Writing Space: the Library

My library is pretty cool. Along with being a place where there's a wide selection of books, it's a great place to plug in and get some writing done. I do love going there to write. It's a nice different place, it gets the juices flowing, but somethings things are loud on the first floor. It's really nobody's fault, because where I like to sit is more of the social area of the library. It's all these little tables sitting around and people like to sit and talk, so that's more on me than the library. If I go into the stacks, I can find quiet tables where I can plug in and write. Those are nice to focus but the place I really love is on the second floor.

On the second floor, they have these study / conference rooms that you can book for two hours. It's structured so you can get work done - a lot people who are in surrounding businesses use them a lot - and it's nice and quiet. Bonus being that I can play music without needing my headphones on.

It is a simple room and, if you ask, they'll give you markers for the white board. That's really helpful when I'm stuck in plot and don't want to write on paper. Or I forgot to bring paper with me. Just write it on the white board, snap a pic, and ta-da, problem solved. If you have the right plugs on your computer, you can hook it up to the TV in the room. I don't, on the Surface, but if I brought the big laptop, I would be able to plug in and play. It's really nice for those who are working on a school project, like I saw when I glanced into a room. That's the other thing - there are windows on the room, which I don't mind, but others might.

Anyways, I just thought I would share a nice writing space of mine. Where do you go to write? Drop me a comment and, until next time, keep on writing!

A Writer's Life: Well Meaning Tips from Friends and Family

Hello and welcome to something I'm hoping to make a regular feature here on the blog. I'm going to be taking parts of what happens in my life, as a writer, and talking about them in what's known as "A Writer's Life". It is a title that is a bit cliche, but I'm okay with that. I've talked in an earlier post on this blog on how we love cliches, as long as they're put in a different light or spin, so I'm hoping to do that as well. If you have a topic you'd like me to cover in this segment of the blog, feel free to leave a comment below.

Now, we all have friends and family that wish us to succeed on our writer's journey, no matter where we are in that journey or what our end goal is. With that comes well meaning tips and tricks that they think will help us succeed. These are well meaning and not meant to put anyone in a negative light. It is more like the meme of what they think vs what's really happening when it's not advice that is best for you. As always, when someone gives you advice - even if you don't like it! - the best thing to do is smile and say "thank you, I'll take that under advisement". Even if that advisement is "oh hell no". So, let's dive in.

Tip 1: You should set up a blog!
Yep, I'm going to tackle this one first. Yes, this is a common tip when talking to writers, especially those with the end goal of publishing in the traditional way or self publishing. It is not bad advice. It is, however, advice that should be taken with a grain of salt. I am finding out, as in all things, when you want followers, you need to be consistent. There needs to be a schedule and you need to stick with it or otherwise you're screaming on the internet with nobody to hear you. Now, for people like that, it would be fine. I'm someone who has the blog because I feel I need it and liked the advice, but I wish that advice came with a how and why. You need to have a schedule, you need to have content, and you need to realize that it is going to take time away from your novel. You need to think if that's something you want to sacrifice or if you're going to try and balance it. I will recommend that if you try and balance it that the blog plate gets dropped first. Your novel is what is going to get you be a published author. It should always come first.

Tip 2: Have a nice and clean Twitter / Facebook / Instagram
This advice came from a well meaning friend of mine who is worried that my views on Twitter is what is stopping me from getting published. If that's true... I'm not sure what to do about it. I go with the idea that whatever I put out there, even in email, will be published on the front page of newspaper of choice. Mine varies from Washington Post to Chicago Sun Times depending on my mood of the day. Now, nothing on my social media accounts is graphic or nudes or anything that anyone should be ashamed of. I have political views that I wear on my sleeve and that's okay. I think that, when you're being rejected, even in form letters, that you should go back to your novel or your letter and work on that. I don't think it means scrubbing your social media accounts of what makes you the person that you are.

