Riley Adams's Blog, page 153

Finding Your Unique Author Voice… Like Everyone Else?

Guest Post by J.J. Hensley




Just Google it.  Seriously. 
Just type “Unique Author Voice” into a search engine and see what pops
up.  Everyone seems to know how you need
to go about finding your unique author voice. 
There are steps, exercises, and even templates available.  We are told publishers want to find authors
who have a unique voice, but do we
really know what that means?  I found
mine – but, it’s not mine.

My voice is the sum of
38 years of reading, working, talking, listening, watching television, and
observing.  Is that what people mean by
finding that voice?  I have no idea.  But when I decided to write a novel, I knew
that if I researched how to go about it – how to outline, structure, work on
plot pacing, etc., then whatever I ended up with would not truly be mine.  So, I carefully and methodically winged
it.  The result was the publication of
the very first written work I had attempted. 
Would this work for everyone?  How
the hell would I know?  I’m just a guy
who got a book published.  John Grisham
is not concerned that I’m going to knock him down any best-seller lists.  I’m still blindly feeling my way through the
world of being an author and it’s not uncommon for me to slam my head into a
wall.  I can only pass along what I
learned during my writing anti-process.




#1.      I admitted my unique voice would not be
mine.

My author voice is the
sum of nearly four decades  of living,
reading, working, watching television, laughing, crying, fighting, and
loving.  The voice is that of Vince
Flynn, Mark Twain, my elementary school teachers, my family, my friends, my
coworkers, and my dogs (not in a Son of Sam way).  The collection of all of these influences is
specific to me and only me.  How could it not be unique?

#2.      Outlining and note-taking are overrated.

Prior to writing my
first novel, I refused to research anything about how other authors construct
their books.  After it was picked up by a
publisher, curiosity got the better of me and I looked at how some famous authors
construct stories.  One article I read
stated that Stephen King outlines 50 pages before every writing a single word
of the actual book.  Yuk.  That sounds awful.  And who is this Stephen King guy anyway?  What does that guy know?  Right? 


Obviously, Stephen
King knows more about writing than I ever will. 
But, I do know that if I tried to sit down and outline 50 pages before
writing a book, I’d never write a book. 
For me, writing is fun and needs to stay that way.  Besides, when I’m writing a book I honestly
have very little idea where the story is going until I write the very next
paragraph.  I know that drives some
people crazy, but that’s my anti-process. 
If people ask me what my current project is about, I have a lot of
difficulty telling them because sometimes I have no freak’n idea until I start
typing the next chapter.  I’m not being
coy.  I’m not keeping things close to the
vest.  I really don’t know.  That’s the fun part!  That’s part of my author voice.

#3.    I didn’t start with a story, as much as I
did with my own voice.

What do I mean by
that?  Well, I only had a general idea
what the plot for my novel RESOLVE would entail.  I knew the backdrop would be a marathon and
that I would have 26.2 “Miles” in the form of chapters.  That’s pretty much it.  Then, I thought of a strong word that would
be a good title.  Next, I came up with a
name for the protagonist.  I thought up
some strong words or phrases that I liked and wanted to integrate into the
book.  The result was that my author
voice was the nucleus of the novel and the plot developed around it.  I didn’t think much about it at the time, and
I probably would not have proceeded this way if I had bought some “How to Write
a Novel for Dummies” book prior to starting. 
Anyway, from what I understand, this method is backward compared to the
way many others write.  So be it.  Maybe my unique voice is also the result of a
jacked-up, backwards process that would not work for most others.  Cool.




So, the best advice I
can give anyone who is looking to find their unique author voice is to stop
looking.  You probably already have it in
you.  You got it that time you got your
heart broken, won that trophy, got beat up on the playground, or celebrated
your wedding.  The voice may sound a lot
like a combination of David Baldacci, John Verdon, your mother, and the loud
guy working at the coffee shop.  Perhaps
you can go with your gut and not your notes or some generic template.  Or… simply ignore everything I just wrote and
do what you feel is natural.  That would
be a pretty cool too.

 

J.J. Hensley is the author of the
critically-acclaimed novel Resolve. 
Resolve is available on Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and many
independent bookstores.  Visit the author
at:

www.hensley-books.com

www.facebook.com/hensleybooks

Memorial Day Break

Hope my blog readers in the States will
have a nice Memorial Day.   

I’m taking a
break today from blogging, but will return Wednesday.

Twitterific

  by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig





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Three Types of Good Story Repetition

Today I'm over at
K.M. Weiland's Blog, WordPlay (a fantastic writing craft blog, if you haven't visited),

talking about three
types of good repetition for our
stories.  Hope you'll pop over.

