Riley Adams's Blog, page 99

Quick Writing Can Still Result in Quality Writing:

by Roland Yeomans, @rxena77

Isn’t Elizabeth brave and gracious to let me borrow her blog for the day?  Give her a hand by commenting at the end of this post, will you?

“I never travel without my diary.  One should always have something sensational to read in the train.” – Oscar Wilde

Let me tell you of some sensational reading that I am asking you NOT to read.  Yes, this is my first stop on my DON’T BUY MY BOOK Blog Tour!

I mean, if you buy it, you’ll just encourage me.

You know how many thousands of Indie Books are published EVERY month?

As Midnight, my kitten, says, “More than the grains of litter in my box, and most smell as bad, too!”

That is the fault of those writers who do not hold themselves to the fire of doing their best with every sentence.

We can write good novels faster than we think we can.  The past has shown it.

“If you’re going to doubt something, doubt your own limits.” -Don Ward

We can do more than we think we can.

James Horner was given TWO WEEKS to compose the soundtrack to ALIENS.

Two freaking weeks.  Yet, he wrote music that is so stirring that it is still used in movie trailers to this day.

Sam Watterson wrote and drew CALVIN & HOBBES daily for 10 years straight, setting the comic strip world on its ear with his originality.

Think of the creativity involved to craft a world that still holds our hearts and minds 21 years later.

In 1943, Steinbeck served as a World War II war correspondent for the New York Herald Tribune and worked with the Office of Strategic Services (predecessor of the CIA).

During the war, Steinbeck accompanied the commando raids of Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.’s Beach Jumpers program, which launched small-unit diversion operations against German-held islands in the Mediterranean – all the while writing daily dispatches.

At one point, he accompanied Fairbanks on an invasion of an island off the coast of Italy and helped capture Italian and German prisoners, using a Tommy Gun.

His daily dispatches are works of art.  Read ONCE THERE WAS A WAR and discover this for yourself.

THE GRAPES OF WRATH?  He wrote that in FIVE months shortly after the death of his brother-in-law,

and it was a time in his life when he was plagued by doubts about the prospect of war and worries over the sale of his house in California.

So I write two original books a year?  They both can still be quality.  And you can write multiple quality books a year, too.

My Quality Book for Year’s End is a mix of surprising true historical facts inter-mixed with Steampunk intrigue, betrayal, love, revenge, and death-traps straight out of GAMES OF THRONES.

Doubt me?  There is a chapter in it entitled, RED WEDDING, which occurs in the catacombs beneath the infamous Rouen Cathedral,

Involving Sidhe, the werewolves of France, and the deadly Worms of the Earth.

Oh, did I mention that there are dragons at the beginning and, of course, at the end in a dizzying, wild fight above the Eiffel Tower with the Sire of All Germanic Dragons and his coven.

And this is a story of a honeymoon!

But when the new husband is Samuel McCord, undead Texas Ranger, and his bride is the immortal alien Empress, Meilori Shinseen, what else can you expect?

Well, you can expect:

An insane Abraham Lincoln, 11 year old Nicola Tesla, Captain Nemo, Mark Twain at the start of his fabulous career, a vampire Benjamin Franklin, the mysterious Swan Maiden, the cursed Lucanus (the still alive St. Luke), the Sidhe High Queen, Oyggia …

Clashes of Vampire Kingdoms, intrigues of Louis Napoleon, deadly tours of the Louvre with its hidden chambers, and so much more.

What are you waiting for?  Buy my book!

Yes, I know the name to this blog tour is DON’T BUY MY BOOK.  Haven’t you heard of Reverse Psychology?

***

Roland Yeomans was born in Detroit, Michigan.  But his last memories of that city are hub-caps and kneecaps since, at the age of seven, he followed the free food when his parents moved to Lafayette, Louisiana.  The hitch-hiking after their speeding car from state to state was a real adventure.  Once in Louisiana, Roland learned strange new ways of pronouncing David and Richard when they were last names.  And it was not a pleasant sight when he pronounced Comeaux for the first time.

He has a Bachelor’s degree in English Education and a Master’s degree in Psychology.  He has been a teacher, counselor, book store owner, and even a pirate since he once worked at a tax preparation firm.

So far he has written thirty-four books.  You can find Roland at his web page: www.rolandyeomans.blogspot.com  or at his private table in Meilori’s.  The web page is safer to visit.  But if you insist on visiting Meilori’s, bring a friend who runs slower than you.

Quick writing can still result in quality writing (by @rxena77 ):
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The post Quick Writing Can Still Result in Quality Writing: appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

One question to make your novel sell: does it turn? http://ow.ly/VpPE304kVwd @kseniaanske

Your Online Writing Portfolio: Must-Haves and More:  http://ow.ly/DeYV304kRvj @MerylWilliams

47 Tips Writers Need When Their Creativity Goes AWOL:  http://ow.ly/VyTb304kUN5 @LauraJTong

5 Questions to Test Your Story Concept:  http://ow.ly/DPEl304kVsH @GoIntoTheStory

In Praise of the Micro Landscape:  http://ow.ly/MBOa304kR1B @angpalm  @lithub 

The Most Neglected Resource for Reviews: YouTube:  http://ow.ly/78AA304kR8P @AndyPeloquin

How to Get the Most Out of Your Sequel Scenes:  http://ow.ly/RUt9304kR6h @KMWeiland

Braiding Your Book:  http://ow.ly/ygJS304kUz0 by Laurie Schnebly Campbell

Craft Your First Story With This Creative Writing Reference Chart:  http://ow.ly/CaAT304kVkv @LordRavenscraft

Why the doppelgänger motif is so popular:  http://ow.ly/SMSX304lTJm @alanglynnbooks @lithub

What Do We Mean When We Say Women’s Fiction?  http://ow.ly/tjRy304lTXM  @lithub @lizkay09

The Novelist ( @rabihalameddine   ) Whose Twitter Feed Is a Work of Art:  http://ow.ly/xHfr304JxOB  @JonathanBlitzer  @NewYorker

 

13 Things Learned From Completing Draft Two of a Novel:  http://ow.ly/x7yV304nE7f @sacha_black

Does This Third-Person POV Suspense Opening Work? http://ow.ly/FS1V304nDf7 @Janice_Hardy

