4 Ways to Avoid Writing Dated Fiction

K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland

16 years ago

4 Ways to Avoid Writing Dated Fiction Conscientious writers work hard to get story details right. You want the language your characters use to reflect their lifestyles and personalities. You want their books, movies, magazines, and music to ring true in your recreations of the real world. And you need all the references and explanations of technology, style, and even health care to shine with accuracy. When you’re able to put a proud red checkmark next to each of these items, you have every right to be pleased. But you also have reason to proceed with caution—because you might be accidentally writing dated fiction.

Dated Fiction—Is It Impossible to Avoid?

As someone who reads classic literature on a regular basis (I’ve made it my modest goal to read all the classics before I die), I’ve had cause to ponder the fact that the history I’m reading about in these books was as fresh as a just-peeled banana to the likes of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and George Eliot. No doubt, these authors lavished attention on bringing their modern worlds to life—and yet their work (for better or worse) strikes 21st-century readers as decidedly dated.

To some extent, this is a grand thing, since it allows readers a firsthand glimpse into previous eras—untarnished and unvarnished by the opinions and suppositions of historians. On the other hand, many a book by a lesser author has lost all hope of timelessness thanks to its heavy use of “cutting-edge” references, which may have once been fresh, but which grow stale and flat in as little as ten years.

In Michael A. Banks’s article “Avoid dating your work with overused words and phrases” (The Writer, August 2010), he “argues against using slang and jargon in your writing—at least, jargon that’s likely to be transient”:

…today you won’t hear or read, “Oh, what a tough sweater!” Ditto, “That’s a boss song!” Similarly, if readers encounter a character referring to his girlfriend as “a groovy chick,” they might chuckle and look to see if the novel bears a 1967 copyright. If it doesn’t, and it’s not a period piece, the usage may grate on readers or leave them confused. Like most trendy slang, those usages became relics of the past….

How to Avoid Writing Dated Fiction

Pleasing both your present and future readers can seem like an impossible task. But with a little bit of foresight and practicality, you can sidestep the most egregious pitfalls of writing dated fiction by remember the following four considerations.

1. If You Don’t Need the Reference, Don’t Use It

If a particular line of slang or a pop-culture reference isn’t absolutely necessary, why include it? Modern readers probably will never miss it, and future readers can’t stumble over what isn’t there.

2. Let the Context Do the Talking

When you do retain potentially dated material, make sure the meaning is evident from the context. Don’t annoy modern readers by going out of your way to explain, but take a moment to consider how what you’ve written will sound to future audiences.

3. Avoid Branding

Generality may be the death of the novel, but utilizing brand names isn’t always the best way to be specific. Instead of “cherry Coke,” why not just “cherry soda”? Who knows if Coke will still be around in days to come?

4. Be Aware, But Don’t Obsess

At the end of the day, you’re always writing primarily for your immediate readers, since without them you’re not likely to garner any future fans. Don’t feel as if you need to eliminate all potentially dated references (particularly since doing so is impossible). Just be aware that those you do use may be shorter lived than any of us now think.

Wordplayers, tell me your opinions! Can you think of any references or word choices in your work-in-progress that may sound dated in a few years? Tell me in the comments!

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