How Convenient--Plot Contrivance

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig


Morgue File--o0o0xmods0o0o


Sometimes when we’re drafting a book or
writing an outline, we’ll run into something that needs
to happen in the plot, but is clumsy, or seems convenient or contrived.

I’m working on something now and ran into
this problem.  As a matter of fact, I’ve
run into this same exact problem in a different manuscript.  I need to have my sleuth’s home broken into.
How can I get away with that?  She has
nosy neighbors.  She’s alert.  She’s, as a matter of fact, an insomniac.  The villains in my stories are gifted
amateurs, not career criminals with a knack for picking locks. 

It’s difficult to make this break-in
happen without making my sleuth appear dumb, forgetful, careless, or generally
unfit for sleuthing.



Why would she leave a door unlocked when
there is a killer afoot?  How could my
newbie killer easily and stealthily break into her house, if she hasn’t left
the door unlocked?

How will she get away from this intruder
once he gets in?  He intends to murder
her since she’s such a pest and since she’s also discovered important
information…that she doesn’t yet even realize is important.

It’s important that whatever reason I
happen on is mentioned previously in the story. 
In other words, I don’t suddenly need to have the intruder inside the
house and have Myrtle think, “Oh no—I forgot to lock the door.”  Better to let the reader in on the forgetting
when it happens, if that’s the approach I want to take with the contrivance.

So…I make my lists.  In the hopes of helping anyone else with
their own plot holes and struggles with conveniences, I’ll share some of what
would go onto mine:

She leaves the door unlocked because
she’s lugging something heavy into the house and forgets to go back to lock it.

She absent-mindedly leaves the door
unlocked when she walks in and hears a ringing phone and then ends up on a
disturbing phone call.

She locks the door but leaves a window
cracked to let the cat in and out.

Someone she trusts comes in behind her
and Myrtle thinks the trusted friend has locked the door behind her (and leaves
later from a different door), but the trusted friend doesn’t lock it—for
whatever reason. Complex and rather messy.

The killer breaks a window quietly by
taping it with duct tape and then holding a dishtowel up to the window and
striking it with a hammer.

The intruder gets hold of a spare key or
somehow copies her key…this will require a good deal more set-up.

The sleuth left it unlocked on purpose
and lured the killer there as a trap.  
(And she has some sort of back-up—since we don’t need the additional
problem of a main character doing something stupid or conveniently reckless.)

In the for-what-it’s-worth department, my
editors views on conveniences tends to be that—as long as I’ve put some effort
into setting it up—the readers will suspend their disbelief.  In other words, they absolutely don’t want a
moment where the sleuth realizes she forgot to lock the door and that’s the
first the readers hear about it—when the intruder has entered her house. They
want the readers to see her forgetting
to lock the door. 

Is it too much of a coincidence that
she’d forget to lock the door on the very night the intruder wants to break
in?  Well, it’s definitely a coincidence.
Although I’d point out that my husband—incredibly scrupulous about locking
doors—left his car unlocked once many years ago while he carried in Christmas
presents from a shopping trip.  He forgot
to lock it later. And that was the one time in 20 years of marriage that we had
something stolen from a car. Coincidences do
happen.  I think, though, that it’s a
good idea to only have one big
coincidence in a story.

More posts
on convenience, contrivances, and more:

The Editor’s Blog--Coincidence
Destroys the Suspension of Disbelief –by Beth Hill.

The Other Side of the Story--What
a Coincidence! Creating Plots That Don’t Feel Like Accidents—by Janice
Hardy

Beyond the Margins—Managing
Coincidence—by Leslie Greffenius

Writers in the Storm--9 Plots That Rely On Coincidence and Contrivance—by
Kara Lennox

How do you handle convenience in a plot?
How much, as a reader, can you overlook in a story?

How James Patterson Made 94 Million Dollars Last Year

by Gretchen Archer, @Gretchen_Archer





I don’t have a clue. He probably doesn’t
either. I’m sure there are forensic accountants, Schedule Cs, and colorful pie
charts with the secret formula for how this man, in today’s publishing climate,
earned so much money by simply putting pencil to paper (they say he
writes-outlines-edits long hand on legal pads), but I bet there’s no
one-sentence explanation. “Mr. Patterson, it was the Alex Cross fleece booties
that shot you from Forbes Stinking Rich to Forbes Obscenely Loaded.”