3 Problems with Parenthesis:  http://ow.ly/kwfp304nEgq @writing_tips

4 E’s of an Effective Critique Group:  http://ow.ly/4ZIJ304nEcm @lisajlickel

5 Blog Post Mistakes:  http://ow.ly/kknR304nDn1 @allisonmaruska

The Ultimate Blogging Checklist:  http://ow.ly/5XEf304nE3A @Writers_Write

On the Irresistible Pull of Tidal Metaphors:  http://ow.ly/bNbz304nCZ3 by Hugh Aldersey-Williams @lithub

Is “Show Don’t Tell” a Universal Truth or Colonial Relic?  http://ow.ly/AM0j304nCGK @poddar_namrata  @lithub

7 Key Elements To Include In Your First Chapter: http://ow.ly/7fO9304nDSm @ClaireABradshaw  @WritersEdit

Ratchet Up Your Novel’s Tension: http://ow.ly/Bn57304nDIy @KelsieEngen

Perfecting First Person POV:  http://ow.ly/VMlv304nDDe @AJHumpage

Writing Scenes for Your Story’s Goals:  http://ow.ly/YRpv304nD6s @Lindasclare

A Writer Looks Back at His First Novel:  http://ow.ly/N3cD304nJPN @leverus @lithub

Creating Mood In A Scene Using Light and Shadow:  http://ow.ly/GmMT304oTse @angelaackerman

Is too much pre-writing immobilizing you?  http://ow.ly/oa9i304Jh8G

How to Guest Blog Successfully: An Interview with Sara Pence:  http://ow.ly/UBtA304jHoF @LisaTener

Should a writer have children?  http://ow.ly/wpt6304kV4L  @nevalalee

Working With Cover and Interior Designers:  http://ow.ly/qgZp304kRjJ @JFbookman

New Amazon Guidelines Work to Curb Review Fraud:  http://ow.ly/6txa304Ghco @LorcaDamon @Goodereader

12 Book Marketing Tactics:  http://ow.ly/MgX1304jGVn @Rachel_Aaron

Covers Can Make or Break a Book:  http://ow.ly/OKRh304jGOW @DarrenDBeyer

The Only 5 Ingredients You Need for Story Subtext:  http://ow.ly/I5z1304jGtY @KMWeiland

Using Dialogue to Build Conflict:  http://ow.ly/Zvcw304jGr9 @Eileenwriter  @WomenWriters

Query Letters: The Extras:  http://ow.ly/uJGH304jGvU @AnnieNeugebauer  @WriterUnboxed

5 Rules For Success At Crowd Funding:  http://ow.ly/uubk304jGFV  @111publishing

The Power of Pods: Ask Your Friends to Lead a Mini-Brigade on Your Behalf: http://ow.ly/lDSD304jGSt @RobertTWilder

How to Avoid Book Publishing Blunders:  http://ow.ly/DFYA304jGAU @mybookshepherd

Goodreads for Authors:  http://ow.ly/e9zQ304jGNA @CaballoFrances

A Key to Using Twitter That Most Authors Overlook:  http://ow.ly/qONl304jGI2 @losapala

Pitch Your Novel Perfectly: 6 Tips:  http://ow.ly/ldc2304jGxF @SusanSpann

Hunting Down Story Holes Using a Novel Journal: http://ow.ly/GwGi304jGvi @AngelaAckerman

The Lost Art of Custom-Illustrating Your Favorite Books:  http://ow.ly/SxWL304iKL1 @lithub  @Amy_Stewart

Agatha Christie on how her lack of education and boredom led her to write: http://ow.ly/qzZ8304iKJQ @austinkleon

Why Is the Basic Marble Notebook Still So Popular?  http://ow.ly/Jnsy304iKI9 @UpperEastRob

The 3 Biggest Obstacles for INFP Writers:  http://ow.ly/FoO4304jHje @losapala

Does ‘The Bestseller Code’ Divulge its Secrets? http://ow.ly/zDnn304EIT4 @ThadMcIlroy

A Leader in Canadian Writing Takes Stock of Self-Pub:  http://ow.ly/RR04304EJ9l @CarlaJDouglas @pubperspectives @MerilynSimonds

Writing Authentic Settings And Keeping A Series Fresh:  http://ow.ly/1Phq304EIAb @tobywneal  @thecreativepenn

14 Quotes From Censored Authors:  http://ow.ly/20AC304DKj8 @SignatureReads @TomBlunt

Writing Groups 101:  http://ow.ly/KLKc304iL83 by A. Howitt @mythicscribes

3 UK Book Market Challenges (Including: ‘Too Many Titles in a Small Space’):  http://ow.ly/tW82304z3Ua @Porter_Anderson @JasonCoopr

What Is Lost in a Nation That’s Reading Less Literature? http://ow.ly/QBUY304iKVo @derekberes

Writers: Listen To Miss Frizzle:  http://ow.ly/M08c304iL3F @mikemartinez72

The Importance of Storytelling in Turbulent Times:  http://ow.ly/aoNQ304iKTK  @VaughnRoycroft

Ursula K. Le Guin: How I Started Writing:  http://ow.ly/t1So304iKOH @ursulaleguin  @parisreview

How to Chose Your Next Read When You’re Sick:  http://ow.ly/dmRz304iLgU @wutheringreads  @BookRiot

Write What Your Family Knows:  http://ow.ly/vj7y304iL9F @AuthorJuliaDay

This is How Literary Fiction Teaches Us to Be Human http://ow.ly/vzM5304iKQp   @SignatureReads @TomBlunt

Beware of attention residue when you’re writing:  http://ow.ly/7OW9304iL6N @pubcoach

7 Variations on the Epistolary Novel:  http://ow.ly/1ei8304BYTk @jrc2666

From Passive Voice To Active Voice: How To Spot It and How To Change It:  http://ow.ly/qu21304i5jd @MiaJouBotha

Change as an element in crime fiction:  http://ow.ly/hlZ5304z2B8 @mkinberg

Margins Be Damned: 4 Books with Inventive Formats:  http://ow.ly/u8wD304i54v by Molly Livingston @SignatureReads

Making a Series Bible Using Excel: http://ow.ly/u6BM304z1YP @HeidiHormel @TheIWSG

