Hey guys. It's the end of another month, so I thought I would give you a look in to what I've been doing all this month. I will say that it doesn't feel like a lot, but sometimes, the biggest things you do with your writing aren't the things that give you the most word count. Or takes up the most time. Sometimes the biggest thing that you can do with your writing is to rework what you have done when you hit a snag.
This month, I've been trying to write Daughter of the Scribe. It's been slow going and I couldn't put my finger on why. I thought it was myself, that I simply didn't want to write the story and to move onto something else, but then I sat down with my plot as it was. I realized that my characters were flat in a way where I didn't care about what happened to them and that's dangerous. I reworked my main character and the characters around her and suddenly, they were more interesting. However, in doing that, I then had to change my plot. I had to change the hows and whys of what they were doing and the end game. However, I feel a lot happier with my plot and more willing to pick it up to write. I'm interested in the characters again and I want to tell the story.
You might notice that I didn't take my own advice from You vs the Blinking Cursor. That commonly happens as it probably does with all writers.
The other thing I've been doing, other than keeping up with blog posts to entertain everyone (at least I hope they're entertaining) is getting ready for Camp NaNoWriMo. I've got my crazy zombie fantasy novel ready to go and I'm looking forward to writing that in July. I've had the thought of doing this project for a while, due to the fact that I like to write zombies in July due to a writing challenge with my friends called Zombie July, so this has been in the works. So I did a lot of world building and character building, making sure the plot fits, and I'm nearly ready. I just have to finish the outline but I'll be ready when the starting gun goes off.
So that's basically been the month of June for me. Slowly writing, trying to get back into the idea of writing everyday, and I'm going to build on that for July. Hopefully, it'll get me back into the groove of writing long term and I'll have more projects done. Until next time, keep on writing and feel free to share in the comments or on Facebook or Twitter, how your month went writing wise.
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Writing Space
Just as important as our writing time is our writing space. Writing space is actually very simple - it's the place where you write. It can either be your desk or the dining room table or wherever you feel the best you can sit down to put your thoughts on paper. And, like everything else, you need to test out your writing space to see if it works for you.
I have three writing spaces. I have a desk in my room, the dining room table, and Starbucks. I know one doesn't seem like the other two, but I get a lot more done at Starbucks than I do at home. I'm not sure if it's the caffeine or the fact that, since I'm out of the house, I feel like I have to do more. Or that I'm more focused because there's less to distract me. Or there's the feeling like there is, considering there's still the internet and everything that goes along with it. No, I think Starbucks has that special charm because it feels like a space where one really does go to write. Any coffee shop has that charm for me but I know it's not the same for everyone.
As for my desk, I seem to be using it for my planner decorating and writing in this blog. It is a creative space and I do write fiction during NaNoWriMo but it's also very limiting. For one, I am cut off from the rest of the house because I'm upstairs and I can close my door. It's effective when I really need to write or have alone time but it's not very social. Also, there are a ton of distractions up here, simply from my DVD collection alone, but also from my books. It is very tempting to just pick up a book and read instead of getting that chapter done. Yet, when push comes to shove, I can get work done. I just need to remember to do it.
And the last of my writing spaces, the dining room table, is nice as I'm in the thick of it, but it is one of the places where sometimes I get no work done. It's downstairs, so there are a ton of distractions like the dirty dishes in the sink. Or needing to tidy up. Or what was that sound in the kitchen and oh, I need more coffee, and you see how it goes. The dining room table requires a lot more inner energy going outward to get things done than it is the other way around. But yet, I will get work done. It just takes a lot of ignoring the rest of the house around me.
So, dear readers, where do you write? What works and doesn't work for you? And, as always, keep on writing.
I have three writing spaces. I have a desk in my room, the dining room table, and Starbucks. I know one doesn't seem like the other two, but I get a lot more done at Starbucks than I do at home. I'm not sure if it's the caffeine or the fact that, since I'm out of the house, I feel like I have to do more. Or that I'm more focused because there's less to distract me. Or there's the feeling like there is, considering there's still the internet and everything that goes along with it. No, I think Starbucks has that special charm because it feels like a space where one really does go to write. Any coffee shop has that charm for me but I know it's not the same for everyone.
As for my desk, I seem to be using it for my planner decorating and writing in this blog. It is a creative space and I do write fiction during NaNoWriMo but it's also very limiting. For one, I am cut off from the rest of the house because I'm upstairs and I can close my door. It's effective when I really need to write or have alone time but it's not very social. Also, there are a ton of distractions up here, simply from my DVD collection alone, but also from my books. It is very tempting to just pick up a book and read instead of getting that chapter done. Yet, when push comes to shove, I can get work done. I just need to remember to do it.
And the last of my writing spaces, the dining room table, is nice as I'm in the thick of it, but it is one of the places where sometimes I get no work done. It's downstairs, so there are a ton of distractions like the dirty dishes in the sink. Or needing to tidy up. Or what was that sound in the kitchen and oh, I need more coffee, and you see how it goes. The dining room table requires a lot more inner energy going outward to get things done than it is the other way around. But yet, I will get work done. It just takes a lot of ignoring the rest of the house around me.
So, dear readers, where do you write? What works and doesn't work for you? And, as always, keep on writing.
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
Weekend Writing vs Week Writing
Yesterday, I talked about writing time and we're continuing the theme. The title of the post might be a little head scratching, but it really is just how it sounds. I'll be discussing how writing on the weekend is different than writing during the week along with the pros and cons of both. The pros and cons, as always, will be more towards my own life than any general overview of the world. So, what might work for you is exactly the opposite of what works for me. As always, feel free to carry on the conversation in the comments or feel free to poke me on either Twitter or Facebook.
Now, we'll start with weekend writing, which is writing on the weekend. Weekend writing is a lot for those who have a Monday-Friday or any other type of job where you get a day or two off either in a block or sectioned. You're writing on the time off from your day job, possibly because it's the only time you can write due to family commitments or being exhausted from your job, and you've possibly got a schedule with it. Or you want to start making a schedule for it but just write when you can. When I worked in retail, I attempted to do weekend writing, but it never seemed to work. I was always exhausted and my days off never really stacked on top of each other. Plus, there was a high chance that I would be called in on one of the days off, so I really needed to just take a break and breathe. Writing was the last thing on my mind and the last thing I wanted to do. What I really wanted to do was just sleep and relax, so I did.
However, during the rare times when my days off got stacked and I wasn't called in, I tried to have a project ready to work on. I would get up, go through my normal morning routine - shower, coffee, breakfast - and then sit down to write for at least a hour or 1,000 words. It would be whichever came first because, there were days where I could sit down and write more than 1,000 words in a hour. There were other days where that was a chore, so it helped to get up, shuffle around the house, come back and write. So, the best thing to do, if you're doing weekend writing, is to have a plan of attack. Have a project you want to work on and set a goal for yourself. This can work if you need to edit too. Use the same time frame but say you're going to edit a chapter instead of writing 1,000 words.
Week writing, exactly what it sounds like, is where you're writing during the week. Perhaps you do have a standard job but you've got enough time that you can write for a small amount of time everyday. Maybe you wake up a half hour or a hour earlier or you go to bed a bit later or you write on your commute. But you're writing for the majority of the week. I wasn't able to do this until I was out of a job because retail was just that draining for me. The same ideas apply, with setting a goal or time limit, and writing or editing as much as you can. The thing is, with writing during the week, you're able to give yourself a bit more of breathing room. You don't have to try to squeeze as much of trying to get words in on just one day of the week. Say you have a section of a book that you want to be 7,000 words by the end of the week. You can do a 1,000 words a day and have it done by the end of the day Sunday if you don't fall behind. That's another problem with writing over the week vs weekend writing. There might be days that you get home from work and you don't want to write. Or you wake up late. Then you need to cram in more words in your day but it's not the end of the world.
In the end, it's really going to be up to your preference of writing. I like writing during the week because it's my main job, even if I haven't published anything yet, but I could go over to weekend writing if I ever needed to take a job. I've done it before and, even though it's hard, I know I could do it again. So I recommend that you try both to see which really fits for you. Unless you try it, you just simply won't know.
I want to add that I know this is really simple advice but, sometimes for me, I need to read the simple advice instead of hearing it from myself. I feel that, if even one person reads this and it helps them, then it was worth writing. I carry that over into the novels I write and I feel that it helps.
Until next time, keep on writing.
Now, we'll start with weekend writing, which is writing on the weekend. Weekend writing is a lot for those who have a Monday-Friday or any other type of job where you get a day or two off either in a block or sectioned. You're writing on the time off from your day job, possibly because it's the only time you can write due to family commitments or being exhausted from your job, and you've possibly got a schedule with it. Or you want to start making a schedule for it but just write when you can. When I worked in retail, I attempted to do weekend writing, but it never seemed to work. I was always exhausted and my days off never really stacked on top of each other. Plus, there was a high chance that I would be called in on one of the days off, so I really needed to just take a break and breathe. Writing was the last thing on my mind and the last thing I wanted to do. What I really wanted to do was just sleep and relax, so I did.