The only logical answer? James Patterson
supplies a high-demand product to an eager and willing consumer. That’s how he
does it. Who’s next? Who will be the next J.K., Danielle, John Grisham? I hope
it’s not me. I don’t want to be the next Gillian Flynn or E.L. James, either,
but for different reasons, and not because I hate going to the bank, something
they must be doing a lot of, too. It’s because, having read both Ms. Flynn and
Ms. James (kudos, ladies) I know I could never do what they’ve done (in the
first place) without giving up my life. For me to go that deep, I’d have to
shut off everything and everyone, and what if, when I dug out, everything and
everyone were gone?

Which brings me to a terrible confession:
I’m not in it for the money. I write with the luxury of knowing  there will be dinner on the table and lights
on in my house if I bring in Sandra Brown numbers or, like many other happy
writers, I don’t.



I’m in it for the fun. Writing is fun.

I write, entirely, for my own amusement.
While there’s an underlying message in my Davis Way Crime Caper Series—you
can’t have something for nothing—my solitary goal, when staring at the blank
screen, is to entertain myself.

Maybe I need to get out more.

Plot is fun. For whatever reasons,
because I couldn’t drum up a hotel sewing kit if James Patterson were standing
in front of me holding a critical runaway button, I think of plot in terms of
thousands of colorful strands of loose, wispy threads all around me, and my
goal is to gather and assemble and weave them in such a way that they come
together in a strong, affecting, and charming design. (Side note: I think of
editing as someone saying the light lavender strand, that I love, and spent
forever plaiting in, looks horrible.)

Characters are fun. I have the pleasure
of taking all the good I’m surrounded by and giving it to my characters. I do
the same with my bad guys. The parents who blame everything and everyone but
themselves for their child’s rotten grades-Sailor language-haircut—in the book.
The friend who won’t stop making harrowing relationship decisions—in the
book.  The desperate man having a very
public meltdown at the bank when he’s the one who bounced the checks—in the
book.

The research is fun, because learning is
fun. For DOUBLE DIP (Henery Press, January, 2014), I learned about French food,
slot tournaments, bananas, mega churches, and waste management. Which didn’t do
a thing for my cash flow, but I really enjoyed it.

Outside of the writing process, the
people are fun. If you’re not working with people who make your life and your
work a better place, get new ones. I’m surrounded by the greatest group of
people imaginable. I’d have never met them had it not been for the writing, and
they’re worth more to me than money. Above all, they’re fun.

You’ll read next week that Mr.
Patterson’s 18th release (this year)
has been knocked out of the NYT’s #1 spot by none other than Mr. Patterson
himself, with his 19th. Be happy for
him. Go, James, go! Rake it in! 





Gretchen Archer
is a Tennessee housewife who began writing when her daughters, seeking higher
educations, left her. She lives on Lookout Mountain with her husband, son,
and a Yorkie named Bently. DoubleWhammy is her first Davis Way Crime Caper. www.gretchenarcher.com








Double Whammy: Davis Way hits the jackpot
when she lands a job at the fabulous Bellissimo Resort and Casino, but only if
she can steer clear of her ex-ex husband, her evil twin, and pesky felony
indictments.

Twitterific

 by Elizabeth S. Craig,
@elizabethscraig




Twitterific is a compilation of all the writing links I
shared the previous week. The links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base
search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which
has over 19,000 free articles on writing-related topics. It's the search engine
for writers.




Sign up for our free newsletter for monthly writing tips and interviews with top
contributors to the WKB or like us on Facebook.




Mike Fleming and author and writing coach
James Scott Bell are offering an online, interactive, writing program to help make
your next novel great. It's called "Knockout Novel" and you can learn
more about it at KnockoutNovel.com. Plus, all the data is stored in your Hiveword account for
easy access.



Strategies for Turning Impersonal Info
Dumps into Compelling Copy: http://bit.ly/18Ik5wb
@jodierennered

Stalking the Muse: http://bit.ly/13aqUa8 @ashkrafton

To Save Indies, Publishers Need to
ReConsider DRM: http://bit.ly/104KaVA
@dearauthor




Creating a reader-friendly website: http://bit.ly/11M96PW @ellenmgregg_nh

Why Literary Agents Attend Writers
Conferences: http://bit.ly/104KrHU
@KarenDionne

One Writers Conference Can Be All the
Catalyst You Need: http://bit.ly/11M9oX4
@hopeclark @bookbaby

How to Promote an Audiobook: http://bit.ly/104KBPI @dinasantorelli

Tips and an exercise for writing better
dialogue: http://bit.ly/11M9EoN
@hookedonnoir @kristenlambtx

