How Being a Writer Ruins Everything

A post by P.T. Phronk,
of Forest City Pulp fame

It was Friday, I'd just finished work, and I had a whole weekend ahead with no plans. I laid down on the couch, and attempted to clear my mind. Finally, I could be free of the week's worries and just be, in the moment, no thought necessary.

 
Then I thought: is it "laid down on the couch," or should it have been "lay down on the couch"?
 
I subsequently thought: man, being a write ruins everything. I can't do anything without translating it into these stupid words. That would make a good blog post! That's when the phone came out and my notes app was open and I was no longer in a blissful state of care-free laying or lying or whatever.

 

Here are a few other things ruined by being a writer:

 

• Thinking simple thoughts. It's never just "this sandwich tastes good." Instead, it's "how would I describe the taste of this sandwich, if I were to put it in a book, or tweet about it? Should I include details about how it smells? The feeling of incisors cleaving fresh bread? Ah shit, the sandwich is gone now." Do normal people even put their thoughts in words? Or do they just, like, taste things?

• Watching TV. A plot twist is never just a plot twist for a writer. It's an opportunity to analyze what exactly led to the twist, what it says about the characters, how it fits into the overall structure of the story. Sometimes it's like I can't even let the intended emotions hit me, because they're wrapped up in analysis and logic, which ruins any good feels. I think I even miss literally seeing things. Sometimes my girlfriend will be like "haha that guy's hat is hilarious" and I didn't even know he had a hat because I was thinking about how that trope from three scenes ago is totally overused but I could totally do something different with it.

• Engaging in normal relationships with humans. For a few different reasons. Being good at writing does not mean being good at talking, for one, so good luck getting a coherent string of words out of a writer's mouth unless they wrote it down beforehand. It's a beautiful thing when the writer's shell of introversion does manage to get cracked, though, because then they can mine the relationship for material. Some writers may keep a straight face, but deep down, a friend's heartfelt confessionary breakdown is being classified as "compelling dialogue."

tfw you finally have time for a relaxing vacation with the family.

• Traveling. Oh cool, a new experience in an unfamiliar place? The writer must cram his head full of every detail and try to memorize what it feels like, because "write what you know" is awfully narrow when 99% of what you know is the beige walls of an apartment. Study up on that additional knowledge. It's not supposed to be fun.

• Having biological functions. Writers don’t sleep, they just lie down and think about things that don't exist, then write those things down in a notebook beside the bed, repeat, and eventually pass out from the exhausting cycle. Writers don't poop, they just take breaks from their day jobs to do research and take notes in a private enclosed space. Even basic personal hygiene is a time for dreaming up ideas. Why do you think so many novels start with the main character looking in a mirror and end with them crying in a shower? 

 

There you have it, some slightly exaggerated reasons why writing ruins everything and you should never touch a keyboard. Am I even normal for a writer, or has something gone horribly wrong inside of me? Please let me know your perfectly-formed written thoughts. 

Small Change, Big Freaking Difference

Hellllloooooo, ATB readers!

It's a gloomy September day in the Poconos. Perfect weather to write a murder mystery set during gloomy weather in the Poconos. Oh, I need a better outdoor description? Why don't I just crane my neck, look out my living room window, and write what I see? Perfect. Easy and done.

I'm drafting a new book. And in typical KGG fashion, I was 53K words into the story before I recognized that it needed to be fixed. Normally this would be depress me but I took a class (Write Better Faster) last summer that enlightened me to my strengths. It turns out that this is part of my process and I should just go with it--so I am. And I feel loads better for it. Not all is wasted. Most of my material can be used in the new draft. So everything's truly fine.

This class also taught me to focus on forming one new habit to help my efficiency, and that is what I'm here to talk to you about today. Everyone has a different stumbling block. For some, it's finding time to work but for me, it's making efficient use of the time I have. I'm a stay-at-home mom but during the summer my kids are home. They're running around outside, throwing on swimsuits to play in the neighbor's pool, asking for snacks a bazillion times a day. It's constant interruption. And the minute I get out of my mental zone, I check Facebook and Reddit and Twitter.  

I've lost my train of thought. What's on AVClub?

So what's the change I made? Did I swap out my kids for noise-canceling headphones? Did I barricade myself in a soundproof room? No. I did this:

I woke up earlier than them.

5:15 am to be exact.

Blech. It's so early. It really is. And I don't like getting up early. But there are so many pros to being up before everyone else.

First, it's so damn quiet. Just me and the dog. I pour a cup of coffee, grab my laptop, and head downstairs into the basement where my desk is. I don't browse Facebook nor do I check my email (who's sending me anything important at 5 o'clock in the morning?). I simply open up my manuscript and work.

Second, it's a hyper-focused 90 minutes. Sometimes I get a little done--half a scene written. Sometimes I'm on a roll. Sometimes I finish up in the afternoon. Sometimes I don't. But all the time, I'm making progress. There have been one or two days where I couldn't wake up. I was sooo damn tired, and that's fine. Better to recharge than burn out.

Lastly, I'm not a night owl. After a long day, and a hectic evening trying to do homework, make dinner, attend soccer practice, I don't want to write. My brain doesn't work. It can't form words right, let alone sentences. For some reason, I am my best self in the morning. Tired, but best.

While I don't looove my early alarm, I do love getting words on the page before breakfast. I love feeling productive. I love feeling like I'm moving toward the finish line even if it's by inches and not miles. I wrote 2K words yesterday, half of them before sunrise. Go me!

So...have you recently made a small change that has a made a big difference in your life? Sound off below.

Interviewing Your Characters and GMC

Show of hands - who here has filled out a character interview sheet before they start writing? I definitely have not - yet. But I've been reading Debra Dixon's GMC: Goals, Motivation and Conflict (which is brilliant, by the way - even for someone 10 books into this whole writing thing) and she talks a lot about building the character interview into your writing process. According to Dixon (and I agree), it helps to give you a firm grasp the characters' goals and motivations, and how they're going to respond to conflict -- all of which help you build a great story.