How to Start a Blog in 2016: http://ow.ly/7Qhh304BByG @BlastYourBlog

A Quick Tip for Finding Repeated (and Weak) Words:  http://ow.ly/7XhB304i5c9 @Janice_Hardy

Authors: Here’s All You Need to Grow Your Email List:  http://ow.ly/Pow3304i5ao @EmilyWenstrom

Writing the Crime Scene: Dead Bodies:  http://ow.ly/Dmry304fp0E @repokempt

Latest Ukrainian Ban of Russian Book Imports Under Consideration:  http://ow.ly/hvIF304z3nq by Eugene Gerden @pubperspectives

3 Ways Essential Oils Make It Easier To Be Creative: http://ow.ly/28t1304i5mu @colleen_m_story

Becoming a Writer in Your 40s, 50s, and Beyond: http://ow.ly/IJBF304jHha @losapala

10 suggestions to overcoming writing obstacles:  http://ow.ly/OfWw304i5Ia by Jill Roman Lord

A Pop-Up Strategy: The Autoresponder Series:  http://ow.ly/6BnC304i5E5 @JaneFriedman

The 5 Most Common Mistakes Writers Make When Seeking Book Reviews:  http://ow.ly/KDWu304i5pt @CSLakin

The Balance Between Hooking Readers and Setting up the Story: http://ow.ly/VRXI304i5eM @Janice_Hardy

5 Fictional Vegetarians Who Defy Stereotypes:  http://ow.ly/351s304i5wG @kwistent  @lithub

The Great Gatsby as a Crime Novel: http://ow.ly/57lj304z2ua @mkinberg

20 Book-Title Hacks for Any Genre:  http://ow.ly/VN3g304AMeX @DavidHSafford

5 things 1 writer didn’t expect when she released her first novel:  http://ow.ly/YXhz304ALJw @Roz_Morris

Balancing the main story and character subplots:  http://ow.ly/Vwu2304z39w @mike54martin

5 Ways to Have an Awful Book Cover:  http://ow.ly/jdSQ304cv8J @AuthorKSBrooks

A 6-Step Guide to Creating a Book Fair:  http://ow.ly/STMX304z1JN @DemiStevens19 @TheIWSG

Want to Sell More Books? Give Consumers What They Want: http://ow.ly/jLmw304cu5N @KristenLambTX

A new species of poetry: The making of Lyrical Ballads:  http://ow.ly/25c2304fowJ by Jonathan Kerr @WordsworthTrust

5 Ways to Be a More Mindful Writer:  http://ow.ly/wXB9304foh2 @deborahsosin

How to Write a First Draft:  http://ow.ly/hThX304fp6L @hodgeswriter

The Secret To Overcoming Perfectionism In Your Writing:  http://ow.ly/dWul304fopn @patverducci

What Does Silence Mean in the Age of Digital Noise?  http://ow.ly/xw1g304fo72 by Laurence Scott @lithub

A Quick Lesson in the Writing Process:  http://ow.ly/lBNk304fpd5 @JerryBJenkins

A Writer’s Guide to Hacking the Reader’s Brain (in 5 Steps):  http://ow.ly/viob304fnJO @LisaCron  @SignatureReads

Why Do Creative People Burn Out?  http://ow.ly/idK7304fnXA @MegDowell

Athens Named World Book Capital as 118-Year-Old Bookstore Closes:  http://ow.ly/4OUU304z3vz @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Thoughts on trigger warnings:  http://ow.ly/yigd304fosy by Colleen Hoover @PassiveVoiceBlg

10 Books Featuring Subversive Women:  http://ow.ly/FG6T304fpiM @Ginsburgmelissa

7 Lies We Tell Ourselves About Finding Time To Write:  http://ow.ly/Dw0V3049YYW @colleen_m_story

Boost Book Marketing with These 5 Apps: http://ow.ly/PA2L304cu34 @CaballoFrances

4 Ways to Use Video to Promote Your Blog Posts: http://ow.ly/Sd5M304cuwT  @Soffi_Propp  @SMExaminer

How Secretive Are You About Your Writing Projects? http://ow.ly/3NHV304cuKd @annkroeker

How to Be a Writer: 10 Tips: http://ow.ly/rOZF304cuNL by Rebecca Solnit @lithub

What If You Couldn’t Write? http://ow.ly/dAST304cuiT @KBullockAuthor

7 Different Ways Fantasy Has Used Language as Magic:  http://ow.ly/qsi7304cuU9 by Bailey Miller @tordotcom

Why book covers should reflect our author brand:  http://ow.ly/PVD5304cu8y @authordesigner  @IndieAuthorALLI

The top writing links from last week are on Twitterific:
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Pre-Writing

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

In the past month, I’ve had three writers reach out to me.  They were all writing mysteries for the first time.

They asked me about outlining with arcs and three-act sequences and character development sheets.  Two writers reported feeling extremely overwhelmed and frustrated to the point of being immobilized.

I suggested that they might be overthinking it, at least when writing traditional mysteries. That’s because mysteries provide their own structure–a very familiar structure that avid mystery readers both know by heart and expect to encounter.

In fact, when we deviate from this structure or pattern, readers usually let us know about it.

I explained my own, very simple process:

I start out by writing the back cover copy. There are a couple of reasons for this. One, it gives me a global view of my story and its set-up. For another…I already have a cover for the book a year before I write it (I like working ahead with my cover designer). So there’s a print cover with copy all ready to go.

Then there’s a simple outline.  Nothing fancy.

Here’s the structure for a cozy mystery (if you fill in the blanks with your own characters, victims, suspects, it becomes a very basic outline): 

Introduction of all characters–best to start out with sleuth so that reader knows who to identify with right away.

Either a scene showing interaction of future victim and future suspects or introduction of a body.

Set up for sleuth’s involvement (if an amateur) and then interviewing of suspects. Suspects provide alibis, red herrings, lies, and truths.

Another body at the book’s halfway mark (most of the time).

More interviews to follow up on alibis, clues, and to gather information following any second murder. Give suspects opportunity to refute evidence pointing to them from the previous murder.

Moment of danger for sleuth or moment of increased tension if dealing (hostage situation, etc.) indicating story climax.

Sleuth discusses case and clues that helped him/her solve the mystery.

Are there other components in the story?  Of course.  But this is the basic structure of a mystery, just as other genres have their own skeletons.