Tip 3: Don't write x, write y, because x is out of style at the moment.
So... I struggle with this on a daily basis. I don't even really need a friend or family to suggest it (although some have) and I don't know what to do about it. I have this feeling that everything cycles through major moments but there's always an audience who wants more. You want to focus on that audience. You want to make sure that you're engaging the reader with the best story that you can put forward and the vampires / werewolves / what have you are the icing the cake. Your narrative should push through everything, not the fact that you have a monster of the moment or a situation of the moment. If you look at the classics, even those that are genre classics, you'll see the common thread is more towards the narrative than anything else. Jane Eyre is one of the best classical Gothic novels out there because it's more than that. The Gothic is the backdrop and you're more worried about Jane and wondering what the fuck is up with Rochester. So, yeah, don't worry about what you're writing is out of vogue at the moment. Worry more if you're writing a story that will engage readers.

Tip 4: You should get as much feedback as possible before sending it off to agents.
This is mostly true. You should get feedback and edits from an editor that is not yourself. You should try to have beta readers and be in writing communities and everything else. It is true that the more eyes the better on your novel before you send it off. However, make sure you're not using it as a way to drag your feet because you're worried about agents liking your novel. You could get all the feedback in the world, but if you're not sending it out, you're not getting anywhere. So just be careful and make sure that you get feedback, you process and make the changes, and then you send it out. Just send it out. The worst thing that any agent will say to you is no. Or at least, that's my experience so far.

I hope you enjoyed this segment of A Writer's Life. I do hope to do more in the future. What are some of the odder tips that you've received as a writer? Or what are some of the best tips that you've gotten as a writer? Let a comment down below and, until next time, happy writing.

What I Read in June

I know. We're mostly into July but I thought I would talk about it anyways. Better late than never? Also, I feel like I read a good amount this month, thanks to the Creating and Co relaxathon (a readathon with a theme of relaxing), so let's get into the books!

• Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark T Sullivan - Review - This book is still sticking with me in my head because it was so well written. I truly thought it was a narrative non-fiction, because that's the way it felt like as I was reading it, but it turns out it's more based on a true story. That's fine too. It's set to be either a movie or limited series on Amazon with Tom Holland playing Pino. 
• The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin - Review - Like I say in my review, I saw the movie before reading the book. I really wish I had done the opposite. The movie collared a lot on how I saw the book and I came out liking the movie more. Then again, I'm not sure if I would have entertained watching the movie on the book alone. While it's a good book, it does suffer from letting the main male character lead a bit too much instead of making it a partnership. I can see why he did this, mostly because he wrote in a first person limited, but having both characters be strong worked to make the movie as good as it was. The book is good as well. I just wish I had read it first.
• Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell - Review - I... I really think this is the first book in a long time that I've given two stars to. It was too short. He needed more pages to complete the book, which I do say in the review, and I'm hesitant to watch the movie. I wish I had DNF-ed the book, as it was very annoying with the main character and the mystery, and there's no good complete ending. It's just an ending. I feel that, if the book was longer, the ending would feel more complete. Oh well.
• Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett - Review - This was a wonderful book. Now, I do not read all that much contemporary when it's adult fiction. it's even less when it comes to YA and contemporary. However, this was an awesome contemporary book where it's got hints of Wild but toned down for teenagers and set with a backdrop of enemies to friends to much more. I don't care if it's a spoiler because if I can get you to read the book, that's even better. I touch on this in my review, but the blended family without the over explanation of it won me over in the first few pages of the book. It was just "yeah, this is my family" and it was done. Sometimes it is overly drawn out or brought up again and again, usually in terms that are spelled out in a telling not showing situation, where she just showed it. It's a reason why I want to read her other books when I get around to it.
• Closed Circles by Viveca Stein - Review - this is the second book of the Sandhamn Murders series and I'm sticking with this series until the end. That said, I really hope that, in future books, we get a stronger main female character in Nora. She took really big steps in this book, but she needs to do even more. Thomas, on the other hand, really needs to get his house in order. I hope that she keeps them as really good friends, mostly because it feels like it would be forced if they tried to be together, so I'm working on the third book in July. I hope they stay free to read through Kindle Unlimited until I get through the rest of the series.
• Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher - there's no review for this one because it was a re-read. The second season of the Netflix series came out and I thought I would read the book again. I read it mostly in one day again and it felt good to get through it. I still haven't watched the series, as I'm not sure if I want to at this point, but I should probably give it a try. We'll see. At the moment, I'm really not wanting to.
• This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers - Review - someone in a review I read about the book said this is Breakfast Club meets Dawn of the Dead. Truer words were never spoken. Now, I picked up this book on a whim. I was like "hmm, interesting title, I'll try it" and I never read the back. This was one of the books that I couldn't put down because of the pacing and the writing. You felt like you were there, outrunning the zombies, and wondering when it would end. The tension was there and, even though it was sometimes teenage drama, it didn't feel fake or that it was there for the sake of filling pages. Everything had a purpose and it was powerful storytelling. There is a novella / short story that goes after it, told in the voice of the main male character, that I do want to read. I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

