Writing Tips from Jack Kerouac: Spontaneous Prose

Finding advice that personally works for you is a matter of discretion. What helps one writer may not produce the same results for another. You could find a single piece of advice from an author useful, and disregard everything else they suggest. The benefits come down to the personal preference of each writer.

Seeking out advice from a favorite author or preferred genre is a practical first step toward developing your own writing style and understanding the intricacies of wordcraft. However, a mindful writer should possess the ability to consider writing suggestions from all sources, even if the mindful writer does not adopt any of the information. The practice helps create a well-rounded writer.

This profile will focus on writing tips from Jack Kerouac, who possessed a very particular style of writing that has since been copied, replicated, and repurposed by modern-day writers. The guidance from his essay “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose” might not work for every writer. However, understanding how a writing process yields completed work is vital for every writer to contemplate.

Who Was Jack Kerouac?

Jack Kerouac (March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969) was an American author and one of the pioneering figures of the Beat Generation. He was born in Lowell, MA, to parents of French-Canadian ancestry and only began learning English when he was 6. During his service as a Merchant Marine during World War II, Kerouac finished his first novel, The Town and the City. 

His second novel, On the Road, published in 1957, earned him fame and the moniker “the father of the Beat Generation.” Kerouac would write 12 more novels and numerous volumes of poetry until a lifetime of heavy drinking led to his untimely death in 1969. The Beatnik Generation was a massive social and counter-cultural movement that inspired the likes of the Beetles and Bob Dylan. 

What was Kerouac’s Writing Style?

Kerouac’s writing is characterized by free-flowing and lyrical prose reminiscent of jazz, in a style he called “spontaneous prose.” A proponent of Zen Buddhism and mysticism, Kerouac believed in tapping into a “writing state” to produce continuous and revision-less writing. Reminiscent of freewriting, this writing results in a loose format of long, flowing sentences and improvised wordplay. It was common for Kerouac to forgo conventional formatting styles, replacing periods and playing with sentence structure to give his writing a musical flow when read aloud.

The great hanging weak teat of India
on the map
The Fingernail of Malaya
The Wall of China
The Korea Ti-Pousse Thumb
The Salamander Japan
the Okinawa Moon Spot
The Pacific
The Back of Hawaiian Mountains
coconuts
Kines, balconies, Ah Tarzan–
And D W Griffith
the great American Director
Strolling down disgruntled
Hollywood Lane
— to toot Nebraska,
Indian Village New York,
Atlantis, Rome,
Peleus and Melisander,
And

swans of Balls

Spots of foam on the ocean

Jack Kerouac, 10th Chorus Mexico City Blues

Writing Tips From Jack Kerouac

The rumor surrounding Kerouac’s novella, The Subterraneans, is that he wrote the entire manuscript in a mind-boggling three days and three nights. When asked to explain how such a feat was possible, Kerouac wrote an essay, “The Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”, published in the Black Mountain Review in 1957. In this short piece, Kerouac outlines nine writing tips that help illuminate the King of the Beat’s writing style.

Set-Up

“The object is set before the mind, either in reality. as in sketching (before a landscape or teacup or old face) or is set in the memory wherein it becomes the sketching from memory of a definite image-object.” 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Writers who begin writing without a clear purpose or goal could struggle when putting words to the page. Aimless and unprompted writing can work for some writers, but a lack of focus could result in a staring contest with a blank page. On that same note, unorganized ideas will also cause delays in the writing process.

Kerouac based a lot of his writing on his experiences. His narrative is drawn directly from his memory. His focus was crucial, whether expounding on current situations or recalling events from his past. With an image in mind, Kerouac sketched the scene with his words, like a painter painting a picture. Stroke by stroke, line by line, that image manifested.

PROCEDURE

Time being of the essence in the purity of speech, sketching language is undisturbed flow from the mind of personal secret idea-words, blowing (as per jazz musician) on subject of image. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Continuing his comparison of writing to art, Kerouac likens writing to sketching and playing an instrument. Timing and flow are central tenants to this writing style and will appear again in the following points. Kerouac’s advice is for uninterrupted and continuous writing- not pausing to think or correct. The goal is to produce stream of consciousness writing free from the hurdles and restraints that can block writers. 

METHOD

No periods separating sentence-structures already arbitrarily riddled by false colons and timid usually needless commas-but the vigorous space dash separating rhetorical breathing (as jazz musician drawing breath between outblown phrases)–“measured pauses which are the essentials of our speech”–“divisions of the sounds we hear”-“time and how to note it down.” (William Carlos Williams)

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

The grammatical suggestion is open for consideration— however, more profound insights can be gleaned from his point. The ‘space dash’ is a unique style not often seen in literature. While it has been done, Kerouac’s writing is filled with these dashes. It is a key feature of his writing style, and aspiring writers should look for ways to develop their voice– akin to how Kerouac incorporated the ‘space dash’ to invent his technique. 

The technique Kerouac uses is conducive to his continuous writing style. Again, timing and flow are the central ideas behind this point of advice. Including the ‘space dash’ helps Kerouac keep his writing moving. In turn, readers find his narratives to be musical and energetic. Tips like the ‘space dash’ could be practical in freewriting exercises. 