The foundation of every great novel, regardless of genre, is conflict. If you have a weak conflict, readers feel like they're being led along a path for no real reason. Even in romance with its guaranteed happily-ever-after, your main character (MC) must face conflict - whether it's accidentally falling for her brother's roommate or an off-limits office romance.

Ok, I see you nodding and thinking, "But how does knowing whether my MC likes dogs add to the potential for conflict within my story?" Well, let's just say you're writing science fiction and your MC had a dog back when he was kid, which was a very long time ago. He and his friends are being shot at by rebel forces and about to board their space ship to escape the hostile planet, when MC sees a dog limping into a cave twenty feet away. MC makes a split-second decision to grab the dog and take it with them, but doing so means he's under enemy fire. And the crew now have a dog onboard - who's limping along and definitely worse for the wear. Imagine the conflict this can create amongst the crew! Now, the dog isn't the central plot point or conflict (it could be, but in my imaginary story it's not), but it can be used as a plot device to help drive the main conflict - which in this case might be something along the lines of: MC is a rogue and his superiors expect him to fall in line b/c he's putting everyone in danger otherwise. Case in point? You guessed it. Dog.

Here are 25 more great character interview questions:

1. It's Monday morning. Are you excited to go to work/school or sad?
2. What do you normally eat for breakfast?
3. Do you call your mother or text? How often?
4. Do you iron your clothes? Who does your laundry?
5. Do you exercise or are you happy to sit on the couch? If you exercise, what's your favorite way to exercise?
6. Have you ever played a team sport? If you no longer play, why not?
7. What is your favorite TV show?
8. How do you typically spend your Friday night?
9. What do you do when you're bored?
10. How many hours/day do you work/go to school?
11. What would you be embarrassed for people to know about you?
12. If you go to a party, do you prefer to talk to people you already know or meet new people?
13. What do you drink during the day? Water? Coffee? Ice Tea? Beer? Nothing?
14. What kind of books do you read? If you don't read books, do you read magazines, newspapers, or online content?
15. If a stranger rings your doorbell, do you answer it or do you wait in the kitchen until they leave?
16. What is your favorite food?
17. If you could meet anyone, living or dead, who would it be?
18. How many siblings do you have? Are you close or estranged?
19. Do you have a pet? If so, what kind?
20. What would be your perfect gift to receive?
21. What do you like best about yourself?
22. What do you like least about yourself?
23. How long have you known your best friend?
24. You're stuck waiting in an unexpectedly long line. How do you react? What do you do while you're waiting?
25. What is one color you think looks great on you and why?

These are only the tip of the iceberg of questions you can use to "interview" your characters, so I'm curious -- if you do a pre-writing character interview, what kinds of questions do you ask your characters?

Plotter? Pantser? Neither? Both?

A post by Mary Fan

For as long as I remember writing, I’ve been a neurotic outliner. Something about a blank page just terrifies me, and I can’t seem to get anything down unless I know exactly what I’m doing going in. I’ve written blog post after blog post and answered interview question after interview question about how much I like to outline. I’d map out plot points, chart out exactly what happens in each chapter, flesh that out into point-by-point descriptions of what happens so by the time I get to actually writing, all I have to do is turn notes into sentences. Some of my outlines wound up being over 10,000 words long.

So it was more than weird when I found myself totally unable to outline my latest project.

Before that, the closest I’d come to “pantsing” – that is, writing by the seat of your pants and making things up as you go without knowing where the story will take you – was last year when I started writing a novel two days after coming up with the idea. I had an idea for the general shape of the story and had maybe a sentence for what would go in each chapter, but that was it. To me, that counted as pantsing since I didn’t know what would happen within the chapter. And some chapters got cut when I got to them, some got added as I wrote because it seemed there was more needed for a certain section. It was disconcerting, but I was too impatient to get the book written to sit down and flesh out my ideas before actually writing sentences.

This latest project, though, I didn’t even have that skeleton of an outline. I tried—I really did. Several times, I jotted down bullets for what might happen in what order, but I always ran out of steam at the halfway point. I managed to come up with a vague outline for the first half of the book, but kept blanking on the second. Meanwhile, I intended to write at least 50,000 words for National Novel Writing Month, and it was just around the corner. So I decided I’d just start writing the first half and hope ideas would come for the second half by the time I got there.

They didn’t.

I let the book sit for three whole months while I worked on different projects, thinking hey, maybe I’ll come back to it, reread the first half, and come up with an outline for the second half. That… didn’t happen. No matter how many times I tried to hash out the plot for the second half the book, I kept drawing  a blank. It was weird. I really can’t explain why it wasn’t working out. Part of it might have been because I wanted to delve more into the characters’ internal thoughts, but I had no idea how that would play out on the page against what I wanted  them to actually do. Part of it might have been good old-fashioned writer’s block.

Still, I had an image in my head for how I wanted the second half to start. So finally, I thought: Why not just start writing it and see what happens? Maybe once I get started, the outline will come…

It’s been two weeks, and I’m still totally winging it. I’ve gone into chapters thinking things would go one way, but they wound up going another. I’ve finished chapters with no idea what would happen in the next. The only thing I do know is how I want the book to end, but so far, my characters are still winding their way toward it. For someone who’s as attached to their outlines as I am, it’s nothing short of WEIRD.

How did my writing  method do a complete 180? I wonder if part of it’s because this book is a sequel, and I know my characters and world well enough at this point to make things up as I go. This book’s plot is also a bit more straightforward than some of the others I’ve written. Also, it’s maybe the ninth or tenth manuscript I’ve worked on, so maybe I’m just getting more used to this whole writing thing, and the blank page isn’t as terrifying as it used to be.