Other things I like to know before starting my mystery:

Potential motives, first and second murder weapon, possible subplots (just brainstorming…nothing finite).

The killer’s identity? Not really.  I have an idea who I think may be a good killer, but I frequently change my mind 3/4 of the way through the first draft.  It’s always good to be flexible.

Going back to character sheet question.  A writer asked me how much pre-writing I did with my characters before jumping in.  My answer is…except for the sleuth and sidekick?  Very little.   Here is a copy-paste excerpt from a pre-writing doc for one of my mysteries:

Victim: Celeste: A sickly older woman: sickly of mind and spirit and body. She loves to manipulate people and her favorite people to manipulate are

Her niece: Eugenia She was from a poor family who farmed her out to victim. She is subservient and at victim’s beck and call.  She keeps her tied to her with financial incentives, but she is very pushy and overwhelms his life so that there is no time for anything else (a real life).  A thin, mousy-looking woman of around thirty wearing glasses too large for her face

Her daughter:  Maisy. Same as above. Perhaps she has a shipboard romance that actually seems to be blossoming into something else and the romantic interest lives very close to her. The mother is determined to end it as she likes to stomp out all attempts at happiness.  Plump. Very blonde hair and rather too much makeup.  Eyes are hard.  Enjoys flirting with Guy.

Her son: Terrell Same idea. She forced him into a career that he hated (financed his medical school) because she liked the prestige of it all.

Ghost of a husband?  Randolph. Some kind of male companion? But he thinks he’s going to benefit from her death and he’s wrong.  Miles’s age. Gambles. Drinks too much. Dignified air clashes with his drunkenness. Well-dressed. Hair too long for his age.

Bettina A friend of the victim? But some friend! Perhaps the friend found out that victim Celeste had been the cause of her breakup, or financial issues, or losing her job, etc. Celeste just likes control over all kinds of situations and people and enjoys wielding power.  An attractive old woman who wore a lot of gold jewelry and bright clothing and a lot of mascara.

This is what I work with when I’m starting out.  It’s thin, isn’t it?  Really just a cast of characters.  But it’s all I need to get started. The characters develop a bit as I write (their character tends to come out in their dialogue) and then I layer in more development after the first draft is finished.

Here’s the question.  Is your pre-writing helping you write your story? Or is it overwhelming you and causing you to freeze up and avoid your story?  Some writers absolutely rely on pre-writing to tell their story. It can shorten the amount of time they spend on their manuscript.  If you’re not one of those writers, don’t feel as if you’re doing it all wrong to start your story with a minimum of information. I write all my books that way.

How much pre-writing do you do?

Are you immobilized by too much pre-writing?
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Photo credit: Mark van Laere via VisualHunt.com / CC BY-NC-ND

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The Story Always Comes First

by Mike Martin, @mike54martin 

In some ways it’s easy to write a series. You already have a frame in which to sketch your story. Usually, that means you have a general location or part of the country and you have a cadre of characters that accompany the main character on his or her journey. There’s a familiarity, a comfort in that. It makes both the writer, and hopefully the readers, want to come right in, sit in that nice, comfy chair and slide into the story.

I always have that feeling when I start a new Sgt. Windflower Mystery. Like I’m home. Then I start writing and all the characters come streaming into my head at once. It’s exhilarating and frightening at the same time as my brain tries to process both the story that is starting to unfold, and all of the voices of the characters who are asking for my attention. Sometimes it feels like the old woman in the shoe. So many characters, I really don’t know what to do. And mostly I just feel stressed and crazy.

That’s when I usually go for a walk. I need the exercise, but more importantly it clears my head so that I can see where all the pieces, and not just the dead bodies fit. The most important thing about a mystery, or any fiction writing, is the story, the plot. The walk helps quiet down the chorus in my head so I can at least keep the story straight. Once that is clear, at least to me, I can allow the character development to continue. But I’m still not running the show. The characters ‘speak’ to me and I try and fit them into the story at the appropriate time and place. It doesn’t always work, but that’s rule number one. The story comes first and the characters have to shut up long enough so that I can set the scene for them to work their magic.

The second rule I have set for myself when writing this series is to take notes about the characters and what roles they may have played in previous parts of the series. As someone who runs and writes from the seat of my pants when it comes to putting the story together, there is no way that I can remember who did what to whom without a cheat sheet. If I don’t, and I have to admit that it has happened, and more than once, some friendly, but firm reader will point out that inconsistency. Luckily for me, I have great beta readers who gladly point out my mistakes, almost always, before they get to print.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the characters in the Sgt. Windflower Mystery series. They allow me to not just write a crime solving mystery story, but to have depth of emotion and feeling that makes it human, and I hope more interesting. I know that my readers feel the same way because they tell me that they get worried about Shelia and Windflower when I let him stray too far from his kind and open heart. Just to be clear again, I don’t steer Windflower, I just help point him in the right direction. More than a few of them have also threatened me with much verbal abuse if I ever decided to kill any of the main characters off.

I tell them it’s a murder mystery and someone has to die. They just shrug and tell me to find someone else to murder. That’s the final rule when it comes to characters versus plot. Your characters can stumble, fall, make mistakes, fall in and out of love, but they can never die. Or else one of your readers will decide to write a book with you as their first victim.

***

Mike Martin is the author of the Sgt. Windflower Mystery Series which is set in small communities in Newfoundland on the eastern tip of Canada. The latest book is A Long Ways from Home. It is available now from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iTunes . Find him on Facebook.