However, during the rare times when my days off got stacked and I wasn't called in, I tried to have a project ready to work on. I would get up, go through my normal morning routine - shower, coffee, breakfast - and then sit down to write for at least a hour or 1,000 words. It would be whichever came first because, there were days where I could sit down and write more than 1,000 words in a hour. There were other days where that was a chore, so it helped to get up, shuffle around the house, come back and write. So, the best thing to do, if you're doing weekend writing, is to have a plan of attack. Have a project you want to work on and set a goal for yourself. This can work if you need to edit too. Use the same time frame but say you're going to edit a chapter instead of writing 1,000 words.
Week writing, exactly what it sounds like, is where you're writing during the week. Perhaps you do have a standard job but you've got enough time that you can write for a small amount of time everyday. Maybe you wake up a half hour or a hour earlier or you go to bed a bit later or you write on your commute. But you're writing for the majority of the week. I wasn't able to do this until I was out of a job because retail was just that draining for me. The same ideas apply, with setting a goal or time limit, and writing or editing as much as you can. The thing is, with writing during the week, you're able to give yourself a bit more of breathing room. You don't have to try to squeeze as much of trying to get words in on just one day of the week. Say you have a section of a book that you want to be 7,000 words by the end of the week. You can do a 1,000 words a day and have it done by the end of the day Sunday if you don't fall behind. That's another problem with writing over the week vs weekend writing. There might be days that you get home from work and you don't want to write. Or you wake up late. Then you need to cram in more words in your day but it's not the end of the world.
In the end, it's really going to be up to your preference of writing. I like writing during the week because it's my main job, even if I haven't published anything yet, but I could go over to weekend writing if I ever needed to take a job. I've done it before and, even though it's hard, I know I could do it again. So I recommend that you try both to see which really fits for you. Unless you try it, you just simply won't know.
I want to add that I know this is really simple advice but, sometimes for me, I need to read the simple advice instead of hearing it from myself. I feel that, if even one person reads this and it helps them, then it was worth writing. I carry that over into the novels I write and I feel that it helps.
Until next time, keep on writing.
Monday, June 27, 2016
Writing Time
Happy Monday everyone! This week, like last week, has a theme and we'll be talking about writing and time. This is less doing with the idea of time in your setting, although we might discuss that, and more about the time of day to write. This is more of a personal, you need to find what works for you, but I thought I'd share what works for me. I'll also give you a bit of tips to help with focusing your time and figuring out the best time for you to write.
Now, there are a lot of people who give the advice that sometimes the best time to write is in the morning. Wake up a bit earlier and write for a half a hour on a project or whatever comes into your mind. This is a very good idea for those people who are morning people and like to get up. Me... not so much. I am very much a "five more minutes" and snooze button sort of girl. However, I had to figure this out. I tried doing, no matter what time I woke up for the day, that I would sit down and write for a half a hour of whatever came to my mind. It worked, for a few days, until I woke up late on a day where I had to leave at a scheduled time. That day, I couldn't write in the morning and everything fell apart. I didn't write for a few days until I got back into it and it was not in the morning. So, while it can work and does work, it just not for me. There were also, those few days, where I couldn't mentally focus because I wasn't awake yet. I thought it was more me than the idea, which it is, but, again, it might work for you.
Let's go to the other extreme, which is writing late at night. You're up at midnight, toiling away on the novel, and the words are flowing great. You're in the zone and then the next thing you know, it's 2 in the morning and you're exhausted. However, that chapter is written, even though it now needs to be heavily edited from the typos that make no sense. I have written a ton of words late at night. I pride myself on the fact that I always start NaNoWriMo at midnight sharp and can write at least 2,000 words before I get some sleep and write another 2,000 to 5,000 words during the day. However, this wasn't the best for me either, although it works during the magical month of NaNoWriMo. There were times, just like with the morning writing, where I just got too tired and had to go to bed before writing. I thought "Oh, I'll write more tomorrow" and then I didn't. I would be behind and try to catch up, but I never did. Or something would catch my interest, I'd go do that, and the writing wouldn't get done. So late night writing wasn't the best either.
The best time I've found for writing, for me, is during the day. It does treat it a bit like a job, but, honestly, I don't mind that. I don't have a regular job, so being a writer is my full time job. With that comes that I should be writing every day, which I try to do, but I'm not perfect. Nobody is, really, and even during the day, there are a ton of things that distract me. Or there's people calling or chores need to be done. However, it is the time that works the best for me because I am more likely to get words written during the day. I am less likely to be distracted by a movie or family time or even needing to sleep. So, it works, but I didn't realize that until I tried it. And there's no real good set time during the day. Writing happens when it happens and it just is during the day. I tried to set a start time but that kept on tripping me up. So now, as long as I get words in during the day, then it's been a writing day.
So, what works for you and what doesn't with your writing time, dear readers? Feel free to leave a comment below and keep on writing.
Now, there are a lot of people who give the advice that sometimes the best time to write is in the morning. Wake up a bit earlier and write for a half a hour on a project or whatever comes into your mind. This is a very good idea for those people who are morning people and like to get up. Me... not so much. I am very much a "five more minutes" and snooze button sort of girl. However, I had to figure this out. I tried doing, no matter what time I woke up for the day, that I would sit down and write for a half a hour of whatever came to my mind. It worked, for a few days, until I woke up late on a day where I had to leave at a scheduled time. That day, I couldn't write in the morning and everything fell apart. I didn't write for a few days until I got back into it and it was not in the morning. So, while it can work and does work, it just not for me. There were also, those few days, where I couldn't mentally focus because I wasn't awake yet. I thought it was more me than the idea, which it is, but, again, it might work for you.
Let's go to the other extreme, which is writing late at night. You're up at midnight, toiling away on the novel, and the words are flowing great. You're in the zone and then the next thing you know, it's 2 in the morning and you're exhausted. However, that chapter is written, even though it now needs to be heavily edited from the typos that make no sense. I have written a ton of words late at night. I pride myself on the fact that I always start NaNoWriMo at midnight sharp and can write at least 2,000 words before I get some sleep and write another 2,000 to 5,000 words during the day. However, this wasn't the best for me either, although it works during the magical month of NaNoWriMo. There were times, just like with the morning writing, where I just got too tired and had to go to bed before writing. I thought "Oh, I'll write more tomorrow" and then I didn't. I would be behind and try to catch up, but I never did. Or something would catch my interest, I'd go do that, and the writing wouldn't get done. So late night writing wasn't the best either.
The best time I've found for writing, for me, is during the day. It does treat it a bit like a job, but, honestly, I don't mind that. I don't have a regular job, so being a writer is my full time job. With that comes that I should be writing every day, which I try to do, but I'm not perfect. Nobody is, really, and even during the day, there are a ton of things that distract me. Or there's people calling or chores need to be done. However, it is the time that works the best for me because I am more likely to get words written during the day. I am less likely to be distracted by a movie or family time or even needing to sleep. So, it works, but I didn't realize that until I tried it. And there's no real good set time during the day. Writing happens when it happens and it just is during the day. I tried to set a start time but that kept on tripping me up. So now, as long as I get words in during the day, then it's been a writing day.
So, what works for you and what doesn't with your writing time, dear readers? Feel free to leave a comment below and keep on writing.
Friday, June 24, 2016
Friday Inspiration
I wish you the best on your falling and flying this weekend. Have a happy Friday.
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Throwback Thursday: How I Used to Plot
So... how I used to plot. I have to think back to 2008, because, before that... I didn't really plot. I was a pantser, who just wrote what I thought would work, and didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Heck, I still don't think anything is wrong with it, because I will pants short stories vs outright planning them, and I like it. So, again, nothing horrible with pantsing. I am a former and current one.
But, thinking back to 2008, for my first NaNoWriMo win, I don't think I really had an outline? It's been eight years (jeez!) and I had a lot going on. For starters, I was a volunteer in the field for the OFA. I was doing long days and I didn't start until day 5 of the month. Also, I had one of the worst flus of my short life and I don't think I wrote more than 500 words a day until I was better. But I put my head down and wrote, getting to 50,000 words. I then put the novel away until marathon writing to get a free proof as part of the winner goodies. I still have that proof.
As for if I had an outline, I did. I finally found it, in the deep dark depths of my computer, and see that I was doing a back and forth between the good guys and the bad guys. It's something that I've only tried once again, with Mystery of the Dark going back and forth between Kate and Justinian, but it didn't work. I feel like going back and forth can work, considering A Song of Fire and Ice, but you have to make sure that your plot is strong enough. It should also be consistent, which my plot was not, as I had three or four chapters before it changed sides. I feel like the plot of Power is strong enough to go through that, but I need to go back and edit. The writing... well, it's horrible. I love the plot but that writing from 2008 is horrible. I don't even feel bad telling on myself.