Who knows. Anyway, people will be debating plotting vs. pantsing as long as writers write, but my personal experience has shown me that the dichotomy is false. Some people prefer one, others prefer the other, and it’s entirely possible to flip flop between the two.

I still plan to outline my next book—or at least attempt to. And I’ve outlined every short story (even ones as short as 3500 words) I’ve written in between composing the two halves of this current manuscript. So I wouldn’t call myself a pantser. But I suppose neither can I call myself a plotter anymore.

I suppose I can just call myself a writer.

Writing a Book...as told by emojis

For today's blog post I give you:

I've slogged through the middle 80% and am in the final 10% of my WIP. I can finally see the finish line! But there is still a lot ahead of me . . .

How does your process compare?

How essential is your writing life?

I'm taking a class this month, WRITE BETTER FASTER, taught by Becca Syme on www.margielawson.com. So far, it focuses on the psychology of what keeps you from meeting your writing goals and helps to identify your distractions and the key ways to keep them from derailing you. It's a month-long class and this is only week 2, but yesterday's exercise really resonated with me and I have a feeling it's going to be an a-ha moment for you, too.

Becca has asked us this week to keep a notebook, detailing how we spend our time. She's broken it up into:
1) Essentials; 2) Priorities; 3) Desires; 4) Nonessentials. Basically, Essentials are things we have to do -- like day job, feed the dog, wash the dishes. Priorities are things we don't have to do, but probably should -- vacuuming up the dog hair, talking to our spouse/kid/mother, etc. Desires are things we love and want to do, like social obligations, coffee with friends. And Nonessentials are things we may or may not want to do, and the world won't end if we don't do them. Like Facebook and watching Netflix.

So, revelation. On day 1 of doing this. Aside from getting The Boy out the door to school (which is Essential), my entire morning today was taken up with Priority items -- running, dog walking, showering, vacuuming up dog hair. By the time I sat down to write, which I consider Essential, as it's my JOB, it was 11:45. I *could* argue that dog walking is essential -- and running, too, for that matter because it makes a massive difference to my mental and physical health -- but is it really? If I were reporting to work in an office, would 11:45 be an acceptable time to show up? Um, probably not.

So why is it acceptable when I'm working for myself, making my own hours? Add to that an inadvertent software update (Essential, but I didn't mean to click to start it when I did) and going to see The Boy play football/soccer for his school team (Priority. They won in a sudden death penalty shoot out. It was crazy intense.), my hours spent on my actual job today are about...3. And that's generous.

Again, would this be acceptable if I were working for someone else in an office? Definitely not. Would it be acceptable if I were the boss and my employee was only giving me 3 good hours/day? I'm lenient, but not that lenient. Part of my motivation for writing full-time is flexibility, but managing my time well within that flexibility needs some serious work.

I'm going to continue to track my time for the next week, at least, to see if I can identify a pattern. I suspect it won't be that different from what I've noted today, which means I need to work on making those writing hours count or making more writing hours in the day. Or maybe even both?

How would your day look if you were to break it down the same way? And where does your writing fall on the scale from Essential to Nonessential in your daily life? Writing it all down is an interesting exercise, especially if you struggle with productivity, because the reason becomes glaringly clear. And proves that the struggle, although real, is sometimes mostly with ourselves.

Breaking Character

A post by Mary Fan

Those of you who’ve been around the writing community for a while have probably encountered the “plotters vs. pantsers” debate more times than you’d care to think about. Just in case some of you haven’t heard of these terms, “plotters” are writers who carefully outline and map out their books before beginning the actual writing process, and “pantsers” are those who “write by the seats of their pants”—that is, who open up a blank page and simply write, often without knowing where the story’s going.

I’ve always been a neurotic plotter. Ever since I first started scribbling silly stories in middle school, I’ve always had detailed outlines of my stories. Plus a bunch of other supporting documents—worldbuilding “encyclopedias” and character backstories and such. Having completed over a dozen stories this way (from full-length novels to flash fic… yes, I outline my flash fic…), I pretty much had my writing method down. I’ve written blog posts about it and spoken on panels about it—the merits of outlining and how well it works as a writing method. And my outlines aren’t just short little chapter descriptions… They’re often 10,000+ words long by themselves, detailing every move a character makes.

So you can imagine how surprised I was when my latest WIP started writing itself. Without. An. Outline.

That’s right, folks. I pantsed a manuscript. A 100,000-word, novel-length manuscript. If I were a fictional character and my author wrote me doing this, their editor would write a long note in red pen saying “this is inconsistent with Mary’s character and readers won’t buy it.”

How did this happen? Honestly, I still have no idea, though I suspect it has something to do with the fact that I’ve written and read enough novels in my genre (sci-fi/fantasy) to have some kind of internal outline hard-wired into my writing system. I also suspect that switching up my writing method gave me the jolt I needed to finally complete another book.

I’d been in a major writing funk for pretty much all of 2016. The only things I completed in that time were a novella and a short story, even though I’d hoped to finish at least one novel-length manuscript (in previous years, I’d done two). I started writing two books, using my usual neurotic-plotter method, but they just weren’t clicking for some reason, and I abandoned both a few chapters in. I figured that at some point, I’d pick one and beat the words out of me at some point, just so I could finish something.

Then, in early January of this year, a random idea hit me seemingly out of nowhere. I remember being in choir rehearsal when it did… in fact, I still have the page of Bach’s St. John Passion with my early brainstorming scribbled in blank space beneath the soloist cue. Unlike my other two projects, which were slightly out-of-genre for me (one was magical realism, and one was hard sci-fi—neither of which I’d written before), this one was going to be pure fantasy fluff. A fun adventure across an enchanted land starring a girl who fights demons. Maybe it was a reaction to trying so hard to write something… hard. My lazy brain was sick of trying to make book-vegetables and just wanted book-candy.