Balancing the main story and character subplots from @mike54martin :
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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

10 Incorrect Assumptions About Writers:  http://ow.ly/HOuA30467eP ‎@NatePhilbrick

Writing across cultural boundaries in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/ifeH304jG1W @mkinberg

5 Tips to Maximize Your Facebook Posts: http://ow.ly/oN6H304679W @Bookgal

One Fantasy Writer’s Secret Weapon: Archery Lessons:  http://ow.ly/LKb730467h4 @SaraL_Writer  @benjaminsobieck               

How Charles Dickens Influenced Modern Self-Publishing:  http://ow.ly/Y3cE30467mE @KelsieEngen

Writing Compelling Chapter Endings:  http://ow.ly/5Dbc304679u @ceciliaedits

The Business of Screenwriting: studio execs don’t think like you: http://ow.ly/3uOk3046746 @GoIntoTheStory

Crime Writers: The Advantages of Compact Handguns Versus Full-Sized Models:  http://ow.ly/iNCq30467kA @benjaminsobieck

What is Hybrid Publishing? 4 Things Writers Should Know:  http://ow.ly/Jb91304679U @brooke_warner

Daniel Fernandez: Protecting the Essence of Publishing:  http://ow.ly/yJKc304sNDy @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Instagram Stories:Engage With Readers:  http://ow.ly/qzjS3047ozP @MartineEllis

8 Characteristics of Successful Social Media:  http://ow.ly/sY493047nPy @cksyme

Messy brain? 7 ways to tidy up your thinking:  http://ow.ly/Qc893047owP @jccabel

Writing Romance: Why Perfect Men Make Boring Heroes:  http://ow.ly/AhZ03047o7R  @katiemccoach

25 Simple Ways To Recycle Your Blog Posts:  http://ow.ly/AIKv3047paL @Writers_Write

The Inciting Incident and “the Call”:  http://ow.ly/QYMH3047p26 @SPressfield”

10 Giant Translated Novels: ‘a workout for your biceps and your mind’: http://ow.ly/ZOm3304lVes @ScottEsposito @lithub

How to Take Charge of Your Novel’s Symbolism:  http://ow.ly/S4wj3047nKR @BetterNovelProj

Write a Fight Scene: Hero Fends Off an Attack to Protect Friend: http://ow.ly/Xzy33047nFi @BetterNovelProj

Understanding Ebook Rights:  http://ow.ly/SDlt3047nAm @SusanSpann

How to Prep for a Writer’s Conference: http://ow.ly/Pd0o3047ohw @katiemccoach

6 Ways to Say Yes to Your Writing Career:  http://ow.ly/aDVG3047oU0 @jesslaw

How to Layer Scenes in a Romance Novel: http://ow.ly/rYKE3047qsK @CSLakin

How Do We Fix the MFA?  http://ow.ly/bmzb3047IXZ @kctrommer @lithub

How To Write An Amazing Synopsis:  http://ow.ly/2a3S3049VfO @standoutbooks

5 Steps to Write Characters that Change:  http://ow.ly/yUkl3049W5k @jeffelk

How to Write From the Opposite Gender’s Point Of View:  http://ow.ly/JA6F3049VIx @ALeeMartinez

Writers: Why You Need to Get Out into the World:  http://ow.ly/7MLD3049WcP  @emily_tjaden

What Makes Your Protagonist Heroic? http://ow.ly/nWx63049Vjq @Janice_Hardy

17 Films You Didn’t Know Were Adapted From Books:  http://ow.ly/peAF3049Z8h by Nicholas Politan @ElectricLit

How to Catch Typos in Your Own Work: http://ow.ly/aJ0Z3049Vx3 @RMNSediting

10 Tips For Writing Well:  http://ow.ly/4T1I3049Z3d @MargotStarbuck

5 Story Opening Clichés That Need to Die:  http://ow.ly/PJyJ3049YU0 @GiveMeYourTeeth

Editing Novel Drafts like a Pro: 8 Tips:  http://ow.ly/RBSK3049W8M @nownovel

Planning Your Novel: Ideas and Structure:  http://ow.ly/Yy9V3049VnO @Janice_Hardy

7 Lies We Tell Ourselves About Finding Time To Write:  http://ow.ly/Dw0V3049YYW @colleen_m_story

Twitter Chats for Writers: How to Get Started by @MelissaFlicks:  http://ow.ly/gr5v304cueq @BadRedheadMedia

6 Tips to Grow Your Readership and Manage Your Content:  http://ow.ly/JEM6304cun5 by Deborah Lyn Stanley

One Writer Worries He Might Be a Fraud:  http://ow.ly/hCXP304cvFn @TeddyWayne1999  @lithub

Authors offer their top writing tips:  http://ow.ly/a2ax304cvmp @Wintersonworld  @PhilipHensher  @AmitChaudhuri

Elements in successful horror stories:  http://ow.ly/zvgg304s5Sh @parttimescribe

Is your writing a hobby, an art, a business, a vocation, a profession?  http://ow.ly/Met2304sgyd @Roz_Morris

Author Newsletter Tips:  http://ow.ly/VLcQ30467pv @RMFWriters  by Stephanie Connolly-Reisner

What to Put Into Your Story So a Great Pitch Comes Out:  http://ow.ly/A8uZ304676j @ZoeMMcCarthy

8 Story Pitch Pet Peeves:  http://ow.ly/hKGw304676x @TJMoss11  @WritersDigest

Present tense, future perfect in SF: http://ow.ly/B8Yo30467lt  @nevalalee

How to Legally Use Quotations in Your Book:  http://ow.ly/6lBk3043Ng9 @HelenSedwick

8 Tips to Combine Research and Family for a Great Working Vacation: http://ow.ly/pmd03043NOS @ErikaElyLewis

Cramming in Characters: Overloads & Overwhelms Readers:  http://ow.ly/9QNM3043MyR @ZoeMMcCarthy

In Praise of Slow Writing:  http://ow.ly/cqKe3043O68 @stevelaubeagent

The Hot Sheet: industry newsletter for authors (30 day free trial) from @Porter_Anderson & @JaneFriedman: http://ow.ly/HiMN304qJBi

Pros & Cons: Referencing the Real World in Our Story:  http://ow.ly/VbhM3043MpP @JamiGold

On the Ethics of Writing About Your Children:  http://ow.ly/XuDS3043LXG @HitlessWonder   @heatherklanier  @AmyMonticello  @lithub

Download: Publishing Perspectives’ Free Fall 2016 Magazine for news and market snapshots:  http://ow.ly/p7PJ304jG5N @pubperspectives

Using Twitter to Make Powerful Connections:  http://ow.ly/ybgY3043Ona @dkparsonswriter

4 Ways to Add Depth to Our Stories:  http://ow.ly/g4p43043NZf @KassandraLamb

Why Discoverability Should Be Publishers’ Biggest Priority:  http://ow.ly/GYrL3043MQq @ABreinholst

Resources for Finding Critique Partners:  http://ow.ly/xPj83043Nxj  @MartinaABoone