Writing Tip: Clustering: http://bit.ly/104KQdr

Understanding screenwriting (analysis of
various movies and TV shows): http://bit.ly/11M9ONa
@slant_magazine

Using Language To Evoke Emotion: http://bit.ly/104LuaJ @woodwardkaren

Perils of the Writer: Clarity and
"Literary" Writing: http://bit.ly/11Mayln

Great Scene: "Fight Club": http://bit.ly/104LBTM @gointothestory

Book Marketing Using Paid Promotion:
Targeted Email Lists: http://bit.ly/11MaMZR
@thecreativepenn

Dealing with Bad Reviews: http://bit.ly/104LJCW @jakonrath

Creating Perks for a Crowdfunded Writing
Project: http://bit.ly/11MaUIN @jasonboog

Why Do We Keep Making Ebooks Like Paper
Books? http://bit.ly/11MbPst @gizmodo

The Joys of 1-Star Reviews: http://bit.ly/104MBHG

10 Screenwriting Lessons You Can Learn
From Forrest Gump: http://bit.ly/11Mc7zG

When is it OK to Blog Your Book? http://bit.ly/11Mcb2x @annerallen

10 Literary Beers to Drink While Reading:
http://bit.ly/104MNXl @flavorpill

I Don't Need a Hero: The Kick-Ass
Heroines of Gaming: http://bit.ly/11Mcjit
@c_morgs65

A Look at a Middle Grade Query Letter: http://bit.ly/104MWtU @janice_hardy

How to Write a Screenplay in Nine (Not
So) Easy Steps: http://bit.ly/11Mcudy
@scriptmag

Why Suddenly Is a Four-Letter Word: http://bit.ly/104MZWA @KMWeiland

100 Things for Authors To Tweet About: http://bit.ly/11McJVT @authormedia

How to Write a Memorable Beginning and
Ending: http://bit.ly/104Ngsv
@write_practice

A look at 3rd person POV: http://bit.ly/11McSc4 @fictorians

Fiction Writing Exercises: Symbols and
Symbolism: http://bit.ly/104NnEx
@melissadonovan

Comfort food for the long wait: http://bit.ly/11McY3e

Don't Write A Drama Spec: http://bit.ly/104NrnQ

Tips for better blog posts: http://bit.ly/11Mfneu @EdieMelson

Songwriting Tip: Writing The Bridge: http://bit.ly/104Ploq @usasongs

What are agents looking for in a writer? http://bit.ly/11Mfuqd @carlywatters

Synopsis Writing 101: http://bit.ly/104PFDz @MyraJohnson

Thoughts on how subplots fit into the
main story: http://bit.ly/11MfPJM
@DeeWhiteauthor

Artists and writers: drop the confusion
and define your own labels: http://bit.ly/104QQTx
@originalimpulse

With More Authors Self-Publishing Each
Year, How Will Your Book Get Noticed? http://bit.ly/11MgVoS
@thecreativepenn

The Most Common Dialogue Errors In
Screenplays: http://bit.ly/104QZGH

How to Set Tone and Mood in Your Scenes: http://bit.ly/11Mh8Iz @janice_hardy

How To Guarantee Yourself a Rejection: http://bit.ly/104R4Kn @behlerpublish

Demystifying Contracts: Novels –
Discounted Royalties: http://bit.ly/11MhezM
@amazingstories0

When Should Writers Get Critiques? http://bit.ly/104RaS5 @jodyhedlund

Handling Story Problems: http://bit.ly/10cxbwT @mooderino

Colon review: http://bit.ly/104TR6j @missedperiods

The sexual jeopardy device in sf/f: http://bit.ly/10cxIPu @ThGalaxyExpress

"Indie First?" What Is Best In
Publishing? http://bit.ly/1380bxa
@chuckwendig

Beyond the same-old fantasy culture: Nine
authors worth reading: http://bit.ly/10cxPKO
@juliettewade

When Should You Send Your Short Story Out
For Critique? http://bit.ly/104UbC6
@woodwardkaren

Hugh Howey on Why Writers Need an Author
Platform: http://bit.ly/10cxWGr @hughhowey
@danblank

How To Create And Maintain The Habit Of
Writing: http://bit.ly/13Z2Wxx
@woodwardkaren

Use Relationship Marketing to Sell Books:
http://bit.ly/YAqHOi @bookmarketer

The Art of Modeling--How Other People's
Books Can Make Yours Better: http://bit.ly/13Z35Bf