Anyway, me being me, I then sat down to start outlining as usual. But I quickly found myself impatient to begin already… I could already picture the opening scene where the protagonist guards her village and gets to kick some demon butt. “Fine,” I told myself. “Let’s just write that scene and outline the rest later.”

Except “later” never happened. Once I finished the opening chapter, I kind of just wanted to write the next thing. And the next thing. And so on and so forth until I realized I was actually pantsing this whole damn book. And it was awesome. There was a kind of freedom to having only the vaguest idea of where the story was going. And it was terrifying. There’s nothing scarier than a blank page, and heading into one without an outline feels like diving in the dark.

There were a few drawbacks to pantsing—mainly that sometimes, I’d come up with something halfway through the book that I realized I should have introduced earlier. “Well, make a note of it and move on,” I told myself. I had whole document titled “Things to fix later” full of these kinds of things.

While that was a fun foray into the world of pantsing, I’ll probably go back to plotting for my next manuscript. But who knows… maybe that one will start writing itself as well.

Quality Control for Indie Authors

I’ve posted before about integrating my corporate skills into my writing. There was the two-part series I did on Presentation Skills, the post about establishing an author brand, and the one about the Law of Diminishing Returns. Being a self-published author is the same as running my own small business, and I love that I can pull from my past experience.

Today I’m back integrating my two worlds in one very exciting topic—quality control. As an Indie author, all accountability roads essentially lead to me. While I may contract out certain aspects of my business to others, it’s up to me to make sure it’s done right and keeps running smooth.

Here are the most important things you need to keep in your quality control zone.

Content

As I’m Queen of the Obvious, I like to start with, well, the obvious. It’s important to make sure what you write is checked for errors. Spend money on an editor. You want to make sure your work is as error-free as possible.

Marketing Materials

You’ve published your book (or are about to) and are ready to market the heck out of it. It’s important to ensure your marketing materials are error free. Get an extra pair (or two, or three, or more) of eyes on it to make sure you don’t miss anything. I messed up back with the publication of my first novel, Kingston’s Project. I had my graphic designer make me these awesome book cards. 

I approved them and had a box printed up. When they arrived I proudly presented one to my husband who said, “Cool, but there’s an error.” The word ‘planned’ was misspelled on the back of the card. I was mad at myself for not having him look over the concept before I had them printed and wasting money. (Luckily I was able to cut the cards in half—not what I wanted, but it kept me from wasting money.)

If you are creating a lot of your own marketing materials through sites such as Canva, make sure you have a quality check in place. Grammarly is great.

Author Website

This one is important as it’s likely the hub of your on-line presence as an author. Unfortunately, this one bit me in the butt just this past week. I usually visit my website, carriebeckort.com, several times a week. Last week, instead of seeing my landing page I was presented with ‘carriebeckort.com has expired’

WHAT?!?!?!?!

I had renewed my domain on time and processed the invoice. What in the ho-hay was going on?! Unfortunately, due to the Thanksgiving holiday, I wasn’t as on top of it as I usually am, so I’m guessing it was down for about 3 days. Luckily a quick live chat with my provider got it fixed and back up in minutes. Never assume your website is working the way it should. Check it out regularly.

Social Media Profiles

This one may not seem as obvious. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads—they are managed well and if the site is down, then it’s not just you that’s affected. But that’s not the stuff I’m worried about. I’m actually checking my profiles. I want to make sure my information is up-to-date and my links are working properly. I’ve clicked on website links for authors from their social media profiles only to be directed to an inactive page. More than 90% of the time I don’t take the effort to find the correct site on my own. If the author doesn’t care to keep it accurate, maybe I shouldn’t care to find it.

Embedded Links

To expand a bit more on links, your quality checks should expand to include any link you provide. Blog posts, websites, newsletters—if you embed a link, go to the preview and make sure it actually works. Again, I’ve come across links provided and they don’t go to the targeted site and it’s frustrating.

Content

I know I already talked about this one up in my Mr. Obvious section. I didn’t forget to quality check my post for repeat points. I just want to hit this one again, in a less obvious way.

If you are publishing ebooks, make sure you check your formating on every device possible. I download to my Kindle and to my iPhone. I don’t own a Nook, but I have some close friends that do. I send them an early download version and ask them to do a quick review to make sure it all looks good. Here are two issues I’ve run into on my ebook formatting more than once:

• Incorrect ‘starting point’—Shattered Angel was giving me a lot of fits with this. It would open up in the middle of my table of contents or in the middle of the first chapter. Since Shattered Angel starts at chapter 24 and counts down, it was critical for me to get the reader to the correct starting point so they weren’t confused (at least not any more than they already were). After a lot of hours reformatting and frustration, I finally got it to work.
• Odd text formatting—When I check my ebooks, I actually do a fast skip through all the pages on my device. It might sound like overkill, but I thanked my OCD stars after discovering entire chapters in italics.

I use Createspace for my print books, and overall I’ve been pleased with their quality. Of course, the first step in print quality control is to order a proof book. I highly recommend this. I do check the on-line preview, but I also order a print book. The colors of the cover may not be as exact in print as it is online. Maybe that glossy finish you wanted doesn’t look quite right in reality. Maybe the cover dimensions were off a bit and the title is off center down the spine. You get the idea. It’s a few bucks and a few extra days, but it’s worth it.

Another thing I recommend is to spot check the print books you order intended for private sale and book signings. I might not have thought to do this, but before I published Kingston’s Project I read a book by a fellow author who printed through Createspace. Midway through the book I found this page:

I knew this had to be a mistake as it had nothing to do with the book. As a result, I decided to start checking the books I ordered. Basically, I just fan through the pages looking for anything that catches my eye. I haven’t found any errant pages, but I did find these errors on several books:

Books cut incorrectly

Ink blotches

Luckily, Createspace worked with me to replace the books.

