Riley Adams's Blog, page 22

April 30, 2023

Making Lists More Motivating

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

If you've read this blog for any length of time, you've probably noticed that I'm a huge fan of lists. Here is a smattering of the list posts I've written: Lists and Layers, Tips for Better To-Do Lists, and Using Lists to Write.

I use lists in a variety of ways to get my drafting, editing, and brainstorming done. They also help me fit writing into small spaces of time on extremely busy days.

But sometimes, looking at a list can be overwhelming. And, to me, that's just a bad list. Lists are meant to not only provide a plan for working through tasks, they're also supposed to be motivating. If looking at your list is making you want to procrastinate, that's a sign your list needs some revision.

Instead of writing “work on my book,” for instance, break the task down like this:

Open my document

Spend five minutes orienting myself to where I am in the story

Spend five minutes listing bullet points for the direction of the next scene

Write for seven minutes

How is this more motivating? It gives you bite-sized tasks that you can quickly cross off your to-do list. If you have a particularly full day, you can knock things off the list at different points in your day while still making progress on your list.

Do you have a lot on your to-do list? How do you stay motivated when facing a big task?

A Tip for Making a List More Manageable:
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Published on April 30, 2023 21:02

April 29, 2023

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 65,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers. While you're there, check out the Writer's Digest award-winning Hiveword novel organizer.

Have you visited the WKB lately? Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox! Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

News

I'm a big fan of Angela Ackerman's and Becca Puglisi's series of thesauri for writers, delving into everything from writing emotions to conflict to positive and negative traits. Their collection of books has now sold over 1 million copies. To celebrate, they're hosting a special giveaway on their site for critiques, story audits, and more. Enter the giveaway, free, here.

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Published on April 29, 2023 21:01

April 23, 2023

Red Herrings Near the End of a Mystery

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Today I've got a quick tip for mystery writers to help keep readers questioning the killer's identity until the end of the book.

It's a pretty simple one, but something I frequently don't see used: throw in a well-developed red herring very close to the end of your mystery.

A red herring, or misdirection, is intended to send mystery readers and the sleuth off in another direction. These could be anything from an alibi that fell through to an overheard argument between the victim and one of the suspects. Red herrings can also be responsible for making the sleuth and reader believe that the motive for murder was greed when it was actually revenge, for instance.

In the case of the red herring near the end of the book, it needs to be something that looks like a pretty convincing lead. What I like to do is to have it be pointing at the best runner-up I have to the killer. Who was the suspect I considered having be the murderer before I chose the one I ultimately went with?

Then I have several last-minute signs pointing to that person. It's even better if the red herring is just a subtle slip of the tongue. That way, the reader can seize on it as a major clue . . . right before the real killer is unmasked.

One reason I enjoy reading mysteries is having the murderer's identity totally stump me. It's not too often that it happens (I tend to dissect the mysteries I read), but when it does, it makes my day!

If you're a mystery reader, what's your favorite aspect of the genre? If you're a mystery writer, what types of red herrings do you like to use?

Keeping Mystery Readers Guessing:
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Published on April 23, 2023 21:01

April 22, 2023

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on April 22, 2023 21:01

April 16, 2023

The Enduring Appeal of Cozies

by Kate Darroch, @BooksBonanza

For the first time in decades, BISAC has recently created a new Book Trade Category: Cozies.

It’s easy to see why that choice was made, and many would say that the classification is long overdue, because Cozies have been rapidly growing in popularity, year on year, for a long time.

What is the perennial appeal of the Cozy?

First and foremost, you know what you’re getting! Cozies rarely disappoint, because there’s tremendous consistency in the minds of readers and writers alike as to what a Cozy is.

The sleuth – with a few notable exceptions, such as Steve Higgs’ Patricia Fisher – rarely chooses to solve crimes.

She – it’s usually she, although there are male protagonists in Cozies – is quietly minding her own business and then life throws her a curve ball. As a result, she is forced into crime solving – usually because she has been accused, or a close friend, or family member, is in the hot seat.

We can all easily identify with that because who hasn’t been thrown a curve ball in life? Most recently, the pandemic and the current Russian war of aggression in the Ukraine have been a pretty fierce couple of curve balls for us all. And so we like to find out how the character copes.

WHY DO WE ENJOY THE CURVE BALL ASPECT OF COZIES?

The big thing about Cozies, as the name suggests, is that they are comforting, like being wrapped up in a lovely fleecy with a mug of hot chocolate nearby. So we can reach for the marshmallows, or chocolate (why not both?) and settle back to enjoy watching that curve ball get fielded.

Cozy Characteristics Appeal – the comfort of the familiar framework

This has great appeal for both readers and writers, because that particular aspect of the Cozy allows us to explore an infinite variety of murders from the safe ground of being surrounded by “nice” people who usually (again with notable exceptions) are trying to help one another.

Speaking as a writer, I enjoy the freedom to create characters who may have odd ideas about how to help, or about what’s important.The inadvertent-sleuth in my debut book, Death in Paris gets all embarrassed whenever she cries.But she’s the stoutest friend anyone could wish for.The inadvertent-sleuth in my new series, Huntingdon Hart Investigates is rather an odd duck.Cozy People Appeal – the comfort of knowing the cast of characters

It’s easy to get to know the characters, even the very minor characters; and they are always people whom we would expect to meet in those places.

Speaking as a writer, I enjoy the freedom of working with characters whom my readers know – it gives me the opportunity to create outré scenarios.

Cozy Discovery Appeal – the comfort of becoming immersed in new worlds.

The appeal of Angela K Ryan’s Sapphire Beach mysteries is very different from the appeal of Jana DeLeon’s Miss Fortune series. Yet most Cozy readers will enjoy both these worlds, because we enjoy exploring the new so long as we feel safe within a familiar framework.