So, looking back, I was a lot more rigid in how I wrote with the outlines. There was no "Hey, side mission looks cool" fluidity. It was point A to point Z with nothing stopping them. I don't think I could write like that now but it would be an interesting challenge to try. So, readers, how much have you changed from when you finished your first novel and now with planning? Have you not changed much? Gone from pantser to plotter? Plotter to pantser? Leave your comments below and, until next time, keep on writing.
But, thinking back to 2008, for my first NaNoWriMo win, I don't think I really had an outline? It's been eight years (jeez!) and I had a lot going on. For starters, I was a volunteer in the field for the OFA. I was doing long days and I didn't start until day 5 of the month. Also, I had one of the worst flus of my short life and I don't think I wrote more than 500 words a day until I was better. But I put my head down and wrote, getting to 50,000 words. I then put the novel away until marathon writing to get a free proof as part of the winner goodies. I still have that proof.
As for if I had an outline, I did. I finally found it, in the deep dark depths of my computer, and see that I was doing a back and forth between the good guys and the bad guys. It's something that I've only tried once again, with Mystery of the Dark going back and forth between Kate and Justinian, but it didn't work. I feel like going back and forth can work, considering A Song of Fire and Ice, but you have to make sure that your plot is strong enough. It should also be consistent, which my plot was not, as I had three or four chapters before it changed sides. I feel like the plot of Power is strong enough to go through that, but I need to go back and edit. The writing... well, it's horrible. I love the plot but that writing from 2008 is horrible. I don't even feel bad telling on myself.
So, looking back, I was a lot more rigid in how I wrote with the outlines. There was no "Hey, side mission looks cool" fluidity. It was point A to point Z with nothing stopping them. I don't think I could write like that now but it would be an interesting challenge to try. So, readers, how much have you changed from when you finished your first novel and now with planning? Have you not changed much? Gone from pantser to plotter? Plotter to pantser? Leave your comments below and, until next time, keep on writing.
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Writer Style
Me? I go between jeans and a t-shirt or my PJs when writing. You've got to be comfy or you're not going to be happy when writing. If comfy is dressing up, then dress up, but some nice slouchy jeans, a loose t-shirt, and I'm happy.
Oh, you mean something else. Well, most do. Writing style can mean what you're wearing when you write or how you write. Since we've got one out of the way, let's go to the second part of how I write.
I... well, sometimes I write a lot like I write here on the blog. I like to think that this style is a bit of conversation more than throwing information at you. I've been known to throw information at people in my novel, aka a info dump, which is not the best thing to do. Tuesday's post is an example of an info dump, where I gave you all that information, but not much of anything else until near the end. It's something you want to get away from as a writer but it's also not the worst thing to get out and then edit down.
Then there are times when I write when my fingers cannot catch up to my brain no matter what I do. It's messy and I try to clean it up, but there are things that escape my attention. It's where my beta readers send it back and say "Liz, you need to work on your grammar" because it's true. I'm not known for crisp clean grammar, which is why I have readers and an editor and everything else. So, again, not the worst thing in the world, but you've got to be willing to edit.
I guess that's what I'm coming down to. No matter what you do, you're going to have to edit. It's a way of life, a circle of writing if you will, and one that's it's hard to step out of. So, dear readers, what is your writing style? Clothing or otherwise.
Until next time, keep on writing.
Oh, you mean something else. Well, most do. Writing style can mean what you're wearing when you write or how you write. Since we've got one out of the way, let's go to the second part of how I write.
I... well, sometimes I write a lot like I write here on the blog. I like to think that this style is a bit of conversation more than throwing information at you. I've been known to throw information at people in my novel, aka a info dump, which is not the best thing to do. Tuesday's post is an example of an info dump, where I gave you all that information, but not much of anything else until near the end. It's something you want to get away from as a writer but it's also not the worst thing to get out and then edit down.
Then there are times when I write when my fingers cannot catch up to my brain no matter what I do. It's messy and I try to clean it up, but there are things that escape my attention. It's where my beta readers send it back and say "Liz, you need to work on your grammar" because it's true. I'm not known for crisp clean grammar, which is why I have readers and an editor and everything else. So, again, not the worst thing in the world, but you've got to be willing to edit.
I guess that's what I'm coming down to. No matter what you do, you're going to have to edit. It's a way of life, a circle of writing if you will, and one that's it's hard to step out of. So, dear readers, what is your writing style? Clothing or otherwise.
Until next time, keep on writing.
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Plotting Time!: AKA How I Plot a Novel
Yesterday, I talked about pants vs plotter and showed a bit of the hybrid going between the two. Today, we're going to go into what I usually do when I am plotting a novel and the steps I go through before I get to plotting.
Before I can even get to plotting, I like to set up what is called the basic stats of the novel. I like to have a title in mind, even if it's mystery novel, more than any sort of real title. I put which genre I'll be writing in, a subgenre if needed, how many words I plan to write, if there's a challenge involved such as NaNoWriMo, and a summary. You're probably wondering how I can have a summary before I have a plot, but the summary isn't all that in depth. Sometimes it'll just be a few lines of the idea that I have and then I'll come back to fill in the summary after I've got the plot outline done.
If you're wondering how long your novel should be, LitRejections has genre guidelines that can be found here. For fantasy, I always try to shoot for 90,000 and to not go above 100,000. It seems like a lot but, at the end of the novel, I'm always right in-between 90 and 100 thousand words.
After you have your basic stats, I then create the world through worldbuilding. If you're setting something in the real world, you don't have to create a whole new world. However, you do need to know where your characters are going to be at any given moment. To take Chicago as an example, you'll want a map or two in order to see where your characters are going. Are they going to travel by car or are they going to take public transport? If it's public transport, are you going by bus or L? So, it does take a bit of research and visiting the city that you want to set your city in. I know that we have Google and other ways to look, but sometimes the best way to know your setting is to visit it. How else are you going to know that the best way to get across town as quickly as possible? You won't unless you go and see for yourself. If you are creating a new world, I highly recommend Patrica C. Wrede's Worldbuilder Questions, 30 Days of Worldbuilding, and Anna Staniszewski's World Building Through Character. I've used the last link a lot as it springboards into creating more of the fantasy world in different ways than the other two.
So, you've got your world, now it's time for characters. There are a lot of character sheets that you can use out there. However, I find it easy to boil down the characters to the following:
Name:
Age / Apparent Age:
Appearance:
Background:
About (Personality):
Weapons, Magical Ability, Misc:
Now, I sometimes do this before I get into world building. It helps to have an idea of the characters I went to set in the world vs creating a world and then putting the characters into them. You can write as little or as much as you want, but that's the basic formula I use to create my characters. There are also various places where you can get appearance ideas, but I recommend just taking a look around you when you're out and about. Sometimes you get the best ideas by seeing people in Starbucks and deciding that their mohawk works perfectly for the character in your head.
So, now we're at the outline. You're probably all thinking "thank Deity of Choice". Since we have everything all together before getting to this point, there are some novels where the outline writes itself. All one needs to remember is the classic where you have a start, the middle, and the end. I like throwing in a little curve or twist near the end, before you get the clear ending, as a way to put in a bit more plot. It's usually used with police procedural, when they think they've got the killer, but it turns out to be someone they suspected but discarded. It's not rocket science and this outline type has gotten me through a lot of different novels.
So, that's how I plot out my novels. It takes a while, so I like to give myself a month or two before I sit down to write. That way I can make sure that everything is in order and I don't need to change anything. Plotting is a lot of work but it is nothing compared to trying to write the novel itself. So, you want to make sure that you like what you're about to write, you like the characters, and you know the world. If you've got those three, then you're going to be all set.
Would this method work for you? I'd like to know, if you feel like leaving a comment, or if you've got a method that works better. Until next time, keep on writing.
Before I can even get to plotting, I like to set up what is called the basic stats of the novel. I like to have a title in mind, even if it's mystery novel, more than any sort of real title. I put which genre I'll be writing in, a subgenre if needed, how many words I plan to write, if there's a challenge involved such as NaNoWriMo, and a summary. You're probably wondering how I can have a summary before I have a plot, but the summary isn't all that in depth. Sometimes it'll just be a few lines of the idea that I have and then I'll come back to fill in the summary after I've got the plot outline done.
If you're wondering how long your novel should be, LitRejections has genre guidelines that can be found here. For fantasy, I always try to shoot for 90,000 and to not go above 100,000. It seems like a lot but, at the end of the novel, I'm always right in-between 90 and 100 thousand words.
After you have your basic stats, I then create the world through worldbuilding. If you're setting something in the real world, you don't have to create a whole new world. However, you do need to know where your characters are going to be at any given moment. To take Chicago as an example, you'll want a map or two in order to see where your characters are going. Are they going to travel by car or are they going to take public transport? If it's public transport, are you going by bus or L? So, it does take a bit of research and visiting the city that you want to set your city in. I know that we have Google and other ways to look, but sometimes the best way to know your setting is to visit it. How else are you going to know that the best way to get across town as quickly as possible? You won't unless you go and see for yourself. If you are creating a new world, I highly recommend Patrica C. Wrede's Worldbuilder Questions, 30 Days of Worldbuilding, and Anna Staniszewski's World Building Through Character. I've used the last link a lot as it springboards into creating more of the fantasy world in different ways than the other two.