I know quality control can be a lot of work. However, it’s difficult for many Indie authors to get visibility to new readers. There is also still a stigma out there that traditionally published books have better quality than Indie published books. As a result, every impression counts. Don’t sacrifice speed for quality. And if quality control is not your thing, then I suggest you find yourself a new OCD best friend!

~ Carrie

Is it a novel idea, or just a gnat?

“So, do you have any more ideas for books?”

I get this question a lot from readers, friends, and family. For me, the issue isn’t getting ideas for my next book (and the next several after that). It’s filtering through the ideas and separating them into two piles:

1. true potential
2. annoying gnat

There could be more categories, but I’ve chosen to keep it simple. I should also point out that category (1) above does not mean that I will actually write a novel out of that idea. It just means I see potential worth pursuing. Why the term gnat you might ask? Well, put simply, gnats are annoying and always present unless you do something to make them go away. Some ideas are like that—they pop up and try to buzz around in your mind even though they don’t have the potential to be anything more than a distraction from your ideas that have actual potential.

I’m not here to tell you how to sort your ideas. It’s my belief that this is one of those areas where the best process is different for each person. I’m just here to tell you that you should have a process and let you know a bit about mine (in case it inspires your own process).

The engineer in me would love to tell you that I use a complicated process with graphs and charts. Maybe a little C&E and FMEA action. While I do enjoy mixing my technical and creative talents (hence the title Literary Engineer), there are times when I need to rely on instinct that is lightly seasoned with sound processes.

Since my writing career started unexpectedly, I like using a similar serendipitous approach to finding my novel topics. It makes me feel as though I’m moving in the direction I’m supposed to, rather than me trying to force something that isn’t meant to be. In fact, two out of my three published books started as a dream (my other book is a sequel, so indirectly it also came from a dream) as well as my current WIP. I still get ideas from my dreams, but they also strike me at other random moments. For example, I received one idea after a trio of songs played randomly from my playlist. My brain thought, “That might make a good story.”

But how do I know if these random ideas are worth pursuing?

1) Back Burner

My first step is to actually try and put the idea out of my mind. If it goes away, then it was just a gnat. If it stays with me, then I know it might have some potential.

2) Marinate

If the idea sticks, then I let it stay in my mind, but I don’t obsess over it. I don’t even write it down in my log of ideas yet.

3) Simmer

If the idea has true potential, I find that it won’t be satisfied sitting over low heat on the back burner. Suddenly, ‘signs’ start popping up and work the idea up to a simmer.

4) Boil

If I’m really lucky, an idea will work itself into a rolling boil. When that happens, I find that I can’t stop thinking about the idea. Usually, this is when lucid dreaming occurs (and usually when I least expect it).

I might push an idea into the gnat bucket at any point during the process. Even if an idea tries to build to a simmer, if it’s not something I’m interested in writing I’ll continue to try and block it out. I realize I’m at risk of losing out on a possible bestseller, but I have to enjoy my writing process and be at least somewhat interested in the topics I write about.

I have to admit that my favorite part of the entire process is when lucid dreaming occurs, whether for a new idea or to enhance a current idea. For me, it can happen at any time. I felt a bit awkward in my workout class a couple weeks ago when lucid dreaming took over. We were doing a leg exercise and when I came back into focus the rest of the class had moved on to the left leg while I was still pumping away on the right. Oops.

I’ll walk you through an example. I won’t tell you the specific idea because, well, I don’t like to share. OK, fine—really it’s because I don’t have it all flushed out, and if I start talking about it in detail I might jinx the magic.

Recently my daughter asked me to watch a movie with her. I asked her which movie she wanted to watch, and I was surprised by her answer. I was expecting her to name one of her favorites that I’ve had to sit through about 20 times already, but she mentioned a movie that I’d forgotten she had on the DVR. I had never watched it with her, so I settled in for the show. Not 30 seconds in, my mind said to me, “I wonder if I could do a modern day telling of this story.” Huh. Where’d that come from? I’ve never considered writing a novel that would be a modern-day version of an old tale, so the thought took me by surprise.

Cue the weed-out process.

I watched the movie, forcing myself to not rewrite it in my mind along the way. It stayed with me over the next few days, so I placed it on the back burner. Then the signs started. First, the story was brought up in a show I watch regularly. It wasn’t entirely out of context for the type of show it was, so I tried to push it toward coincidence (albeit with impeccable timing). Then a few days later it came up in a game that I’m testing for my daughter (i.e. making sure it’s appropriate for her age). The game includes some dialogue between characters for quests and in one of these dialogue sessions a part of the story was mentioned. Now that was unexpected—I mean, out of all the myths and tales that exist, what are the chances that this random game would include the story that has been haunting me? Anyone who knows me well will understand that I had to log it as a sign.

I’ve now documented it in my list of ideas and started researching. I’m looking into the original tale and many of the retellings. Lucid dreaming is still happening, working to fill in a plot that would work for a modern-day version.

I realize that my process might seem hokey to some, but it works for me. It’s how I feel connected to my stories. It’s also how I determine which story to write next—I just pick the one that’s about to boil over!

How about you? What does your idea sorting process look like?

~ Carrie

Presentation Essentials for Writers: Part 1

For some reason, I was thinking the other day about the training sessions I used to lead for my company on effective presentations. These thoughts quickly transitioned into how some of the tips I gave to countless corporate collogues could also benefit my fellow writers.

There’s the obvious—the tips that can help you speak more effectively about your work. This is necessary for not only book events, but also for those moments when you find yourself with a prospective reader, editor, agent, or publisher.

But there’s also the not so obvious—how using tips for effective presentations can enhance your writing.

Thanks to this being a Leap Year, I have the rare opportunity to bookend February here at Across the Board. This gives me the perfect opportunity to break this topic into two parts. Today I’m focusing on the not so obvious—how it can help our writing. I’ll address what you need to know when speaking about your writing in Part 2 on Feb. 29th. My focus will be on novels, but this applies to all types of writing.

