard anywey. This statement, though it elicited no response from Coco, sparked off an interesting line of thought for Kirsty. If he could remember nothing, he might not remember the status of their relationship. He might not remember what a pain in the arse he could be when it came to talking about their future.
— Irvine Welsh. The Acid House”
And I’m glad I didn’t. Tech was being a pain in the arse and eh, well. I got there in the end.
Now I know you’re not only here for my ramblings…
I kinda do this writing thing and so now I’m gonna give you the break down as to why you NEED to study Irvine Welsh’s writing.
Hash tag writing community on twitter can kiss my ass…
So if you’d like to write and learn to write well. There’s something you need to start doing in your prose. This can apply to your advertising copy too but that’s a whole different nuance so I’m skipping that for now.
The thing is. We want writing to be addictive and hypnotic and we want to truly feel what the characters are feeling.
We’re not chasing Ernest Hemingway today. We’re bareknuckle boxing against Welsh.
Here goes:
Phonetic Dialect Writing
Welsh famously wrote in Scottish dialect, transcribing how his characters actually speak. This shows how “write like you talk” can be taken to an artistic extreme. He captured the raw authenticity of Edinburgh’s vernacular.
Now I’m not saying that has to be something you do all the time, but slipping a bit of local dialect and vernacular into your dialogue can do magic for the reader. We don’t want to overcomplicate the reading but we also want our brain meat to do some work and “get” how they sound.
Cultural Immersion
His work stems from deep cultural understanding and lived experience. Rather than trying to force a voice, he wrote from what he intimately knew. In this case, we might not all live and breathe the same life. However, like many have said… Great writers are great readers and in this case you need to consume EVERYTHING. Books, movies, shows, podcasts and even conversations in person. The more you throw yourself into the world, the better the “voice”
This doesn’t just apply to the whole cultural immersion but also a more rounded assimilation of ideas and conversation.
Commitment to Authenticity
Welsh never sanitised his writing to make it more “marketable” or accessible. He maintained his distinct style even when it challenged readers.
He is one of the few working writers to this day that don’t care about the PC-brigade. If he’s referencing the 70s, 80s and 90s. He is using the language, references and words of the time.
This whole getting offended at words and sentences still blows my mind. What happened to sticks and stones eh?
Starting with Short Forms
With The Acid House being a short story collection. It demonstrates how shorter pieces can help develop voice before tackling longer works.
Each story allowed experimentation with different tones and styles.
Let’s be honest. Who wants to commit to a 50 thousand+ word novel and then hate the way it “sounds” or reads.
It’s also why I choose to write and share my ideas via email or a concise blog post.
We want something short, snappy and quick to digest so we can crack on with our day.
And with all that being said. Grab his book/s and treat yourself to great dialogue and insane short stories.
They’re not for the feint of heart, but damn they are written well.
Stephen Walker