So, you've got your world, now it's time for characters. There are a lot of character sheets that you can use out there. However, I find it easy to boil down the characters to the following:
Name:
Age / Apparent Age:
Appearance:
Background:
About (Personality):
Weapons, Magical Ability, Misc:
Now, I sometimes do this before I get into world building. It helps to have an idea of the characters I went to set in the world vs creating a world and then putting the characters into them. You can write as little or as much as you want, but that's the basic formula I use to create my characters. There are also various places where you can get appearance ideas, but I recommend just taking a look around you when you're out and about. Sometimes you get the best ideas by seeing people in Starbucks and deciding that their mohawk works perfectly for the character in your head.
So, now we're at the outline. You're probably all thinking "thank Deity of Choice". Since we have everything all together before getting to this point, there are some novels where the outline writes itself. All one needs to remember is the classic where you have a start, the middle, and the end. I like throwing in a little curve or twist near the end, before you get the clear ending, as a way to put in a bit more plot. It's usually used with police procedural, when they think they've got the killer, but it turns out to be someone they suspected but discarded. It's not rocket science and this outline type has gotten me through a lot of different novels.
So, that's how I plot out my novels. It takes a while, so I like to give myself a month or two before I sit down to write. That way I can make sure that everything is in order and I don't need to change anything. Plotting is a lot of work but it is nothing compared to trying to write the novel itself. So, you want to make sure that you like what you're about to write, you like the characters, and you know the world. If you've got those three, then you're going to be all set.
Would this method work for you? I'd like to know, if you feel like leaving a comment, or if you've got a method that works better. Until next time, keep on writing.
Monday, June 20, 2016
Pants vs Plots
Last week, if you didn't notice, we had a lot of talk about characters. I thought we'd continue with trends and go into talking this week about plotting. Now, this won't always happen, mostly because it was random last week and this week I planned this, but I thought it would be a nice little continuation. I'm more than happy to also do a week about world building and please feel free to comment below if you would like that sooner rather than later.
However, this week, there's plotting. Plotting can involve a lot of things. Making character sketches is a form of plotting, even if you don't think it is, because you're thinking out ways that your character has a form and background. World building, even if you're using the real world around you is another form of plotting. So there are a lot of little ways that you can plot without even knowing it. For the purpose of this post, we're going to talk about the traditional form of plotting, an outline, versus going by the seat of pants, aka pantsing.
Disclaimer: There is nothing wrong with either. I have done both and both have strengths and weaknesses. I've even done a hybrid form of pants and plotting, which I will explain, but I am not bashing one way or another. Both have their place in the writing world and both can work and not work for you. That out of the way, let's talk.
Pantsing is exactly what it sounds. You are going by the seat of your pants, wherever you want to go, and you write your plot. This frees you up to write the story as it comes to you and it is quite freeing. You don't have a road map and you can go all over the place. This is really nice if you have these great characters and just want to throw them into a situation then go from there. So, character A and character B walk into a bar and they can meet up. They can get in a fight and then go through how their lives intersect before possibly getting together in the end. One of the more popular ways to pants is to take on dares from other people to further your novel, like include a trip to a taco bar, and go from there. Like all things, there's also challenges to this because you have to be self disciplined. You have to be willing to just write, no matter what, and hope that you're connecting all your plots in the end. I feel this also needs the most editing after you've completed a draft.
Plotting is also the same thing as it sounds. You create an outline, a road map, where you go from point A to point Z with your characters. To take the example of the two characters walking into a bar, you'd probably have all the reasons stated for why one of the characters are there. You have a setup and a background and probably a few chapters before that character walks into the bar. This is great and, while there will still need to be editing, there's less chance for having to edit for stray plot holes. However, you're locked into what you're doing. You can't really have a random taco bar meeting that you would if you were pantsing unless it's already in your outline. You are set in that outline that you have put forward and you need to get through your plot.
Now, there is a third way, which I think a lot of plotters do that's a hybrid of plotting and pantsing. Basically, you have the outline, but it's a fluid one. Say you like the idea about the random taco bar meeting and you have a place where it could go in your outline. So, you put it in and, while writing, character C becomes involved and you have a love triangle. You go back to your outline and change out what happens in the chapters going forward. The outline, while still your road map, is now changed and possibly for the better. This might be the way for you, if you do need that bit of plotting, but want the freedom of pantsing. I've found that it helps, especially when I get in the middle of a story to completely change a character, and it helps to make sure that all the tendrils of the story still goes together to make a complete story.
There are a million other ways to write and make sure that your story is complete. What's the way that you decide to go forward with writing your novel? Do you plot, pants, or something in between? Feel free to leave comments below and, until next time, keep on writing.
However, this week, there's plotting. Plotting can involve a lot of things. Making character sketches is a form of plotting, even if you don't think it is, because you're thinking out ways that your character has a form and background. World building, even if you're using the real world around you is another form of plotting. So there are a lot of little ways that you can plot without even knowing it. For the purpose of this post, we're going to talk about the traditional form of plotting, an outline, versus going by the seat of pants, aka pantsing.
Disclaimer: There is nothing wrong with either. I have done both and both have strengths and weaknesses. I've even done a hybrid form of pants and plotting, which I will explain, but I am not bashing one way or another. Both have their place in the writing world and both can work and not work for you. That out of the way, let's talk.
Pantsing is exactly what it sounds. You are going by the seat of your pants, wherever you want to go, and you write your plot. This frees you up to write the story as it comes to you and it is quite freeing. You don't have a road map and you can go all over the place. This is really nice if you have these great characters and just want to throw them into a situation then go from there. So, character A and character B walk into a bar and they can meet up. They can get in a fight and then go through how their lives intersect before possibly getting together in the end. One of the more popular ways to pants is to take on dares from other people to further your novel, like include a trip to a taco bar, and go from there. Like all things, there's also challenges to this because you have to be self disciplined. You have to be willing to just write, no matter what, and hope that you're connecting all your plots in the end. I feel this also needs the most editing after you've completed a draft.
Plotting is also the same thing as it sounds. You create an outline, a road map, where you go from point A to point Z with your characters. To take the example of the two characters walking into a bar, you'd probably have all the reasons stated for why one of the characters are there. You have a setup and a background and probably a few chapters before that character walks into the bar. This is great and, while there will still need to be editing, there's less chance for having to edit for stray plot holes. However, you're locked into what you're doing. You can't really have a random taco bar meeting that you would if you were pantsing unless it's already in your outline. You are set in that outline that you have put forward and you need to get through your plot.
Now, there is a third way, which I think a lot of plotters do that's a hybrid of plotting and pantsing. Basically, you have the outline, but it's a fluid one. Say you like the idea about the random taco bar meeting and you have a place where it could go in your outline. So, you put it in and, while writing, character C becomes involved and you have a love triangle. You go back to your outline and change out what happens in the chapters going forward. The outline, while still your road map, is now changed and possibly for the better. This might be the way for you, if you do need that bit of plotting, but want the freedom of pantsing. I've found that it helps, especially when I get in the middle of a story to completely change a character, and it helps to make sure that all the tendrils of the story still goes together to make a complete story.
There are a million other ways to write and make sure that your story is complete. What's the way that you decide to go forward with writing your novel? Do you plot, pants, or something in between? Feel free to leave comments below and, until next time, keep on writing.
Friday, June 17, 2016
Your Friday Five
Hello again to the Friday Five. The following are important stories that happened in the week to things that I think you might want to know to sometimes bizarre.
1. Pulse, Orlando: Deadliest Mass Shooting to Date. That's an updated article and my heart goes out to the families of those lost and the victims who are trying to heal. Here's one of the ways to help - GoFundMe to Support Victims of Pulse Shooting - but, if you can and live in the Orlando area or Florida in general, please go give blood.
2. Dogs Probably Hate Hugs from self.com. The funny thing is that Cookie is the complete opposite. She leans into me, not turning away, there's no licking, and she's happy to be held. Then again, she's a Cavachon and half of her is lap dog. Well, no, all of her is lap dog and wanting attention. Brat (said with love).
3. In the UK: Supreme Court to Hear Wheelchair vs Buggy Case. Buggy meaning stroller but this is so foreign to me. Where I live, it's a law that you have to give up your seat if someone disabled comes on if you're sitting in that area of the bus. I wonder if there was ever a case similar to this and that's where it comes from. It's something to wander down the Google hole with over the weekend.