7 lessons from 7+ years blogging: http://bit.ly/YAqUkg @amytschubert

Choosing your genre: http://bit.ly/13Z38Nk @JanetKGrant

How to Set Tone and Mood in Your Scenes: http://bit.ly/11Mh8Iz @Janice_Hardy

This Is The BEST Time To Be A Writer, If
You Work For It: http://bit.ly/YArbE2
@danblank

How to Write Multiple POVs: http://bit.ly/13Z3kvZ @ava_jae

How a marketing scientist wishes that
Amazon reviews worked: http://mz.cm/YArte2
@SEOmoz @dr_pete

1 trad. published author tells about her
positive self-pub experience: http://bit.ly/13Z3EuP
@ElisNaughton

Writing with Repercussions: http://bit.ly/13Z3NhH @susanjmorris

Publishing With A Small Press: Yes, No,
Maybe? http://bit.ly/13Z7Af7 @mollygreene

2Tips to Take Your Dialogue to a New
Level: http://bit.ly/YAwmnl @hookedonnoir
@kristenlambtx

Live First, Write Later: The Case for
Less Creative-Writing Schooling: http://bit.ly/13Z7V19
@Jon_Reiner

How to Stick with It When You're Learning
Something New On Your Own: http://bit.ly/YAwFOY
@lifehackorg

Digital publishing and the loss of
intimacy: http://oreil.ly/YAwOls
@fjdekermadec

How to get better feedback: http://bit.ly/13Z8eZR @berkun

5 Cases of
"Which"/"That" Confusion: http://bit.ly/YAwXFB
@writing_tips

The Author Solutions lawsuit--a time for
restraint: http://bit.ly/10EkFHH
@Porter_Anderson @sarahw @MickRooney7777 @DavidGaughran

7 things 1 new author has learned so far:
http://bit.ly/13Z8sAd @writersdigest

Tetris Effect + Genetics: Why We Write: http://bit.ly/YAxabN @poetrynews

A Complicated Genre– Telling Your Own
Story: http://bit.ly/13Z8EPY @wendylawton

The rejected writer: http://bit.ly/17JGn1Z @karencv

Saggy book middles: http://bit.ly/17JGqef @tarynalbright

Be precise but avoid unnecessary details:
http://bit.ly/17JGTwW

How to trim the fat from your story: http://bit.ly/17JGXNf @nickthacker

Tips for finding fresh ideas: http://bit.ly/17JHheS

Why Suddenly Is a Four-Letter Word: http://bit.ly/104MZWA @kmweiland

Marking Time with the Viewpoint
Character: http://bit.ly/ZNbvvH @noveleditor

Why Does Horror Have Such a Bad
Reputation? http://bit.ly/17JHAGE
@thisisdannyg

Triggers And Taboos In Fiction: http://bit.ly/ZNbND5 @VeronicaSicoe

Writing an epic--getting stuck: http://bit.ly/ZNc1dk @matty_gibbon

5 Tips for Submitting to Writing
Contests: http://bit.ly/17JI2EM
@EDFsChronicles

Freelance Writers--Building a Writer's
Portfolio: http://bit.ly/17JIa7s

Social Media Rule #1 for Writers – Be
Social: http://bit.ly/ZNcnR8
@DevourerofBooks

The Art of Asking People to Buy our
Books: http://bit.ly/17JInaC @Rachel_Aaron

What the heck does a book cost? http://bit.ly/17JIxyD @Scholarlykitchn

Remember the Quiet Moments: http://bit.ly/ZNcKez @Lydia_sharp

Social Media for Authors: Where Do You
Start? http://bit.ly/17JIFOI
@mybookshepherd

How to embed tweets and follow
conversations: http://bit.ly/ZNcSux
@stevebuttry

Emotions Belong To Readers: http://bit.ly/17JIJy4 @mooderino

10 Tips To Finish What You Start: http://bit.ly/ZNrVnU @lifehackorg

Creative Researching: http://bit.ly/ZNs2A1

Views on viewpoint: http://bit.ly/17JU0hP

A List of Things Scott Turow Doesn't Care
About: http://bit.ly/17JU8Or @davidgaughran

How To Get Out of the Slush Pile: http://bit.ly/17JUch7 @Martinaaboone

What's to love about Goodreads? http://bit.ly/ZNss9m @Indie_Jane

Reading as an Agent: http://bit.ly/ZNsuOD @martinaaboone

Communication Breakdown for your novel's
dialogue: http://bit.ly/17JUsMY
@DavidCorbett_CA

6 ways to market children's books: http://bit.ly/ZNsFt8 @LauraPepWu

Goals for You and for Your Characters: http://bit.ly/ZNsL48 @plotwhisperer

When you suspect you've been taken for a
ride by your publisher: http://bit.ly/ZNsSN8
@JapanLite