4 Presentation Tips for Writing

1. Design the Close First

I tend to agree that the close is the most important part of a presentation. There’s a good chance your audience won’t remember everything you presented, so the close is there to remind them of the important aspects of your message. It’s also where your audience determines if you were successful in making your point.

It’s the same in a novel. As a reader, I’ve read several books where a rushed or incomplete ending killed the rest of the story. Take the time to think about your ending before you even write the first sentence.

I’m not saying that you have to draft out the entire last chapter first. You don’t even have to know the exact outcome before you get started. But you should know the general destination. You should know the primary message of your book. Once you have that, build the rest of the novel to arrive at that point.

2. Grab Attention & Keep the Interest

Studies have shown that in a presentation audience attention is high at the start of the presentation and then again at the end. Attention and interest naturally decrease during the body of the presentation. To deliver an effective presentation, you have to continuously grab the audience’s attention. This can be accomplished by injecting humor, using a personal testimonial, or engaging the audience. The change of pace will naturally regain the audience’s attention and interest.

The same can be said about writing. Readers usually start out a novel with high interest. However, if there isn’t enough ‘spice’ to retain the reader’s attention, they might give up or start skipping sections just to get to the end. I know the reader in me has done this on more than one occasion. I also get frustrated when an author baits me throughout the entire novel, only revealing secrets at the end. Below are some examples of what I’ve done in my own novels to grab the reader’s attention and keep their interest:

• Revealed a big secret early in the book
• Added in a one-page chapter after several longer ones
• Interrupted the narrator at the end of a chapter to start the next one
• Left a cliffhanger at the end of a chapter
• Added in humor

Your options here are virtually limitless. I have to say that my most creative (and favorite) way that I’ve structured a novel to retain interest is in my third novel, Shattered Angel. Angel is given a choice where she only has 24 hours to decide. I start the novel at chapter 24 and count down to chapter 0 where I reveal her decision. Many readers have told me that it has kept them engaged late into the night!

Something important to point out here is that you don’t want to add ‘spice’ in every chapter. Too much and it loses its uniqueness and ability to grab attention.

3. Add in White Space

During my training sessions, I could never stress enough how important it was to have clean presentation materials. There is not much that will drop an audience’s attention faster than charts that are too small to read or slides completely blocked with text. If there’s too much on the slide, then the audience doesn’t know where to focus. In addition, the eye needs a place to rest.

In writing, I don’t classify white space as what you find in the margins or between section breaks. Those are important also, but here I’m defining white space as those story elements where the reader can take a breather. For example, I write emotionally heavy books. That means I have to be thoughtful about adding in lighter moments where my readers can escape from the emotions I’m driving into them. If I don’t, they may give up simply because it’s too much. Think about the primary emotions your novel carries and consider ways you can balance that. Even a thriller needs to take it down once in a while—readers may not have enough stamina to go 100mph for the full length of a novel! You don’t want to take the risk of a reader needing to put your book down for a break because they may not come back. Give them the breaks they need within the story.

4. Minimize Distractions

One of the things I had to cover in my training sessions was how our company logo should be respected. Many people thought it was ridiculous to have to remember where it should be positioned, how far text needed to be away from it, or what colors it could or could not be. Their argument was that the logo had nothing to do with the topic of their presentation. While that’s true in general, misuse of the logo was a big deal for the people in the audience who knew the branding guidelines. The result was that all of those people were suddenly only focused on the logo violation and not what the presenter was saying.

Distractions are dangerous because while they seem insignificant, the reality is that they can cause a major disturbance. Distractions in writing include (but are certainly not limited to):

• Mistakes
• Plot inconsistencies
• Excessive use of adjectives
• Use of complex language
• Rapid changes of PoV

While it’s impossible to predict every distraction for every reader, you can think through some of the most common ones and work to ensure they are not in your writing. A good place to start is to list out the things that have disrupted your reading experience when reading a novel.

Incorporating these four tips into your writing will help you produce your best work, which will go a long way in your quest to build a loyal readership. Keep these tips in front of you as you write. You can also structure some beta reader questions around these points to help ensure you’ve covered them appropriately.

Come back at the end of the month when I’ll give you tips to use when talking to others about your writing!

~ Carrie

The Writing Slump

For those of you who don’t know, I’m turning the big 3-0 this year. I’m being a little bit cliche and have made a list of 30 things to do before (ish) my birthday in June. One of these things is to write. It’s been at least two years since I’ve really sat down and written anything for my personal enjoyment. So I decided to challenge myself to write a short story. It doesn’t have to “end” at a short story but I’d like to hit that mark starting off.

It’s been six months since I made this resolution. I’m an expert at procrastination so I will share some of my “excuses” with you in the hopes that you, dear readers and fellow bloggers, can help me overcome them.

1) I write for a living. Every day from 9 to 6 I am writing for a marketing company (about automobiles). So by the end of the day the last thing I want to do is boot up my laptop and put my fingers back to the keys.

2) I need to read. I read so much and have such a large TBR pile that writing consistently gets pushed to the back burner in the search for the next best story.

3) I’m overwhelmed. I have possibly 3 different stories in my head and don’t know which one to start with or really where to start.

4) I’m critical of myself. I’ve always been my own worst critic and in the case of writing that mentality usually stops me before I even start.

So, here’s my call for help. Help!!! I need some guidance from my peers on this one. Where does your drive come from? How do you discipline yourself? Where does your inspiration come from? Any tips, tricks, suggestions will be helpful and welcome! Thanks in advance.

Go ahead, grab a talisman!

It’s the first Monday of 2016, and it’s time to officially start working toward a new set of yearly goals. In the last couple weeks, we heard about resolutions from Jonathan, the pressures to produce from Brenda, and establishing new reading goals from Brianna. These posts were all timely in preparing us for today—the day we get to start working on making it all happen (or for you overachievers, it’s the 4th day to keep it moving in the right direction). So how can we keep sight of our goal throughout the year, especially when there are so many distractions to hold us back?