SCOPING

Not “selectivity’ of expression but following free deviation (association) of mind into limitless blow-on-subject seas of thought, swimming in sea of English with no discipline other than rhythms of rhetorical exhalation and expostulated statement, like a fist coming down on a table with each complete utterance, bang! (the space dash)-Blow as deep as you want-write as deeply, fish as far down as you want, satisfy yourself first, then reader cannot fail to receive telepathic shock and meaning-excitement by same laws operating in his own human mind. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Self-editing can bring the writing process to a grinding halt. In keeping with the stream of consciousness style, Kerouac’s advice is to write through it. Do not pause to reread a sentence you just wrote to check if it makes sense or if it can be said more concisely- keep what you went with and move along. Once you reach a stopping point in your writing, go back for revisions.

LAG IN PROCEDURE 

No pause to think of proper word but the infantile pileup of scatological buildup words till satisfaction is gained, which will turn out to be a great appending rhythm to a thought and be in accordance with Great Law of timing. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Finding the perfect word to fit a sentence you are crafting is also self-editing. A writer can struggle to find a better word or the best way to phrase something for extended periods of time. Avoid self-editing while you are writing to the best of your ability. Writers should aim to write while their ideas are hot. Going back for revisions after an idea has been fully expounded on can help writers keep their focus on writing.

TIMING

Nothing is muddy that runs in time and to laws of time-Shakespearian stress of dramatic need to speak now in own unalterable way or forever hold tongue-no revisions (except obvious rational mistakes, such as names or calculated insertions in act of not writing but inserting). 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

While Kerouac touted his revision-less style, sources say he did go back to edit. On The Road, for example, was only published after severe revisions. In his original manuscript, Kerouac used the actual names of the people he based the novel on, which was changed before final publication. There is no shame in editing- it is a vital part of the writing process. However, there is a time and a place. Focus on writing when you are writing and on revising that writing after you finish writing. 

CENTER OF INTEREST

Begin not from preconceived idea of what to say about image but from jewel center of interest in subject of image at moment of writing, and write outwards swimming in sea of language to peripheral release and exhaustion-Do not afterthink except for poetic or P. S. reasons. Never afterthink to “improve” or defray impressions, as, the best writing is always the most painful personal wrung-out tossed from cradle warm protective mind-tap from yourself the song of yourself, blow!-now!-your way is your only way-“good”-or “bad”-always honest (“ludi- crous”), spontaneous, “confessionals’ interesting, because not “crafted.” Craft is craft. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Beat by beat, word by word, each line of writing comes together to weave a story. As you focus on your idea and start writing, keep every line on the page. Good or bad, Kerouac urges writers to write down everything to keep ideas pure. Writers should also indulge all the associations and tangents that come to mind when working in a topic. When it comes time to edit, you can work through these raw ideas, fix what works, and discard what will not.

STRUCTURE OF WORK

Modern bizarre structures (science fiction, etc.) arise from language being dead, “different” themes give illusion of “new” life. Follow roughly outlines in outfanning movement over subject, as river rock, so mindflow over jewel-center need (run your mind over it, once) arriving at pivot, where what was dim-formed “beginning” becomes sharp-necessitating “ending” and language shortens in race to wire of time-race of work, following laws of Deep Form, to conclusion, last words, last trickle–Night is The End. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Writing is bound by format and structure. We abide by standard rules while writing and expect to see them while reading. Capital letters at the start, with a comma to show a pause and a period to end the sentence. These are just a few examples of the grammatical rules we abide by. 

Kerouac looked to challenge those standards in his writing, evidenced by the excerpts of “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose” included in this resource. While it is an interesting concept to explore and can yield innovative ideas, writers should not misinterpret this advice as forgoing any editing process. Instead, writers should use this advice in their drafting process. Instead of derailing a train of thought, writing in a looser, note-like style can help you focus on writing at the moment and polish the details later.

MENTAL STATE 

If possible write “without consciousness” in semi-trance (as Yeats’ later “trance writing”) allowing subconscious to admit in own uninhibited interesting necessary and so “modern” language what conscious art would censor, and write excitedly, swiftly, with writing-or-typing-cramps, in accordance (as from center to periphery) with laws of orgasm, Reich’s “beclouding of consciousness.” Come from within, out–to relaxed and said. 

– Jack Kerouac, “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose”

Kerouac’s interest in mysticism and Zen Buddhism are major themes in his writing. The concept of “trance writing” is that a writer should work towards a writing state where they are essentially transcribing their stream of consciousness. This kind of writing yields raw and uncensored ideas which Kerouac’s prose is known for. 

Writing style aside, writers must have the right mindset to produce good work. Trying to write a blog post from the middle of a busy cafe might lead to a lot of distractions. Sitting down for an hour to write sci-fi when you would rather write Shakespearean sonnets will not be the most productive writing session. Find the environment that promotes a writing-centric mental state.

Takeaway Writing Tips From Jack Kerouac

Whether you think Jack Kerouac had an interesting writing style with a unique take on creative writing or produced a series of confusing word jumbles throughout his career, his advice echoes commonly held writing tips from many other proponents of the craft. “Essentials of Spontaneous Prose” leaves a lot for aspiring writers to consider for their habits. However, there are two takeaways that all writers can use to their advantage. First, ensure you are in an environment and mindset that promotes writing. Two, avoid getting bogged down by self-editing that can stand in the way of your writing. Create a writing habit that works best for you.