4. If you're in Philadelphia, there's now a soda tax. As someone who used to drink soda, I think this is strange and not needed. You get taxed on so much depending on where you live and it can be expensive - Cook County, where I live, is up to 11% - so I don't like it. As something that could possibly get people to be healthier and drink less soda... I think it's going to fail. People are either going to want to drink soda or not drink soda. I don't want to, as it's just not what I do anymore, but thinking that making people pay more money thinking they'll stop drinking the stuff? Well, people still smoke and taxes on cigarettes are insane.
5.
via GIPHY
Have a good weekend everyone!
1. Pulse, Orlando: Deadliest Mass Shooting to Date. That's an updated article and my heart goes out to the families of those lost and the victims who are trying to heal. Here's one of the ways to help - GoFundMe to Support Victims of Pulse Shooting - but, if you can and live in the Orlando area or Florida in general, please go give blood.
2. Dogs Probably Hate Hugs from self.com. The funny thing is that Cookie is the complete opposite. She leans into me, not turning away, there's no licking, and she's happy to be held. Then again, she's a Cavachon and half of her is lap dog. Well, no, all of her is lap dog and wanting attention. Brat (said with love).
3. In the UK: Supreme Court to Hear Wheelchair vs Buggy Case. Buggy meaning stroller but this is so foreign to me. Where I live, it's a law that you have to give up your seat if someone disabled comes on if you're sitting in that area of the bus. I wonder if there was ever a case similar to this and that's where it comes from. It's something to wander down the Google hole with over the weekend.
4. If you're in Philadelphia, there's now a soda tax. As someone who used to drink soda, I think this is strange and not needed. You get taxed on so much depending on where you live and it can be expensive - Cook County, where I live, is up to 11% - so I don't like it. As something that could possibly get people to be healthier and drink less soda... I think it's going to fail. People are either going to want to drink soda or not drink soda. I don't want to, as it's just not what I do anymore, but thinking that making people pay more money thinking they'll stop drinking the stuff? Well, people still smoke and taxes on cigarettes are insane.
5.
via GIPHY
Have a good weekend everyone!
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Character Studies
I just watched Person of Interest's penultimate episode, .exe, and I'm in awe of all the complex characters they have. There's the Machine, who only wants to help humanity because that's what she was taught by her creator, Harold Finch. Harold, himself, is shrouded in mystery and we've gotten very little about who he really is over the seasons. There's John Reese, not the first lost soul that helps Finch help the Machine, but as the series comes to an end next week, it looks like he's going to be the last. He's got a military background, a CIA background, basically he's your Jack of All Trades who's signature is shooting the bad guys in the kneecaps. Then there's Sameen Shaw, who also has a CIA / spy background, who likes killing people and can't feel emotions. At all.
And that's just the good guys. The antagonists are just as complex, make me want to know exactly what make them tick, and yet I want them to fail. I want them to fail in such a way that everything they want is burned to the ground and the good guys win. They've got a Machine too - Samaritan - and an evil Harold (John Greer) and Greer has different Johns and Shaws to help him out in his own ways. I want to know more about why Greer chose his path, even though they did show us in a background episode, but I feel there's more. There's got to be more.
I bring this up, mostly because I'm in awe of the writing and the acting, but because we can learn from this. It's not easy and you have to love, unconditionally, what you decide to take to study. If you don't love the thing you're going to unpack, then it's not going to work. You're going to get frustrated and you're going to hate it in the end. You won't take anything away from it. On the flip side, you might unpack it and end up hating the thing you love. I went down this hole with Grey's Anatomy, in trying to understand how to work out romance and chick lit, and I had to take a break from the show. So, make sure that you want to do this and you won't end up hating what you're unpacking.
Simply put, you take the character that interests you the most and unpack why. It can be as simple as you like the actor playing the character to the character giving an impassioned speech that makes you rethink what you know about them. If it's more the actor than the character, then you need to look to the actor. Is it the way they're delivering the lines? A little twitch of the head that seems to bring the character together? Or is it simply the whole package that the actor shows everything the character could be? For example, I'll watch nearly anything with Tom Cruise in it due to how he plays his characters. Same goes for Matt Damon. It's more how they play the character than how the character plays them, if you get my meaning.
Now, if it's the character, what about them? Is it that they're leading from behind? Or is it that they're the best leader of the group? What is the trait that draws you to them and, once you find it, are you going to be able to write it? Or, when you dive into what makes the character tick, do you regret doing so? Do you realize that he or she would make a better villain? You can still use what you find but put it into the villain file instead of the hero pile.
For those of you who are wondering what to do if you realize the plot is the reason you love your favorite show... well, do the same thing. Find the one thing in the plot that you love and figure out why. Is it the plot twists that you can't seem coming but feel completely natural? Learn how to write like that - it's hard but it can be done. Or do you like how there are a million plot threads that lead to one conclusion (or at least we hope so, Game of Thrones)? I recommend a big white board where you can connect A to B all the way to Z.
So, character studies, of characters that you love, is one of the easier things to do. As I was told recently, if you don't love it, then don't do it. There's no reason to force yourself to do anything that isn't going to help you in the long term. I hope that this helps someone. If you try to do a character study in the way above, feel free to hop in the comments and say how well it worked or didn't work for you.
Until next time, keep on writing.
And that's just the good guys. The antagonists are just as complex, make me want to know exactly what make them tick, and yet I want them to fail. I want them to fail in such a way that everything they want is burned to the ground and the good guys win. They've got a Machine too - Samaritan - and an evil Harold (John Greer) and Greer has different Johns and Shaws to help him out in his own ways. I want to know more about why Greer chose his path, even though they did show us in a background episode, but I feel there's more. There's got to be more.
I bring this up, mostly because I'm in awe of the writing and the acting, but because we can learn from this. It's not easy and you have to love, unconditionally, what you decide to take to study. If you don't love the thing you're going to unpack, then it's not going to work. You're going to get frustrated and you're going to hate it in the end. You won't take anything away from it. On the flip side, you might unpack it and end up hating the thing you love. I went down this hole with Grey's Anatomy, in trying to understand how to work out romance and chick lit, and I had to take a break from the show. So, make sure that you want to do this and you won't end up hating what you're unpacking.
Simply put, you take the character that interests you the most and unpack why. It can be as simple as you like the actor playing the character to the character giving an impassioned speech that makes you rethink what you know about them. If it's more the actor than the character, then you need to look to the actor. Is it the way they're delivering the lines? A little twitch of the head that seems to bring the character together? Or is it simply the whole package that the actor shows everything the character could be? For example, I'll watch nearly anything with Tom Cruise in it due to how he plays his characters. Same goes for Matt Damon. It's more how they play the character than how the character plays them, if you get my meaning.
Now, if it's the character, what about them? Is it that they're leading from behind? Or is it that they're the best leader of the group? What is the trait that draws you to them and, once you find it, are you going to be able to write it? Or, when you dive into what makes the character tick, do you regret doing so? Do you realize that he or she would make a better villain? You can still use what you find but put it into the villain file instead of the hero pile.
For those of you who are wondering what to do if you realize the plot is the reason you love your favorite show... well, do the same thing. Find the one thing in the plot that you love and figure out why. Is it the plot twists that you can't seem coming but feel completely natural? Learn how to write like that - it's hard but it can be done. Or do you like how there are a million plot threads that lead to one conclusion (or at least we hope so, Game of Thrones)? I recommend a big white board where you can connect A to B all the way to Z.
So, character studies, of characters that you love, is one of the easier things to do. As I was told recently, if you don't love it, then don't do it. There's no reason to force yourself to do anything that isn't going to help you in the long term. I hope that this helps someone. If you try to do a character study in the way above, feel free to hop in the comments and say how well it worked or didn't work for you.
Until next time, keep on writing.
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Characters: Where Do They Come From?
Yesterday, I spent the day retooling a novel I'm trying to write. It's called Daughter of the Scribe, where the main character is exactly what the title says she is, and she's tasked with protecting a magical artifact. It goes on but my plot was limp and I felt like I was pulling teeth while writing it. I'm reworking the plot today, but before I could do that, I had to look at my characters. I needed to figure out what was wrong with them in order to figure out what was wrong with my plot. When I did that and tweaked the main character - same background but different life experience growing up - the characters around her changed for the better. The plot is fitting into place and makes it something that I want to write. She's now a thief who can kill you with an arrow from an impressive distance and I changed how she grew up. Instead of living the life of a scholar, she grew up with her uncle who trained her to be an assassin and thief. She's still the daughter of a scribe but she didn't grow up with her father. Now, he was disappeared by an evil king and she needed to change her life goals, but there comes motivation and, therefore, plot.
My main character, Liliana, when I think of where she comes from, is not from just one person. My life, while not as jarring as what happens to others, changed completely due to something outside of my control. At the same time, this character isn't me. She's not just one person, but she's someone who's story is familiar to a lot of us. She adapted and she might or might not be okay. She might be okay on the outside but inside, she just wants to curl up away from the world and make it go away.