I don’t think it will come as a surprise to anyone that many writers can’t write a single word unless they follow a superstition or cling to some sort of talisman. Superstitions can include a specific writing process, having a certain number of pencils/pens on hand, wearing only a specific outfit or piece of clothing while writing, being surrounded by a certain smell, drinking out of only one mug, listening to a certain type of music, writing only at certain times of the day, or ending every novel on an odd page. Talismans can take the form of any object that has special meaning to an author, and has to be nearby during the writing process.

While it might seem hokey, there is some validity in having a something to help you achieve your goal. Here are three reasons why it’s good for writers to embrace a superstition or talisman:

1. Tangible reminders are effective.

Many self-published authors don’t have deadlines hanging over their heads, pushing them to get that manuscript done. They have to rely on self-imposed deadlines—which are easily pushed aside when life gets busy or complicated. In the case of a talisman, the writer has a physical object to attach to their goal. Looking at it is a reminder that there is work to be done. It can’t easily be ignored, especially if the object holds sentimental meaning for the writer.

2. Friction can stifle creativity.

Obviously, writers need to rely on their creativity to a great extent. When a writer experiences any form of stress, friction is introduced into the process and stifles creativity. Some call it writer’s block. Some call it distractions. Whatever you call it, it’s friction and it’s killing your creativity. Having a specific routine or talisman can reduce that friction. When a certain superstition is observed or talisman is held, calmness can be restored and creativity is able to flow unrestricted once again.

3. It doesn’t hurt anyone.

Assuming your superstition isn’t one that requires you to wear the same pair of underwear every day until your novel is published, a simple routine or sentimental object isn’t going to hurt you or any of your surrounding loved ones.

When I started writing, I never intended to have a talisman. I’m not superstitious by nature, but I do like to have visual reminders of goals and my progress. A good friend gave me a Daruma doll while writing my first book, and I loved the idea of it so much that I’ve decided to have a new doll for each of my novels. If you’re not familiar with a Daruma doll, it’s a traditional handmade Japanese wishing doll. The doll comes with both eyes blank, and you color in one eye to signify your commitment to achieving your goal. Once you reach your goal, you color in the other eye.

The Daruma doll for my current WIP always sits right next to my computer. Aside from the visual reminder, it motivates me to finish because the symmetrical loving person inside of me can’t stand having only one eye filled in! Once I publish my novel, in addition to coloring in the second eye, I write the name of my novel and the dates for when I started writing it and when I finished on the back. They make a great memento for each of my novels.

  

So go ahead and embrace your quirky writing superstition or talisman! If you already have one, let us know about it in the comments. If not, now’s the perfect time to establish one for the year. Please, just stay away from any that result in poor hygiene!

~ Carrie

How to give your story tension (Story Breakdown, Part 1)

A post by Mary Fan

What keeps a story moving forward? What gives it that pull that makes a reader keep turning the
pages?

Answer: Tension. Those little hooks in a novel that give you the urge to find out what happens next. We are hardwired to want answers to questions, and stories with tension are imbedded with them, without offering the answers until the very end.

There are the big, overarching questions: "Will the good guys defeat the bad guys?" "Will the heroine end up with her Prince Charming?" "Will the protagonist choose what's best for herself, or what's best for her community?"

And the more specific ones, surrounding how the plot unfurls, along the way: "How will the good guys escape the dungeon?" "What will happen when the heroine learns that her Prince Charming lied about his identity, and will they be able to recover?" "How will the protagonist arrive at her decision about whether to choose herself over the greater good, and whose influence will she listen to?"

The three example questions I gave above each represent one of three types of stakes: Physical (external), Emotional (internal), and Moral (philosophical). Stakes are the reason a person is reading a story. Something will be gained or lost based on the outcome of the book, and readers read to find out how it will all turn out.

Physical (External) Stakes

Physical stakes are about achieving goals. These are the external circumstances a character must face and overcome. When people think of stakes, usually it's the physical ones, and genre books (thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy, horror, etc.) thrive on upping them to life and death situations. But even less "save the world" type books have physical stakes. For instance, contemporary fiction often includes story lines around surviving in modern society--having enough money for the mortgage or winning a prestigious contest, for instance.

Types of physical stakes include:

• Survival (of either the individual or a community)
• Competition (sometimes a particular contest, like an election, or sometimes for general status/position) 
• Money

Here are some examples of physical stakes:

• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson: Lisbeth and Mikael must discover the identity of a ruthless murderer before he kills again.
• Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson: David seeks to defeat Steelheart, a supervillain with extraordinary powers who rules over a post-apocalyptic Chicago.
• A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar John Nash battles schizophrenia on his way toward becoming a great academic.
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan: Percy goes on a quest to the Underworld to prevent a war between the Greek gods.
• Braineater Jones by Stephen Kozeniewski: After waking up a zombie, Braineater Jones must solve his own murder and finds himself at the heart of a much bigger conflict.

Emotional (Internal) Stakes

Emotional stakes are about a character's internal conflicts. In other words, the "feels." Romance novels are all about these emotional stakes. A lot of women's fiction and memoirs center around emotional stakes as well. But even bang-bang-kaboom-type books have emotional stakes... The farmboy who loses his family and sets himself on a dubious path to greatness, the cynical cop struggling to keep her marriage together while hunting a serial killer.

Types of emotional stakes include:

• Love (romantic or familial)
• Friendship
• Sense of self (for example, overcoming self-doubt or existential crises)

Here are some examples of emotional stakes:

• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling: Orphaned and treated like garbage by his aunt's family, Harry discovers a new community of friends and faces a Chosen One destiny he's unprepared for.
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green: Two teenagers battling cancer find love and comfort in their shared experiences.
• Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline: After losing her family, Vivian is sent West to be placed with an adoptive family and must hold on to her sense of self as she's shuffled from home to home.
• Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell: Left completely isolated after being left behind on her tribe's island, Karana finds meaning and companionship in nature.
• Grunge Gods and Graveyards by Kimberly G. Giarratano: When the boy Lainey loves returns from the grave as a ghost, Lainey struggles with her feelings for someone she can never touch again.