How to use the QueryTracker site: http://bit.ly/17JUMLA @janelebak

Diversity in Writing: http://bit.ly/ZNsXQO @martinaaboone

Does your book need an index? http://bit.ly/16h4maZ @SueCollier

Creating amid chaos: http://bit.ly/ZHuEM9 @JennaAvery

5 Ways to Stay Physically Healthy While
You Write: http://bit.ly/16hai3J
@chrisrobley

How to unlock personal truth through
intuitive writing: http://bit.ly/ZHBHoe
@justinemusk

Dan Brown has got readers. Has he got
talent? http://bit.ly/14ss93y
@Porter_Anderson @MichaelPDeacon @JakeKerridge @mollydriscoll

How To Punctuate Dialogue In Your Prose: http://bit.ly/16haJLw @writerscramp1

What's Your Character's Deal Breaker?: A
Key to Compelling Characters: http://bit.ly/16haRdV
@dannymanus

How Indie Authors can use NetGalley: http://bit.ly/ZHCfdI @BiblioCrunch

Impact character(s): http://bit.ly/ZHCMfz @glencstrathy

Tips for creating a viral book trailer: http://bit.ly/16hbRP6 @tferriss

Characters for hire: http://bit.ly/ZHJVws @ClayStafford

What Works in Real Life Works Just as
Well in Writing: http://bit.ly/17MIbYj
@EdieMelson

Roundtable on Unreliable Narrators: http://bit.ly/17MIpP1

A reader explains why readers don't owe
authors anything: http://bit.ly/YGkkJd
@mittenstrings

Joe Konrath responds to questions: http://bit.ly/17MIFNR @JAKonrath

How to beat a creative block: http://bit.ly/YGkrV5 @FortheCreators

Advice for writers waffling over whether
to start a project: http://bit.ly/17MIUIJ
@EdanL

Finding beta readers: http://bit.ly/17MJ0QR @goblinwriter

4 Ways Google+ Communities Help Authors
Build Their Platforms: http://bit.ly/YGkMXN
@genelempp

The Slow Death of The Old Paradigm
Author: http://bit.ly/17MJpCN
@kristenlambtx

5 Steps to Take Before You Publish Your
Blog Post: http://bit.ly/YGlbtr
@wherewriterswin

Time Management for Writers: http://bit.ly/17MJN4h @nancyjcohen

Just Get On With The Story? http://bit.ly/YGlvZ8 @mooderino

Scheduling options for freelancers: http://bit.ly/17MKbQi

Tips for taking your spec script to
market: http://bit.ly/YGlRii @gointothestory

Dos and Don'ts of Working with an Editor:
http://bit.ly/17MKryG @fictorians

Writers selling to writers: http://bit.ly/14bPCqj @Porter_Anderson
@PBSMediaShift @MissAdventuring  @ChuckWendig

Marking Time with the Viewpoint
Character: http://bit.ly/YGm5Gb @noveleditor

Writing advice from 14 spec fiction
authors: http://bit.ly/11UJZuc @22words

Spring Clean Your Writing: http://bit.ly/15vQZUY @howtowriteshop

At 9 p.m. EST, joining #indiechat to
discuss going from trad. pub to self-pub. 
@bibliocrunch

Falls (pushing) as a murder method in
crime fiction: http://bit.ly/10HKono
@mkinberg

The wages of platforming: http://bit.ly/13hjTRB @Porter_Anderson
@DonMaass @RLLaFevers

How to create a marketing plan for a
self-pubbed book: http://bit.ly/17uLR3c @NickThacker

Tips for putting your villain in a crisis
situation: http://bit.ly/11IC6NS
@WhiskySageMusic

Use of cars as a murder weapon in crime
fiction: http://bit.ly/108LPtP @mkinberg

The Process, or Lack Thereof

Guest Post by Mitzi Kelly, @ mitzi_kelly







I’d like to thank Elizabeth for giving me
a platform to discuss one of my favorite subjects:  the writing process. (Not!)

I have to admit, I doubt if many authors
approach a writing project with the same helter-skelter methods I use, but I’m
looking forward to the opportunity to analyze my lack of a strategy.  Or, I should say, my lack of an organized strategy.

It really is quite frustrating. From the
way I start a new manuscript, to the way it eventually ends up, are at such
different ends of the writing spectrum, it’s a mystery to me how I complete any
project.   Wait, I just thought about
something! This puzzle could provide the major plot theme in my next book in
the Silver Sleuths Mystery series!