What I'm trying to get at here, if you're still reading and not just rolling your eyes at me, is that there's no one place where I get my characters from. When I look at all of my characters, from Power to when I first started writing Mystery of the Dark to where I am today, there's no one single person or thing that defines them. I think that gives the character strength because it makes them easier to relate to. I think, well more I hope, when I publish and you read my stories, that you see a bit of yourself in the characters I put forward. It might not happen but that's my hope.
Readers, where do your characters come from? Are you like me, where there's no one point or person, but they're several different little things put together? Or are your characters pointed to be the one person that touched your life, no matter how briefly? Feel free to leave your answers in the comments and, until next time, keep on writing.
My main character, Liliana, when I think of where she comes from, is not from just one person. My life, while not as jarring as what happens to others, changed completely due to something outside of my control. At the same time, this character isn't me. She's not just one person, but she's someone who's story is familiar to a lot of us. She adapted and she might or might not be okay. She might be okay on the outside but inside, she just wants to curl up away from the world and make it go away.
What I'm trying to get at here, if you're still reading and not just rolling your eyes at me, is that there's no one place where I get my characters from. When I look at all of my characters, from Power to when I first started writing Mystery of the Dark to where I am today, there's no one single person or thing that defines them. I think that gives the character strength because it makes them easier to relate to. I think, well more I hope, when I publish and you read my stories, that you see a bit of yourself in the characters I put forward. It might not happen but that's my hope.
Readers, where do your characters come from? Are you like me, where there's no one point or person, but they're several different little things put together? Or are your characters pointed to be the one person that touched your life, no matter how briefly? Feel free to leave your answers in the comments and, until next time, keep on writing.
Monday, June 13, 2016
You vs the Blinking Cursor
Everyone knows that, at one point during your writing life, you're going to sit down at your chair. You have the want and the urge to write, so you open your favorite program to do so - in my case, Microsoft Word - and then nothing comes. The page is blank, the cursor blinking at you in a teasing and taunting way, and nothing comes. Your great ideas have escaped your mind. The character that you want to give this great little scene to has disappeared into the ether. You're not alone in this. It happens, as we're all human, but I have some tips on how to get back in the groove.
There is a caveat. They might not work for you. They might only work for a short while and then you're back at the blank page with the blinking cursor. Again, it's common, we're human, but we've got another great resource. Google is more than happy to help find the writing prompt that will get your juices flowing. If none of these work, then go there. Until that time, read on and I'll give you my tips to defeat the evil blinking cursor.
1. Change how you are writing and/or your surroundings. This is really simple, isn't it? Yet, I never think about this until I'm lamenting on how I can't seem to write at home. The answer is "well, why don't you go to Starbucks / outside / somewhere other than home?" and I have that 'aha!' moment. If you can't change your surroundings due to money or little kids or what have you, then I recommend changing how you write. Write by hand for a chapter and then type it up. It is double the work but I've found, when I use this method, that I also edit as I type.
2. Get rid of all distractions unless it will distract you more. Don't worry, I'll explain. One piece of writing advice is turn off your internet on the computer you're writing on. This article, written by Mayr on WritetoDone, has it as number 2 on it's list of writing without distractions. There are others who will put it as their first piece of writing advice but I only agree to a certain point.
I have tried this advice and it only works for me if the internet is truly gone. At Panera, depending on the time of day, you can only have their free WiFi for a hour. In situations like that or a power outage, I write like nobody's business. When I simply turn off my internet in a place I know that has good internet, like at home, I can't focus. It gets worse. I start checking my phone and getting distracted by that.
Also, in a random poll of the WriYe chat room, the three people there all responded that not having the internet doesn't help. For one of the respondents, they use Google Docs to write. While that does have an offline mode, she doesn't feel safe using it as there's no automated backup. So, you can try it and defeat the blinking cursor. You might try it and be even more frustrated. Trust your frustrations and let's try one more thing.
3. Evaluate the project you are writing and see if it is less a problem with you and more of a problem with your story. I am thirteen chapters in on a fantasy novel about the daughter of a scribe who runs away from home and joins a band of thieves. It is like pulling teeth to write this story and I hate that because I really like the characters. I need to change something, go back and either change the plot or change a character, and that will change my story. It'll be something completely different and need a different title but then I'll be writing the novel. I'll have defeated the cursor of doom and it'll be one more novel I need to edit. I'm okay with that because, at the end of the day, I want the novel written. I want to go into the next phase and that involves getting the novel out of my head and onto the page.
My last piece of advice is this - if you have tried all the above and nothing works, then you might need a different project. You might need to edit that novel that's been sitting in the edit pile for years on end. You might need to plot out what you will be writing next month or in a few months from now for NaNoWriMo. Sometimes in order to get down to writing, you need to get away from writing for a bit. It's not defeat and it's not saying you're not a writer. You're doing other writer stuff by editing and plotting and that's a good thing.
Well, dear readers, those are my tips for getting past the blank page and blinking cursor. What are yours? Feel free to share them in the comments below or, if you try one of my methods, how it works for you.
Until next time, keep on writing (or editing or plotting).
There is a caveat. They might not work for you. They might only work for a short while and then you're back at the blank page with the blinking cursor. Again, it's common, we're human, but we've got another great resource. Google is more than happy to help find the writing prompt that will get your juices flowing. If none of these work, then go there. Until that time, read on and I'll give you my tips to defeat the evil blinking cursor.
1. Change how you are writing and/or your surroundings. This is really simple, isn't it? Yet, I never think about this until I'm lamenting on how I can't seem to write at home. The answer is "well, why don't you go to Starbucks / outside / somewhere other than home?" and I have that 'aha!' moment. If you can't change your surroundings due to money or little kids or what have you, then I recommend changing how you write. Write by hand for a chapter and then type it up. It is double the work but I've found, when I use this method, that I also edit as I type.
2. Get rid of all distractions unless it will distract you more. Don't worry, I'll explain. One piece of writing advice is turn off your internet on the computer you're writing on. This article, written by Mayr on WritetoDone, has it as number 2 on it's list of writing without distractions. There are others who will put it as their first piece of writing advice but I only agree to a certain point.
I have tried this advice and it only works for me if the internet is truly gone. At Panera, depending on the time of day, you can only have their free WiFi for a hour. In situations like that or a power outage, I write like nobody's business. When I simply turn off my internet in a place I know that has good internet, like at home, I can't focus. It gets worse. I start checking my phone and getting distracted by that.
Also, in a random poll of the WriYe chat room, the three people there all responded that not having the internet doesn't help. For one of the respondents, they use Google Docs to write. While that does have an offline mode, she doesn't feel safe using it as there's no automated backup. So, you can try it and defeat the blinking cursor. You might try it and be even more frustrated. Trust your frustrations and let's try one more thing.
3. Evaluate the project you are writing and see if it is less a problem with you and more of a problem with your story. I am thirteen chapters in on a fantasy novel about the daughter of a scribe who runs away from home and joins a band of thieves. It is like pulling teeth to write this story and I hate that because I really like the characters. I need to change something, go back and either change the plot or change a character, and that will change my story. It'll be something completely different and need a different title but then I'll be writing the novel. I'll have defeated the cursor of doom and it'll be one more novel I need to edit. I'm okay with that because, at the end of the day, I want the novel written. I want to go into the next phase and that involves getting the novel out of my head and onto the page.
My last piece of advice is this - if you have tried all the above and nothing works, then you might need a different project. You might need to edit that novel that's been sitting in the edit pile for years on end. You might need to plot out what you will be writing next month or in a few months from now for NaNoWriMo. Sometimes in order to get down to writing, you need to get away from writing for a bit. It's not defeat and it's not saying you're not a writer. You're doing other writer stuff by editing and plotting and that's a good thing.
Well, dear readers, those are my tips for getting past the blank page and blinking cursor. What are yours? Feel free to share them in the comments below or, if you try one of my methods, how it works for you.
Until next time, keep on writing (or editing or plotting).
Friday, June 10, 2016
Welcome Weekend: The Friday Five
Say hi to Welcome Weekend everyone. I am going to attempt, every Friday, list five things that I found interesting during the week. They will be anything from articles on writing to news stories to funny Youtube videos to pictures of my dog. Okay, maybe not the last one, but she is an adorable Cavachon.
Alright, here we go.
1. The 9 Best Tips on Writing from Ernest Hemingway from Inc.com. He did live what he preached. If you need more evidence, you should find and read "Hills Like White Elephants". If you're me, you'll then go and devour For Whom the Bell Tolls and then the Sun Also Rises.
2. If you remember from Wednesday, I wrote a post on fictional women presidents in television series. I submit, for your reading pleasure, this article from Bustle about seven books with / about a woman president. There is a good amount of non fiction on the list, but a bit of non fiction never hurt anyone. Unless said book was used as a weapon because someone broke into your house.
3. If you haven't already, please go read Vice President Joe Biden's open letter to the Sanford Survivor. It will make you tear up, it will make you think, and we should rethink the culture of how we treat rape victims. It is not right to accuse a victim for bringing on their attackers - full stop.