What X-Men Can Teach About Storytelling:  http://ow.ly/e7Ul3043Np8 @willvanstonejr

How Well Are Publishers Connect with Their Readers? http://ow.ly/HV6d3043MUd @jwikert

Why You Can’t Ignore Pinterest:  http://ow.ly/BMyi3040MTu @MandyCorine

St. Martin’s Offering a Chance for 1 Writer to Receive a Detailed Manuscript Analysis (Sweepstake): http://ow.ly/MTq0304otyF @StMartinsPress

Critique groups: 6 ways they can hurt your writing:  http://ow.ly/W128304jFB4 @annerallen

No Agreement Yet: Germany’s Publishing Copyright Controversy:  http://ow.ly/BTbf304jFLR @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Context and story structure:  http://ow.ly/WWVj3040Nbc @storyfix

Plotting Film Noir:  http://ow.ly/nRFM3040N0g @KieronMoore

Cultivating True Fans Through Patreon:  http://ow.ly/2nEx3040MWy @johnhartness

The Power of Instagram: Marketing Tips for Indie Authors:  http://ow.ly/Z3ps3040MhN @Bookgal

3 Simple Steps Toward a More Sustainable Writing Life: http://ow.ly/iknp3040Lah @reallucyflint

When Your Book Doesn’t Sell:  http://ow.ly/xHXm3040NdO @LovettRomance  @DIYMFA

3 Bookish Solutions to Everyday Problems:  http://ow.ly/BHfh3040NiC @zoeidadickinson  @BookRiot

Traditional Publishing: Short Stories and Poetry:  http://ow.ly/h35g3040Mma @SeptCFawkes

5 Ways to Spark Energy and Excitement for Your WiP: http://ow.ly/sUg03040LfW @reallucyflint

Query Agents For 6 + Months Before Promoting Your Self-Pub Book:  http://ow.ly/w9qA3040LtX @sharonbially

Publishing contracts: the Force Majeure clause: http://ow.ly/lP7C3040LqI @bookishchick

8 Experiments in Motivation:  http://ow.ly/p6BF303Ys7x @zen_habits

Tips From A Brit For Fictional British Characters:  http://ow.ly/Slvr303YsFO @selfpubreview

Publisher Releases a Backlist book on Wattpad to Find a New Audience:  http://ow.ly/4M8h304l7hr @CarlaJDouglas  @pubperspectives

Writing Tips: Carry a Notebook:  http://ow.ly/25jS303Yscc @WritingForward

How to Automate Writing and Editing Tasks: http://ow.ly/q28x303Ysrj @CKmacleodwriter

Groupthink as an element in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/wM5V304jFSZ @mkinberg

After publishing an acclaimed novel, writer ‘promptly went broke’:  http://ow.ly/Bo7V304lOpX @merritttierce @marieclaire

Using foreshadowing: 3 things to consider:  http://ow.ly/5uRo304l6H0 @Janice_Hardy

Blogging Etiquette:  http://ow.ly/GUor304l6rb @SpunkOnAStick @DancingLemurPre

Senior Editor Recommends: ‘Make Diversity a Priority’:  http://ow.ly/Cx0z304jFF0 @Porter_Anderson @andrewasalways

Paths to publishing for Christian fiction writers:  http://ow.ly/jQTC303YsVj @IolaGoulton

Book pricing: the value of our time vs. realities of the book market: http://ow.ly/4pOS304lb9I @BE_Sanderson

Finishing That Endless Manuscript:  http://ow.ly/2JM4303VO9T @Philip_Overby

4 Tips and 4 Tools for Tightening Your Prose:  http://ow.ly/YEHy303YsBi @CKmacleodwriter

Adapt to Change and Become More Productive:  http://ow.ly/1dDM303Ys9f @jmunroemartin

Most Common Writing Mistakes: No Contractions in Dialogue:  http://ow.ly/9pRC303Yt4T @KMWeiland

What do I send to my email list?  http://ow.ly/RJbE303Yth0 @timgrahl

Avoid This Story Structure mistake:  http://ow.ly/r1uc303YsYX @KMWeiland

How to Write a Story Without an Outline:  http://ow.ly/8ZNv303Ysfq @vrcraftauthor

How the Cover of Your Self-published Book Influences Your Brand: http://ow.ly/1bva303VNlp @IndieAuthorALLI  @authordesigner

Selling Books on Social Media: 4 Steps to Less Wasted Time:  http://ow.ly/dqyD304jFzy @cksyme for @annerallen

Agatha Christie as a crime fiction innovator: http://ow.ly/oYKt304jFWV @mkinberg

Is the tone of your prose in tune with your novel? A simple exercise:  http://ow.ly/Gh4Q304jFxZ @Roz_Morris

How To Write An E-Book And Publish It On Amazon KDP:  http://ow.ly/Gwwy303VMWY @DevinSchedule

Develop the Story Idea for your Novel:  http://ow.ly/YHoC304ig1L @lornafaith

The links I shared last week: http://ow.ly/om0G304jE1H . All the links (30K+, free and searchable) I’ve ever shared: writerskb.com

Crime writers: getting away with murder:  http://ow.ly/FVU8303VMHx @GarryRodgers1

Not Sure of the Lingo? 57 Social Media Words to Learn:  http://ow.ly/cdKV303VN7x @CaballoFrances

5 tips to overcome self-doubt:  http://ow.ly/hgrK303VNHD @AGYoung_author

A motto to stay focused on writing: http://ow.ly/oYRE303VMnB @JoEberhardt

4 things learned by being a pantster:  http://ow.ly/REA9303VMw8 @lauralzimm

A Self Publishing Timeline for the Holidays:  http://ow.ly/nXCH303VN0Z @SpatzSteven  @BookBaby

The top writing links of the week are on Twitterific:
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Preparing for a Cover Design Meeting

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

There’s a lot to think about and remember for so many different aspects of book production and book release. I recently shared my checklist for releasing a book. Today I thought I’d list the different elements I pull together before meeting with my book designer.

The brainstorming portion: 

For a first book in a series or the first time working with a designer, it’s helpful to reference/link to covers that appeal to you or that you feel represent your genre well.

I  like to provide general element ideas  to help the designer get started.  For instance, where is the cover set?  Are there any people or animals on the cover? What mood are you trying to set?