My process really is that convoluted,
folks.  I could probably benefit from a
team of sleuths investigating it, but I’m going to give it my best shot.  Please bear with me as I try to describe my
creative process, because the key word here really is “creative.”




First of all, one of the easiest tasks
for me in beginning a manuscript is giving it a title.  In fact, in almost every instance, I have
thought of the title before I’ve even written “Chapter One.”  A fun phrase (the title) will pop into my
head, and then it’s just a case of what if
. . .

The second step for me is to clear my
desk, pull out pen and paper, and detail the physical and emotional traits of
my characters.  Yes, I actually do this
in longhand.  I use one sheet of paper
per character and I add tidbits, if necessary, as the story develops.  There’s something about writing down the
specifics that satisfies my imagination. 
Don’t ask me why because I certainly can’t explain it.

I then move on to the plot outline and a
chapter-by-chapter analysis, both of which are also done by longhand.  This is a time-consuming process, but I enjoy
it. By the time I’ve done all this ‘writing,’ I feel I have a good, strong
grasp on what my story is going to be, and it’s at this point I sit down at my
computer.

After a day of typing, that good, strong grasp feeling has evaporated
because somewhere in the middle of chapter one, my characters have taken over
and changed quite a bit of the initial outline, which also affects my
chapter-by-chapter analysis.  Out comes
the pen and, while muttering under my breath, I make the adjustments to the
story line. By the third time I have to do this, I’m no longer muttering under
my breath.  I’d be more specific, but you
get the picture . . .

And that, my dear friends, accurately
explains my writing process.  Weird? Yes.
A ton of wasted paper? Certainly. Fun? Most assuredly!  Because every writer’s goal is to get to the
point in the manuscript where you type “The End,” and it doesn’t really matter
how you get there.

Strange procedures, quirky habits and
ritualistic customs are all part of the process. A writer has to find a process
that works for him or her and just start writing. Um . . . I mean typing,
because our readers aren’t thinking about any of our strategies while they are
engrossed in our finished product.  I
mean, really, can you imagine what my readers would think if, while trying to
solve the latest crime in my novels, they knew what I had gone through to
create the darn thing!     



Mitzi Kelly grew up in
El Paso, Texas and now lives near San Antonio, Texas with her husband, John,
and son, John Lewis, and four dogs.  An
avid reader of all genres, she also enjoys intelligent political debate, and
especially time spent with family and friends.



She is the author of
the popular Silver Sleuths Mystery series published by Thomas &
Mercer.  The first two books, CLASSIC REVENGE and DEADLY POLICY are available at Amazon.com, and the third book in
the series will be released soon!  You
can contact her through her website at mitzi@mitzikelly.com.




            

What If? A Method for Developing Ideas

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig




MorgueFile--The Success


I’m one of those neighbors that would be
the perfect witness in a murder mystery. 
Because, if I’m not driving my kids and their friends around, I’m
staring blankly out the windows as I write.

One morning I saw our middle school
neighbor from across the street leave the house to walk to the school bus
stop.  His folks had put out a large
television for a charity to pick up and the remote sat on the top of the TV by
the street.  He walked past the
television, looking at it. Then he abruptly turned around, reached for the
remote, and pointed it at the television.  
You could just see what was going through his head: what if the
television suddenly turned on?

Writing is like that.  What if___happened?







You can brainstorm this way.  You can even outline this way.  You can get yourself out of plot holes this
way.

So I’m starting a new mystery.  Since I had such a disastrous pantster
experience for the last book, I’ve decided to put some time and thought into
planning this new book before I write.  I
don’t ordinarily like writing that way, but I will admit that out of the four
novels I’ve outlined, I’ve never had a major rewrite. 

This is Outlining Light.  So my process is something like this (and I
give myself permission to change it as I go along.)

I start out with my victim…because she
determines everything in a mystery.  Who
wants to kill her?  This is how suspects
are developed. What if she’s the kind of person who rubs everyone the wrong
way? What if she is responsible for breaking up someone’s marriage?  What if her neighbor was engaged in a
property dispute with her? What if she has a grown daughter living with her who
likes to cause trouble? 

The rest of the story develops in much
the same way.  What if Suspect 1 claims
she was somewhere else the night of the murder but Suspect 2 spotted her
arriving at the victim’s house when she was leaving it? What if Suspect 3 has a
secret that she’s desperate to protect…which has nothing to do with the murder?


This rambling what-if process can lead to
many different ideas.  I take all the
ideas.  I’ll take outlandish ones,
mediocre ones, great ones.  I list them
all on a separate document and look for the strongest ideas…the ones with the
most possibilities to develop.  Even
better if some of the ideas could intersect with each other in some way
(surprising connections between suspects, surprising facts about the victim
connected to one of the suspects.)