4. One of my favorite blogs, I Love Coffee, celebrated their four year anniversary this week along with the author's birthday. One of my favorite posts explains the third wave of coffee and how we've gone from consume to enjoy to appreciate. She's got fantastic other posts, including one about the correlation of drinking coffee to going poop, and explains a lot about coffee that I didn't understand before.
5. What I'm Reading This Weekend: The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly. It is the fourth book in the Harry Bosch series. I cannot recommend this series or his writing enough. I love how his writing feels so casual but you're drawn in because of the strength of the characters. There is a show tie in, called Bosch, on Amazon. Titus Welliver (Agents of SHIELD, Lost) plays Detective Bosch and his take on the detective makes you want to read the source material. There's only two seasons of it and it is easy to binge watch.
I hope you all have a great weekend! Do you have a book or project you'll be trying to get done this weekend? Leave a comment below and we'll cheer you on!
Until next time, keep writing.
Alright, here we go.
1. The 9 Best Tips on Writing from Ernest Hemingway from Inc.com. He did live what he preached. If you need more evidence, you should find and read "Hills Like White Elephants". If you're me, you'll then go and devour For Whom the Bell Tolls and then the Sun Also Rises.
2. If you remember from Wednesday, I wrote a post on fictional women presidents in television series. I submit, for your reading pleasure, this article from Bustle about seven books with / about a woman president. There is a good amount of non fiction on the list, but a bit of non fiction never hurt anyone. Unless said book was used as a weapon because someone broke into your house.
3. If you haven't already, please go read Vice President Joe Biden's open letter to the Sanford Survivor. It will make you tear up, it will make you think, and we should rethink the culture of how we treat rape victims. It is not right to accuse a victim for bringing on their attackers - full stop.
4. One of my favorite blogs, I Love Coffee, celebrated their four year anniversary this week along with the author's birthday. One of my favorite posts explains the third wave of coffee and how we've gone from consume to enjoy to appreciate. She's got fantastic other posts, including one about the correlation of drinking coffee to going poop, and explains a lot about coffee that I didn't understand before.
5. What I'm Reading This Weekend: The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly. It is the fourth book in the Harry Bosch series. I cannot recommend this series or his writing enough. I love how his writing feels so casual but you're drawn in because of the strength of the characters. There is a show tie in, called Bosch, on Amazon. Titus Welliver (Agents of SHIELD, Lost) plays Detective Bosch and his take on the detective makes you want to read the source material. There's only two seasons of it and it is easy to binge watch.
I hope you all have a great weekend! Do you have a book or project you'll be trying to get done this weekend? Leave a comment below and we'll cheer you on!
Until next time, keep writing.
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Art Influencing Life
Unless you went to bed super early and didn't listen or read to any news at all today, you probably didn't miss the fact that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won the majority of pledged delegates (Huffington Post) in the Democratic primary. This is historic and I watched her victory speech with tears in my eyes. I didn't think this would happen in my lifetime, even after the 2008 primaries and a lot of talk in this primary cycle on how she was going to win. It didn't seem possible as the country has to have fatigue from being historic eight years ago. I like being proven wrong.
I would like to make a side note - I think Senator Sanders should be the one to decide when he leaves the race. I also think he has one week before it starts to look like he's a sore loser for not getting out. Those two statements contradict each other, I know, but it's how I feel. It's how I felt eight years ago when I was a supporter of then Senator Obama. I thought that then Senator Clinton should get out, even though she won a lot on that last night, but that's how I felt. I'm also not about to say which way someone should vote or feel or anything else that is outside the sphere of myself. Just go vote. Vote down ticket. Vote for the top of the ticket. But just go vote for the love of <insert your deity here>.
Now, to get back to the title of this post, life is imitating art again. It did it eight years ago - I think that President Obama doesn't get elected if not for 24 with David Palmer played by Dennis Haysbert and Jimmy Smitts playing an Obama inspired character on The West Wing - and I think it's doing it again. The Nerve has a brilliant article about the history of fictional women presidents. I can't point towards one actor or one portrayal but I do agree with the article on who they pick for the one big shining example of who did it best.
Spoiler: It was 24 again. For a show where the focus is on one guy saving the world in 24 hours with no bathroom breaks, it was a progressive show. Quietly progressive too. I would add on Geena Davis for Commander in Chief but that's because I was a fan of the show. I also thought they did an interesting twist with the character making her an independent but needed to leave off a lot of the family plots sometimes. Readers, if you've got a favorite female president (or even a vice president), feel free to leave your choice in the comments below.
The point being, if we can so easily turn to the idea of a woman president in fiction, why not in real life? Let's let art influence life for a while, even though we might not agree with the person up for the real life world. Let's catch up to other countries who had a woman at the helm. Let's step forward, not just in art, where more and more women are shown in leadership roles, but in life as well. I hope Secretary Clinton goes all the way and, like a great things in life, fiction will become reality.
Until next time, keep writing.
I would like to make a side note - I think Senator Sanders should be the one to decide when he leaves the race. I also think he has one week before it starts to look like he's a sore loser for not getting out. Those two statements contradict each other, I know, but it's how I feel. It's how I felt eight years ago when I was a supporter of then Senator Obama. I thought that then Senator Clinton should get out, even though she won a lot on that last night, but that's how I felt. I'm also not about to say which way someone should vote or feel or anything else that is outside the sphere of myself. Just go vote. Vote down ticket. Vote for the top of the ticket. But just go vote for the love of <insert your deity here>.
Now, to get back to the title of this post, life is imitating art again. It did it eight years ago - I think that President Obama doesn't get elected if not for 24 with David Palmer played by Dennis Haysbert and Jimmy Smitts playing an Obama inspired character on The West Wing - and I think it's doing it again. The Nerve has a brilliant article about the history of fictional women presidents. I can't point towards one actor or one portrayal but I do agree with the article on who they pick for the one big shining example of who did it best.
Spoiler: It was 24 again. For a show where the focus is on one guy saving the world in 24 hours with no bathroom breaks, it was a progressive show. Quietly progressive too. I would add on Geena Davis for Commander in Chief but that's because I was a fan of the show. I also thought they did an interesting twist with the character making her an independent but needed to leave off a lot of the family plots sometimes. Readers, if you've got a favorite female president (or even a vice president), feel free to leave your choice in the comments below.
The point being, if we can so easily turn to the idea of a woman president in fiction, why not in real life? Let's let art influence life for a while, even though we might not agree with the person up for the real life world. Let's catch up to other countries who had a woman at the helm. Let's step forward, not just in art, where more and more women are shown in leadership roles, but in life as well. I hope Secretary Clinton goes all the way and, like a great things in life, fiction will become reality.
Until next time, keep writing.
Tuesday, June 7, 2016
Clichés - Why Yes, They Work
Today, we’re
going to talk about something else that a writer uses a lot, even though they
shouldn’t. They’re clichés, the tool in
our arsenal that we’re not supposed to use, because nobody wants to read the
same thing twice. However, as much as
that is true, I have an argument for why they actually work. You might have heard this argument before,
which I’m hoping isn’t the case, but here it goes.
Clichés work
because, at the core of nearly all stories, we’re retelling something. It’s a new idea or a new way to go about it,
but, honestly, we’re copying a lot of the same stories from before. Here’s another curveball for you – it’s not a
bad thing. It’s literature’s natural
selection. These stories get retold, in
different formats, because they’re the stories that we want to listen to. They’re the stories that are going to survive
throughout generations, even if only a small handful of people read them. It’s why, at the library, they have those
sample bookmarks of “if you like Neil Gaiman” and then a list of other authors
to try. It’s because even though one
book is different from the next due to characters or plot, we see we’re going
on the hero’s journey. We see that the
detective is going to attempt to catch the killer and will or won’t by the end
of the novel. We see there’s going to be
romantic tension until the couple gets together and then torn apart again only
to have a happy ending. We see, in literary
fiction itself, that a main character goes from being a kid who lost his mother
because of his best friend to someone who accepts the greater mysteries of
life. Now, Prayer for Omen Meany has a
bigger meaning than the one sentence version I just wrote out. You should go read it and it’s one of my
favorite novels.
Going back to clichés,
before I bury the lead entirely, is that we’re told it’s a bad thing. It’s a no-no.
But, considering all that we know, is it really true? I don’t think so. Considering the amount of television on right
now that is either a procedural – thanks to ER or Law and Order or soap operas – or comedy that follows a certain pattern, it’s showing that we
want the clichés. I can even point it
out in literature where you cannot find a good fantasy novel where the male
main character and the female main character don’t get together by the
end. I will go happily read a fantasy
novel that is not A Song of Fire and Ice where that doesn’t happen by the end
of the novel or series. Leave a comment
down below as I’m always looking for more to read. Or give me a detective novel where the bad guy
isn’t captured by the end of the novel or the series. We want our clichés, in the broad sense of
the word, and we should not be afraid to embrace them as writers.