Printed books: 

Designers will need to know your page dimensions.

If the book isn’t done yet (mine are usually not even started when I get the covers done), make sure to tell your designer you’ll need to check back in with the final page count (including all front matter and back matter) to ensure that the spine is the correct width.

You’ll want your bio and author photo for the back of the printed cover.

What’s your book’s price?

Be prepared with your back cover copy.

Other considerations: 

Do you need an audiobook cover?

Do you need promotional extras like Facebook and Twitter cover images or bookmarks?

Payment: 

I almost always pay for all book production services through PayPal after the cover is complete. It makes tax preparation easy to go through my PayPal statements at the end of each year.

Finally:

Because good designers book up quickly, I always go ahead set the next appointment with my designer, Karri Klawiter.  Having a date on the calendar helps me to come up with a concrete concept for another project before our meeting.

Any other tips for keeping organized before a cover design meeting?

Preparing for a Cover Design Meeting:
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The post Preparing for a Cover Design Meeting appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.

Keep Your Readers Hooked by Dropping the Right Clues

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Foreshadowing might seem like a technique that applies mostly to mystery writers, but all stories rely on the classic “what might happen next?” question. Even in a romance, there are secrets to be revealed and histories to uncover, and where that information is learned affects a novel’s pacing. It’s the need to know that draws readers in and keeps them reading. Drop the right clues at the right time and readers will be glued to the pages.

Well-crafted foreshadowing puts those readers in the right mindset long before they reach a scene, and makes them anticipate that scene. Secrets unfold in surprising, yet inevitable ways, and readers feel as though the clues were there all along if only they’d seen them—because they were.

Too much too soon and there’s nothing left to learn (and no reason to read). Too little for too long risks frustrating readers, because they never learn anything new.

No matter what type of mystery your novel uses, look at where your clues and foreshadows appear. If you’re unsure how these elements should unfold, consider:



When and where you want readers to start suspecting the truth: Establishing patterns is a useful foreshadowing technique. Tension builds when readers are expecting something and waiting eagerly for it to happen.

Don’t forget the value of the Rule of Three here:

The first time someone sees something, they merely see it.
The second time, they notice it, because it stands out now.
The third time, they’re looking for it because you’ve established a pattern to anticipate.

For example, if you want to foreshadow a misunderstanding that has dire consequences, you might have the protagonist misunderstand something minor in the first few chapters. Later on, she might get something else wrong due to distraction. Now you’ve established a pattern that the protagonist doesn’t always listen and misunderstands what she hears. Readers will be looking closely at all her assumptions from then on to see if she’s missing something important. When the big moment occurs, tensions will be higher because readers won’t know if she’s right this time, or if she’s missed something yet again.

Or you might drop hints about an item to be used later. When the protagonist arrives at a quaint bed and breakfast for a yoga retreat, she is surprised to see a shotgun hanging above the fireplace and makes a comment. The next guest to arrive notices the gun and makes a joke about it. When the third guest arrives, readers expect the gun will come up again. And that will make them wonder when, where, and how that gun will be used in the story.

Or, you can be more subtle about it and tap into a reader’s subconscious. Say you want to foreshadow that blue means bad. You might have the protagonist get into an accident with a blue car early on. Then she has a run in with an office rival who knocks blue ink all over her. You might toss in her snagging her new blue skirt and tearing it right before she goes into an important meeting. After that three-step setup, readers will be looking for blue things and anticipating the problems they might cause.

These types of hints can happen over the course of one scene or the whole novel. It’s the creak in the night, followed by the thump, followed by the guy in the ski mask jumping out at you.

When and where you want the protagonist to start figuring it out: Readers often spot details long before characters do, but if the clues are too obvious, then the characters look dumb if they haven’t figured them out as well. Check to make sure you have a good balance between reader hints and character hints. If your protagonist needs to know something by page 45, make sure you’ve left enough clues so the realization feels plausible.

One mystery-writer’s trick is to hide important clues in the middle of the paragraph. Readers don’t pay as much attention to what’s in the middle of a paragraph, but they do focus on the beginning and end of that same paragraph. So they see it, but it often doesn’t jump out at them.

Beware of foreshadowing too much. If you’re dropping clues every chapter, readers will figure out the secret long before they get to the reveal.

Adding suggestive and evocative details: There have been a slew of movies, TV shows, and Vegas acts that have the protagonist—usually some type of con man—setting up a mark (the victim) to think or respond a certain way. They use subliminal clues to suggest what they want the mark to think or say. Drop enough clues with the numbers three and six in front of someone, then ask them to pick a number between ten and forty, and you’ll get a lot of thirty-sixes.

To put ideas in readers’ heads, plant a few suggestive clues. Don’t explain or draw attention to any of them, but if you want readers to think “blue means bad,” then put in something blue whenever something bad happens. Associate blue with bad in their minds, so by the time your protagonist reaches why blue is bad, readers will already feel apprehensive.

Foreshadowing is a handy way to raise tensions, and a well-planned story puzzle leaves lots of clues that readers can look back on and see that the answers were there the whole time.

Do you plan your foreshadowing or does it happen naturally?

Win a 10-Page Critique From Janice Hardy

Three Books. Three Months. Three Chances to Win.

To celebrate the release of my newest writing books, I’m going on a three-month blog tour–and each month, one lucky winner will receive a 10-page critique from me.

It’s easy to enter. Simply visit leave a comment and enter the drawing via Rafflecopter. At the end of each month, I’ll randomly choose a winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Looking for tips on revising your novel? Check out my new book Revising Your Novel:

First Draft to Finished Draft , a series of self-guided workshops that help you revise your manuscript into a finished novel. Still working on your idea? Then try my just-released Planning Your Novel Workbook . 