Another part of Cozies Appeal – you can get more of the same, only different.

Cozy writers will write many, many, books about the same characters in the same places, doing much the same things, until whoa! there’s a twist, and we learn something new about our faves.

A big part of Cozies Appeal – low levels of violence and gore

Many of us just want a nice Clean read, and it’s a rare, rare, Cozy which doesn’t offer that.

Another big part of Cozies Appeal – friendship, community, and justice prevail over evil-doers.

When you’re reading a Cozy, you are not unexpectedly going to discover that the heroine’s low key romance is with a Bad Guy. Traditional values prevail. There’s a thread of optimism and hope running through Cozies.

Yet More Cozy Appeal – we get engaging characters, intricate puzzles, and charming settings

And so we writers have the pleasure of writing work which we know is eagerly awaited by our readers, where we can let our imagination soar, and write what pleases us, secure in the knowledge that our established characters and their communities will also please the reader.

Long Live The Cozy!

The Enduring Appeal of the Cozy Mystery by @BooksBonanza:
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Author: Kate Darroch lives in gorgeous coastal Devon, where she writes four Cozy series, each very different from the other three. The hero may be down to earth: Màiri Maguire Mysteries. Or a laidback rebel, as in: Quick Reads: Huntingdon Hart Investigates. Or living in a world of her own, like ditzy Erin in Found Money. Or classic Hero material, Major Peverel in They Call Him Gimlet.Most recent releases: The Case of the Manic Magpie: Huntingdon Hart Investigates and The Case of the Dazzling Duck.

Come talk books with Kate at: https://www.facebook.com/MairiMaguireCozies or https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22133773.Kate_Darroch

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Published on April 16, 2023 21:08

April 15, 2023

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on April 15, 2023 21:02

April 9, 2023

Better Sleep for Writers

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Getting a good night's sleep has always been something of a challenge for me, ever since I was a kid. Some of my earliest memories involve watching the hours creep by on a backlit analog clock. Insomnia as a child was just me being my high-energy self, I think. As an adult, it's meant more of a “busy brain” that hasn't had time to really process upcoming events and tasks during the daytime.

When I haven't gotten enough sleep, I function pretty well . . . for a while. But I think it takes a toll on my writing.

Although my sleep now is far from perfect (in fact, I'm writing this post after having gotten up for the day at 3:15 a.m.), there are a few ways I've tried to make sure I set the stage for a better night.

I check my calendar for the next day. Before I turn in, I make sure to check my planner (and my online calendar in case something there didn't make it onto my planner) to see what's up for the next day. There's nothing like not being prepared for an early appointment of some kind. Better to know the day before.

I do brain dumps. This is one of my favorite ways to keep from waking up at night. I make a list of all the different things I need to get done in all the different areas of my life. This could be everything from scheduling a vet visit, to planning for an upcoming family birthday, to getting in touch with my editor or audiobook narrator. Sometimes I'll arrange the lists by topic before coming up with everything I possibly can think of that might wake me up at night. But often, it's a true “dump.”

I schedule some of the brain dump items on calendars. After you've completed a massive list, how do you keep all the to-dos from keeping you up at night? For me, it means scattering them throughout my calendar. It means I have the beginnings of a plan for addressing them.

I reschedule tasks that didn't get completed to another day. This is important, I've learned. It's okay not to finish everything on my list for the day. But when don't finish a task, I need to reschedule it on my calendar. Otherwise, I'll be thinking about it in the middle of the night.

I read before bed. Not only is reading incredibly important for writers, it helps me to calm my brain down and transport me to another world.

Those are the things that are working best for me now. But I'm curious to hear what works for you. Do you have issues falling and staying asleep? What helps you out?

Better Sleep for Writers:
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Published on April 09, 2023 21:02

April 8, 2023

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Happy Easter to all who celebrate!

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Published on April 08, 2023 21:01

April 2, 2023

Writing Longhand

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

One thing that always gets me out of any writing-related issue is temporarily writing longhand. There's something about getting out a notebook and pen or pencil that helps me see my project in a totally different way. I especially like writing longhand when I'm at the start of a book or when I've hit any sort of snag along the way. Plus, it's handy to write on the go that way.

Here are a few areas where I might write longhand and how specifically it helps me out:

Brainstorming: For me, this is the area where longhand writing works best. Maybe it's seeing ideas scratched out and others written down in their place. Maybe it's as simple as the pen or pencil scratching across a piece of paper. Maybe it just harkens me back to the days of being a kid and coming up with stories. Regardless, I've found it's a really useful way to come up with story ideas and characters. I also think I sometimes approach elements of a story more thoughtfully when writing longhand because it's a slower process than typing.

Outlining: I use an outline template for my books, so maybe this works better for me than it might for others. Outlining is definitely not one of my favorite writing-related activities. When I feel like I'm hitting a wall, I print out the outline template and write in it longhand…almost like filling out the blanks. So, for instance, I fill out the victim, how he was murdered, when the body was found and who found it, a description of the victim, etc. It can make the task seem a lot less onerous.

Drafting a Manuscript: I'm not as fond of writing longhand when it comes to my manuscript. That's mostly because it takes me twice the time . . . half to write a scene and half to type it into the final document. If I do write longhand for the manuscript, I try not to get too far ahead that way without typing the longhand text into the document. I will say it can really help if I get stuck while writing. But making simple longhand lists of possible directions to take a scene or a character works just as well without making me feel as if I'm getting behind.

Do you ever write longhand? How does it help you out? What parts of the writing process do you use it for?

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Published on April 02, 2023 21:01