In that same vein, we shouldn’t be
afraid to write stock characters, like the naïve chosen one. What we need to do is change how
they come about it. Harry Potter is
successful because of how he became the chosen one. Yes, there is a prophecy that he is the one
to vanquish the Dark Lord (hello fantasy clichés - a two for one) but there were two who could
have fit that prophecy. How different is
Harry Potter if Neville Longbottom was the one that Voldemort picked? How successful would that story have been if
Neville was the main character and gone through everything Harry did? It’s too much of a stretch, considering how
Neville is introduced and written until the seventh book where he shines. He’s the one who kills Nagini with the
Gryffindor sword and kept up Dumbledore’s Army while Harry’s off saving the
world. Would J.K. Rowling have written
Neville differently if Neville was the one Voldemort gone after? Or would Neville be dead and the Harry Potter
series a lot darker? We don’t know because
the cliché was kept of the naïve chosen one who, despite his limited faults,
vanquished evil and the world is better for it.
That is one big
example on how clichés can work. I can
go on, and will if anybody wants me to, but you get the idea. Clichés are good if you can wrap them up all
bright and shiny and new. The advice for
today is as same as I gave at the top of the post. Embrace your clichés in the genre you’re
writing. You can use them, you’ve just got
to make them interesting. It’s the same
as in everything in life. You’ve got an
amazing idea, that others have done, but you have a different take. It is not wrong to keep to what we’ve read as
they get through. Unless the publication
industry is going to shut down completely, we’re going to keep on reading clichés. Why not take the old clichéd advice and write
what you know? As shown time and time
again, it works.
Until next time,
keep on writing.
Monday, June 6, 2016
WriYe Blog Circle: The Best Writing Tool Ever
You're looking at that title and going "wait, how can she know? She's not published!". You're half right - I'm not published yet. However, I know what it is because I have given and gotten it. I listen and question the people who give it and am grateful when they start out with "I love this but". The but is how I know I'm about to grow as a writer with what comes after it. I could go on and on but let's not bury the lead.
The best writing tool ever is... Drum Roll Please....
Criticism. Yes, the C-word of the writing world. It is the best thing that you can give a writer, either as a fellow one in a writing group, or as a reader after they are published. It is how we know what we are doing wrong and what we are doing right. It is not easy, either giving or receiving, but it is needed.
Without it, we writers will stagnate. We will not reach our full potential. Most importantly, we'll think our work is good when it's a big old steaming pile of you know what. There is a higher chance of being rejected by an agent or publishing house if you do not get someone to read your work before you get there. All writers need it. I highly recommend going out and finding a small writing group to share pieces with and get feedback. I also recommend using the sandwich method - say something nice about the piece, give the harder feedback, and end with another nice thing to say - as how you should give a critique. You'll get a solid three sentences out of just using that method.
Now, there is the other side of criticism. There are times, in life, when you're are good. You did the work, you put in the effort, you got published, and then the reviews come in. The general public loves it, but the newspaper critics don't. They don't understand how that got published. They don't get that you are amazing, possibly the next insert-person-here, but they don't get it. It'll hurt, for a few minutes or hours, you might cry, but then suck it up buttercup. For one, you're published. You're awesome for even getting that far. For two, you take in what they say and you make your next book even better. You silence the critics and then both sides are with you.
Alright, it's a blog circle post, so there are questions. Let's get into them. Please feel free to answer the same questions in the comments.
What is your method of critiquing a piece of writing?
I touched on this lightly up above, so I'll expand down here. I use the sandwich method when giving a critique. That is giving a nice piece of feedback, then the negative, before giving one last piece of nice feedback.
Here's an example from last year's Last WriYer Standing - we all write to a prompt and one person gets cut a week - that I gave:
I wasn't sure where this was going in the end. Is she really dead? There wasn't any real conclusion to this. It worked with the prompt, I think, but wasn't satisfying to me. It was the fact that there was no showing what truly was going to kill her. Or not kill her. And where are the friends? There's so many questions for this one. Maybe try closing up story threads next time.
There's good, then what I thought could have been better, and giving some things to do better next time. That's my way of doing a sandwich method. Now, I don't do this all the time, just when I need to give feedback alone. If someone gives me something to edit, I go in and find typos. I make sure that I caught everything I could and then, at the end, give a summary of what I think using that method. I would recommend, with using this method, you do more than three sentences, but you could compact it down to three alone.
What do you expect out of people critiquing your work?
Ooo - so, this is a very good question. At the very least, I expect a three sentence sandwich. That is my bare minimum, feelings will not be hurt, but that's the lowest level. With me, my level of expectations go up as I know the person who is giving me a critique. I expect a best friend to take my hand, giving me a cup of strong coffee, and go "Liz, you are a great writer, but this is crap and here's how we're going to change it". They don't even have to go "here's how we're going to change it" but tell me "hey, fix x, y, and z and I'll read it again". I've had that conversation several times with my best friend because she knows I have to hear it, plus I'll listen to her.
It's also why Power is slowly being edited / not edited. Dear gods, my writing is horrible from 2008. However, if anyone else but my best friends told me that my grammar was terrible but the plot is good, I would have covered my ears and go "lalalalalalalalala" like a five year old. That's where I was as a writer and now I'm at the point where I will take a lot of criticism. I've grown a lot in eight years, even though my grammar still sucks, but that's because of criticism. You'll grow too, dear readers, if you open your mind to knowing that you might need someone to tell you that your Great American Novel needs the Great American Edit.
Until next time, keep on writing.
The best writing tool ever is... Drum Roll Please....
Criticism. Yes, the C-word of the writing world. It is the best thing that you can give a writer, either as a fellow one in a writing group, or as a reader after they are published. It is how we know what we are doing wrong and what we are doing right. It is not easy, either giving or receiving, but it is needed.
Without it, we writers will stagnate. We will not reach our full potential. Most importantly, we'll think our work is good when it's a big old steaming pile of you know what. There is a higher chance of being rejected by an agent or publishing house if you do not get someone to read your work before you get there. All writers need it. I highly recommend going out and finding a small writing group to share pieces with and get feedback. I also recommend using the sandwich method - say something nice about the piece, give the harder feedback, and end with another nice thing to say - as how you should give a critique. You'll get a solid three sentences out of just using that method.
Now, there is the other side of criticism. There are times, in life, when you're are good. You did the work, you put in the effort, you got published, and then the reviews come in. The general public loves it, but the newspaper critics don't. They don't understand how that got published. They don't get that you are amazing, possibly the next insert-person-here, but they don't get it. It'll hurt, for a few minutes or hours, you might cry, but then suck it up buttercup. For one, you're published. You're awesome for even getting that far. For two, you take in what they say and you make your next book even better. You silence the critics and then both sides are with you.
Alright, it's a blog circle post, so there are questions. Let's get into them. Please feel free to answer the same questions in the comments.
What is your method of critiquing a piece of writing?
I touched on this lightly up above, so I'll expand down here. I use the sandwich method when giving a critique. That is giving a nice piece of feedback, then the negative, before giving one last piece of nice feedback.
Here's an example from last year's Last WriYer Standing - we all write to a prompt and one person gets cut a week - that I gave:
I wasn't sure where this was going in the end. Is she really dead? There wasn't any real conclusion to this. It worked with the prompt, I think, but wasn't satisfying to me. It was the fact that there was no showing what truly was going to kill her. Or not kill her. And where are the friends? There's so many questions for this one. Maybe try closing up story threads next time.
There's good, then what I thought could have been better, and giving some things to do better next time. That's my way of doing a sandwich method. Now, I don't do this all the time, just when I need to give feedback alone. If someone gives me something to edit, I go in and find typos. I make sure that I caught everything I could and then, at the end, give a summary of what I think using that method. I would recommend, with using this method, you do more than three sentences, but you could compact it down to three alone.
What do you expect out of people critiquing your work?
Ooo - so, this is a very good question. At the very least, I expect a three sentence sandwich. That is my bare minimum, feelings will not be hurt, but that's the lowest level. With me, my level of expectations go up as I know the person who is giving me a critique. I expect a best friend to take my hand, giving me a cup of strong coffee, and go "Liz, you are a great writer, but this is crap and here's how we're going to change it". They don't even have to go "here's how we're going to change it" but tell me "hey, fix x, y, and z and I'll read it again". I've had that conversation several times with my best friend because she knows I have to hear it, plus I'll listen to her.
It's also why Power is slowly being edited / not edited. Dear gods, my writing is horrible from 2008. However, if anyone else but my best friends told me that my grammar was terrible but the plot is good, I would have covered my ears and go "lalalalalalalalala" like a five year old. That's where I was as a writer and now I'm at the point where I will take a lot of criticism. I've grown a lot in eight years, even though my grammar still sucks, but that's because of criticism. You'll grow too, dear readers, if you open your mind to knowing that you might need someone to tell you that your Great American Novel needs the Great American Edit.
Until next time, keep on writing.
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