Chekhov's Gotta Gun...
One of my writing buddies turned me on to Anton Chekhov while critiquing one of my projects. “Man, I was starting to sweat this character - if you didn’t use him soon I was gonna remind you about Chekhov’s Gun!”
As far as I could remember, none of the creative writing and English classes from high school or college mentioned him. So, I googled it. As it turns out Chekhov was an esteemed playwright and short-story writer born and raised in Russia during the turn of the 20th century. While his writing style highlighted human nature in everyday events, he was most notable for approaching it through comedy and tragedy.
What does this have to do with a gun?
No doubt Chekhov was an influential writer of his time, however even then writing was no sure bet for financial security. He was a medical doctor by day and one of his famous quotes showed how passionate he was about writing: “Medicine is my wife and literature my mistress.”
Still, he became an innovator and though he didn’t coin his famous reference “Chekhov’s Gun,” he did say something another writer, Ilia Gurliand, took to heart:
“If in Act I you have a pistol hanging on the wall, then it must fire in the last act.”
What does this mean? In short, make sure everything you write about - in a scene or in reference to a character - has a purpose. Cohesiveness is a word writers should become acquainted with early on. While some elements in writing might enhance mood or describe a setting, each part of the story must correspond with each other creating a fluid, tangential story.
An example of this might be in how a writer sets up their “gun:”
If you were to describe the contents of a room of a hunters cabin, a gun would be an obvious item standing out no more than a bear skin rug or a taxidermy animal head on the walls. However, if a particular gun was described in great detail, dramatic significance would be implanted in the readers memory bank. The exceptional attention would create a curiosity demanding explanation before the end of the story. Through Chekhov’s theory, you’re setting a trail of clues to solve the mystery of why these particular note-worthy hints were used and how they are applied to the plot.
How do you apply this to your own writing?
DELETE FALSE GUNS
Well, if you outline your story before writing it, make sure you get rid of “false guns.” In other words, if it doesn’t apply to the plot line or set up the final scene in some way, nix it. However, if you make-up your story as you go, make sure you revise it with the same intention.
CHARACTERS & PLACES ARE FALSE GUNS TOO
Physical items are not necessarily the only application to Chekhov’s method. Characters and places can also be of equal importance setting up a cohesive story-line. Perhaps your character goes to the grocery store and meets a fellow shopper and goes on to describe in detail the character. However, if this ‘extra’ or secondary character serves no relevance to the plot or twist in the story’s finality, trim it down or delete it altogether.
DON’T TAKE CHEKHOV LITERALLY
However don’t take Chekhov’s advise too literally, meaning, every last detail in the story doesn’t have to play a role of significance. If you write this way, it can create a contrived or boring story littered with details seemingly more important than they actually are.
When I first read about Chekhov’s Gun and learned how to apply it to my writing, I was relieved to find a formula that I could refer back to time and again. It’s become my go-to while critiquing others (I find more rule-breakers of this law than any other). Perhaps you’re as excited as I was (nerding out with all the new writing resources of information are but a google away). Congratulations! Now you’ve got your license in executing Chekhov’s theory.
So fire away - only figuratively speaking though. I’m a writer, not a militia starter!
—
Simply Sally