When I run into problems, I can
brainstorm my way out of it in the same way. 
In one of my recently finished books, I thought featuring two different
married couples was confusing…especially with similar motives involved.  Plus, there really wasn’t enough
conflict.  What if one of the couples
weren’t married?  What if one member of
the couple was in love and the other member just wanted out? It made the story
more complex and interesting and it was only a small tweak.

How do you brainstorm and plot?



And...I'm trying a new jump break (read more)  feature for my blog to make it easier to scroll through posts (since some posts are pretty long.)  Hoping this will make it easier for a visitor to my blog's homepage to scan blog titles.  Please let me know how it works for you.  Thanks!

Organic vs. Plotting—Waffling

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig




MorgueFile--Binks


What doesn’t matter about plotting? 
It doesn’t matter how you do it as long as it works for you.

If what you’re doing isn’t
working, have you ever tried something else?

I’ve always been a very happy
organic writer/pantster.  I make up my
mysteries as I went along.  My agent,
frankly, was rather horrified.  I’ve also
had an editor or two who were very surprised that I don’t outline. I have a
feeling that many traditionally published, prolific writers outline their books
and that I was the exception and not the rule.

I have one editor who requires
an outline for approval.  I had a
tremendous problem delivering her an outline at first.  The first outline was 24 pages long.  My poor editor.  But at first, that’s the only way I could do
them.  If I had
to write an outline, I was going all the way with it…outlining every scene.

The second outline went a lot
better.  I gave her three page “big
picture” of the story.  I left out the
minor details and just hit the high points, suspects, killer, and how my hook
(it’s a quilting mystery series) featured into the book.

The third outline was much like
the second for this editor.  The
difference was that I deviated from it nearly completely.  Once I started writing the story, it took off
into a different direction.  Wrapped up
in the story, I neglected to tell my editor about my deviation, which caused a
bit of a problem for an editorial meeting she was in and a cover meeting.  Ugh.  I
quickly filled her in and sent her the (unfinished) manuscript (which I usually
hate doing because at that point I’ve done zero editing…but it was better than
sending my long-suffering editor in blind to various conferences.)

So I’ve had some outlining
background.  And I always hated coming up
with these outlines.  But—I never ran into story issues when I’ve
outlined.  I might go off my outline, but I never end up with a huge
plot hole, a mess of a beginning, or a poorly paced book.

On the other hand, when I haven’t outlined, I’ve run into a big problem
about 30% of the time.  Not all the
time.  But enough to slow me down (and I
do hate being inefficient!)

I just had a terrible first
draft experience on a book I made up as I went along.  Bad enough that I’m outlining the novel I’m
about to start writing.  But I’m not excited about this—I’m simply thinking that
maybe it’s become a necessary evil for me.

What
I dislike about outlines:

I feel like the time spent
writing them is better spent writing the story, promoting another book, or some
other writing-related task.  This almost
embarrasses me to even admit…yes, I know outlines count as writing. But that’s
how I feel about them.

I feel that outlines have a
tendency to confine my creativity.

I don’t like picking the
murderer until the end of the story.

I don’t like picking names
until I get to know new characters better.

Outlines remind me of the more
unpleasant assignments in my English classes.

Outlining doesn’t come
particularly naturally to me.

I hate to admit this, too,
but…I can get bored with what I’m writing when I outline because I’m skipping
the process of discovery and brainstorming. 
Those are the most fun parts for me.

Pros
of outlining

I always know what I’m going to
write (I’ve always known what I was
going to write the following day, even as an organic writer.  But with an outline, I know what I’ll write
even after that.

I can immediately tell if the
story I intend to write will work or not. 
I can spot a bloated beginning, a saggy middle, and a bad ending right
off the bat.

I can tell if my original pick
for murderer will work or not.

I can keep better track of
various subplots, red herrings, clues, suspects, and other elements.

Where
I’ve made my peace with outlines:

I allow myself to deviate if
the story will benefit.

I don’t force myself to pick
character names for the outline if I don’t immediately have a name that I
like.  I put in AA or BB instead.

I brainstorm lots of
possibilities on a separate document before I start my outline.  I keep the brainstormed ideas and refer to
them in case I start running dry when following my outline.

So…this is where I am now.  Waffling back and forth between outlining and
skipping it.  Again, if you’ve got a
method that works for you—keep it.  I’m
experimenting only because my method is suddenly letting me down a little.

Do you outline?  Why or why not?