So, that's what I read in June. I'm close to my yearly goal of 30 books and will up it to 50 when I hit 30. And then to 60 when I hit 50 and so on. What did you read in June and did any book just hit you in the gut? Or perhaps grabbed your brain and dragged you along for the ride? Leave a comment and, until next time, happy reading. 

Writing a Book: Plotting

Camp NaNoWriMo has been happening for a week already - with me completely behind - so here's me getting even more behind with talking about plotting. Plotting is one of those things that you can either not do, which is called pantsing; do so well a job that it's like you're writing another book; or in a way that gives you the skeleton of the book while leaving you a lot of space to move and grow. While there is no right way to do this, I like to do where I give myself a skeleton and then move and grow while writing the book. There are parts that are somewhat set in stone and there are other parts that can be changed at any given moment.

The thing that you want to do first is have some idea of the story you're going to write. Even if it's a long rambling summary, that's part of the plotting idea. In fact, there's a lot of writers who just go with the rambling plot outline for writing their first draft and then tighten it up in other drafts. For me, I usually write around three to five sentences and leave the plot rambling to another document all together. Also, this can be done on the computer or on paper. There's a few plot bunnies that I've got written down to help with the process and others that work better when typing it out in a Google Document or your program of choice. A lot of my planning goes into Google Docs because I can and will access it from anywhere. That includes my phone, since I have one big enough for typing with both thumbs. Just use what is best for you when giving shape to plot bunnies.

Now, for the next part, there's no right or wrong to what you do first. Some do characters first and some create the world first. I am known to create characters first and world second, because I'm more about a character driven plot. That means that I like the characters to steer the ship. Sometimes this is literally as in the case of Kris in Of the Sky that I'm working on a first draft of but it's more to tell their story in a way that connects everything. The entire book or series will center around them and the connections to others that they make, for good or bad, and then the plot goes from there. That also goes for creating the world. For me, I work on the world where the main character lives first and then do the rest of the world building after I have a good idea of the home country.

For novels set in the real world, as in the case of Mystery of the Dark, I really try to go off of the cities I know or I can go visit to get a lay of the land. It's why, in the first book, you see a lot of St Louis and Asheville. My great-uncle lived in St Louis, along with his home being the basis for Mark's home, and Asheville is where a good friend / family in all but blood lives. Strong connections to each help with making the writing flow easier. Knowing this is probably why I'm having such a hard time with the sequel. They had to move from St Louis due to the plot of the first book and there's no good central ground that I want to set them in. I'm really tempted to let it take on a nomad type vibe with Kate never settling down and trusting the space. But, I'm getting off the topic. For real world settings, it is best to go with what you know. It's why everyone gives that advice - it works.

Ok - you've got your idea down, you have your characters and your world. The next question goes into how much you want to put your plot down on paper or not. You could have all of what you need written down and then decide to pants the rest. You just go where the novel takes you and you'll end up at your destination eventually. What I do is take on a process that I was first taught about by erin is to number a document 1 to 30 and write out 30 scenes with the midpoint being 15-17 and your secondary plot point being 25-27. Every number is a scene or a chapter that you're writing. You could take the same idea but have the number be whatever you like between 1 and infinity as long as you get to an ending. I like doing it in terms of chapters and then shorten / make it longer as needed. For example, Mystery of the Dark is only 28 chapters while Of the Sky will probably be 30 or more. So it's a nice little system.

After that, the best thing to do is sit in the chair and write. It's the only thing that can be done, in the end, if you want to get your book out of your head and onto paper. The plotting helps to bring some order to the chaos but there's nothing stopping you from just writing. So, until next time, keep on putting that butt in the chair and write.