Moral (Philosophical) Stakes

Moral stakes are about "doing the right thing," even when it comes at a cost for the characters. They're about what separate the bad guys from the good guys: What makes the good guys "good," and why are we rooting for them? Good guys and bad guys are obvious in a lot of genre fiction (plucky rebels vs. evil overlords, scrappy cops vs. depraved criminals, etc.). Sometimes, though, the moral stakes go beyond the obvious. 

Types of moral stakes include:

• Individual vs. community
• Freedom vs. control
• Rules vs. what feels right
• Self vs. other
• Doing what's easy vs. doing what's right

Here are some examples of moral stakes:

• Les Miserables by Victor Hugo: A group of students stage a foolhardy rebellion against overwhelming odds, and Jean Valjean joins them, sacrificing his own safety by entering a can't-win battle, in order to save his daughter's lover.
• Number the Stars by Lois Lowry: Deep in the shadow of World War II, a Danish family risks everything to help smuggle their Jewish friends to safety.
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: Forced into a dystopian kill-or-be-killed competition, Katniss protects her friends even though their survival could mean her death.
• Green Angel by Alice Hoffman: After losing her family, Green must learn to let go of her bitterness and accept her sorrow.
• Oracle of Philadelphia by Elizabeth Corrigan: After meeting a good man who sold his soul to save his sister, the Oracle must decide what lengths she's willing to go to in order to save him.

Combining the three types of stakes

Most books will have some combination of the three types of stakes--or all of them--and most also have more than one of each kind. As you may have noticed, the examples above only talk about one small slice of the books they're from (for instance, Hunger Games, mentioned under Moral, also has obvious physical stakes).

Here are a few examples of books broken down by their stakes:

• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

• Physical stakes
• Get the One Ring to Mordor and destroy it
• Fight back armies of Orcs to protect the people
• Defeat adversaries along the way (Shelob, Balrog, Ring Wraiths, etc.)
• Restore order to the realm of Man
• Emotional stakes
• Call to greatness--Ordinary vs. extraordinary life (Frodo, a humble Hobbit, sets off on a destiny he's unprepared for when he becomes the Ring Bearer and faces self-doubt along the way)
• Fulfilling a destiny (After hiding from his destiny for years, Aragorn rises up as the true king of Gondor)
• Friendship--Loyalty vs. betrayal (Frodo and Sam's tension as the Ring starts corrupting Frodo)
• Moral stakes
• Selfishness vs. altruism (Frodo struggles with whether to fulfill his mission or keep the One Ring for himself; Aragorn chooses to help the kingdom of Rohan fight back the Orcs; Theoden, king of Rohan, sends his armies to aid Gondor even though Gondor didn't help Rohan previously)
• What's right vs. what's easy (Frodo sets off to destroy the Ring knowing how dangerous it will be)
• Power vs. freedom (Sauron desires control over Middle Earth and power for himself, while the heroes fight to keep Middle Earth free from his control)

• Life of Pi by Yann Martel
  
• Physical stakes
• Cross the ocean in a lifeboat
• Keep the tiger fed so he won't eat Pi
• Emotional stakes
• Faith vs. doubt--Pi wrestles with his belief in God
• After losing his family, Pi's only companion on his journey is the tiger
• Moral stakes
• Determination vs. giving up--As days drag on and there's no rescue in sight, Pi struggles to keep going even though his fate seems grim
• How far is Pi willing to go to survive? Will he kill the tiger to save himself?

• Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
  
• Physical stakes
• Survive the Civil War
• Save the family plantation
• Rebuild life after the war tears it apart
• Emotional stakes
• Romantic love: Scarlet is in love with Ashley, a married man, while engaging in a tumultuous romance with the roguish Rhett
• Familial love: Scarlet takes care of her father and two sisters after her mother's death
• Call to greatness: Scarlet must take charge after her mother's death drives her father to madness, overcoming her upbringing as a decorative Southern belle
• Moral stakes
• Selfishness vs. altruism: Scarlet protects Melanie even though she's married to the man Scarlet loves, and Melanie's death would mean that he's available
• Determination vs. giving up: Scarlet goes to great lengths to protect the family plantation while others in her situation accept defeat
• Holding true vs. selling out: Scarlet fails on this one because she chooses to do business with morally dubious individuals, including those who would have been her enemies during the war

Keeping these three types of stakes in mind while plotting your novel will help you craft the kind of story that keeps readers reading. Knowing what's at stake--what's to be gained and what's could be lost--is what keeps us wanting to know how things turn out.

Just for fun, I've done a breakdown of my own book, Artificial Absolutes:

• Physical stakes
• Jane must find her friend, Adam, after witnessing his kidnapping
• Jane must prove her brother's innocence after he's framed for shooting their father
• Jane has to escape various adversaries who pursue her across the galaxy (she's a fugitive from the law and also the target of a powerful criminal)
• Emotional stakes
• Familial love: Jane's loyalty to her brother and desire to see her father's attacker brought to justice
• Romantic love: Jane and Adam's budding relationship
• Call to greatness: Jane doubts her ability to save the day as she faces circumstances she could never have prepared for
• Moral stakes
• Selfishness vs. altruism: Though Jane herself isn't the villain's target, she chooses to leave her own life behind to save her brother and Adam
• Determination vs. giving up: When all seems lost, Jane must decide how far she's willing to go
• Freedom vs. control: The enemy Jane faces desires control over the fate of humanity in order to instill order

This is Part 1 of my Story Breakdown series of posts... Tune in next month for Part 2, which will be about how to keep the pages turning.