Janice Hardy is the award-winning author of The Healing Wars trilogy and the Foundations of Fiction series, including Planning Your Novel: Ideas and Structure, a self-guided workshop for planning or revising a novel, the companion Planning Your Novel Workbook, Revising Your Novel: First Draft to Finished Draft and the upcoming Understanding Show, Don’t Tell (And Really Getting It). She’s also the founder of the writing site, Fiction University. For more advice and helpful writing tips, visit her at www.fiction-university.com or @Janice_Hardy.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Indie Bound

*Excerpted from Revising Your Novel: First Draft to Finished Draft

3 things to consider when using foreshadowing (from @Janice_Hardy):
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The post Keep Your Readers Hooked by Dropping the Right Clues appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

10 Tricks to Get Your Writing Flowing:  http://ow.ly/VvGa303Stk0 @MahinWriter

5 Quirks to Rock Your Middle Grade Character:  http://ow.ly/XGXq303SxsC @RonEstrada

Ed-Tech, Publishing and Investment: http://ow.ly/ZLPn304doik @MarkPiesing @pubperspectives

5 Books Featuring Adventuring Parties:  http://ow.ly/3wsi303TZRy @aptshadow  @tordotcom               

How to Find and Reach Influencers to Promote Your Book:  http://ow.ly/DExW303TZnz @AngelaAckerman

Writing From the Antagonist’s Point of View:  http://ow.ly/bc8W303TZIU @Janice_Hardy

5 key elements for every story:  http://ow.ly/JCgS303TZgQ @JordanDane

Flash Fiction Endings: Possibilities:  http://ow.ly/irr7303U0f2  @teddideppner

How to Persevere in Your Writing:  http://ow.ly/zG06303U01H @bethklewis

6 Rules for Creating an Oral History: http://ow.ly/EEA2303U0jN by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain @lithub

4 Audio Apps Help You Engage with Your Audience:  http://ow.ly/WBSe303TZLn  @DeniseWakeman

Create A Simple Single-Author Boxed Set:  http://ow.ly/2iS7303TZkU @mollygreene

Telegraphing, Foreshadowing:  http://ow.ly/Kh9Y303TZAj @rachelnseigel

How to Use Layers to Create Rich Character Emotions:  http://ow.ly/2K1C303TZEr @MarcyKennedy

Book Production Programs for Indie Publishers: http://ow.ly/zAWF303TZtf @JWManus

Finding Perfect Book Comps:  http://ow.ly/zqH4303VNSF @RobinRWrites

Anne Carroll Moore, the NY librarian who changed children’s lit forever:  http://ow.ly/9TlS303VMNs  @magiciansbook

Develop the Story Idea for your Novel:  http://ow.ly/YHoC304ig1L @lornafaith

New Universal Links from Draft2Digital:  http://ow.ly/LsTz303VNb6 @kevintumlinson

Real Life Diagnostics: Sounding Like a Middle-Grade Voice: http://ow.ly/61K0303VMAZ @Janice_Hardy

How To Write An E-Book And Publish It On Amazon KDP:  http://ow.ly/Gwwy303VMWY @DevinSchedule

How to Pick a Genre for Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/TGvq304ifYB @lornafaith

Freelance Writing: Writing About Hardships and Sharing Weaknesses Results in 1 Writer’s Success:  http://ow.ly/nHa3303StwS by Laura Yeager

UK intl. wholesaler on reach of English, currency exchange, and global transport:  http://ow.ly/W7S8304dnLd @Porter_Anderson @Gardners

Having Trouble Writing? Try Writing Rituals:  http://ow.ly/Ojsu303Sxh1 @katekrake

Transitions:  http://ow.ly/vDPn303Sv05 @AlyciaMorales

7 tips to Going Pro as an Author Entrepreneur:  http://ow.ly/RKUG303Sxl2 @SukhiJutla

How to Manage Your Writing:  http://ow.ly/FgCs303Stpc @JanalynVoigt

5 Basic Focus Hacks for Writers:  http://ow.ly/wPQI303Sxci @katekrake

5 Tips for Writing Romance:  http://ow.ly/BvPI303StkY @ceciliaedits

How Good Copywriting Can Sell More Books:  http://ow.ly/8hUA303Stoj @cksyme

2 activities lay the groundwork for becoming an intuitive writer: http://ow.ly/1dcY303StqL  @JanalynVoigt

Why You Need a Call To Action on Every Social Media Post:  http://ow.ly/RnEz303StnF  @cksyme

Translation: Bodour Al Qasimi on a ‘New Impetus for Arab Publishing’ : http://ow.ly/ysjX304dnqX @Bodour @Porter_Anderson

10 Common Habits of Successful Published Authors:  http://ow.ly/Bu4o303RsYd by John Cabrera

How to Embrace Imperfection as a Writer:  http://ow.ly/ah10303RsV6 @lornafaith

10 Tricks to Get Your Writing Flowing:  http://ow.ly/o1ji303RsOA @MahinWriter

Fargo as Inspiration: Learn to Strengthen the Dialogue in Your Fiction:  http://ow.ly/s8ur303RsVD @crisfreese

6 Steps to Build the Opening Scenes of Your Romance Novel:  http://ow.ly/MlhL303RsUu @lornafaith

8 Ways William Shakespeare Can Make You a Better Writer:  http://ow.ly/x3MS303RsWI by Bob Hostetler @WritersDigest

The Word-Changing Magic of Tidying Up Your Writing:  http://ow.ly/7pJZ303RsU2 @charityscraig

5 Scenes to Avoid In Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/jhhr303Rt0i @Chris_Kokoski

The Reflection Method of 10X Story Magnification:  http://ow.ly/6XBN303Rt1m @Chris_Kokoski

How to Use the Twitter Dashboard:  http://ow.ly/RTze303RsPf by Kevin Ho @SMExaminer

Discovering Your Novel’s Hook:  http://ow.ly/PDw5303RsQy @Janice_Hardy

3 Differences Between a Demographic and Your Market:  http://ow.ly/PfoI303RsTn @carlywatters

UK’s Man Booker Prize Shortlist of 6 Books:  http://ow.ly/wa43304dnCY @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

3 Lessons Learned about Realism from Mentor Texts: http://ow.ly/HKBq303QTh8  @VZauthor

4 Things to do Once the Conference is Over:  http://ow.ly/L1Wu303QTPu @pattywrites

Great Scene: “The Wizard of Oz”:  http://ow.ly/U0zD303QT68 @GoIntoTheStory

Learning From the Pro Writers without Stalking Them:  http://ow.ly/RjXF303QTY1 @diannmills

10 Ways You May Be Hurting Your Online Platform:  http://ow.ly/X9nU303QTII @EdieMelson

How to Find the Right Place for Your Incitinig Event:  http://ow.ly/uNVh303QTyP@Janice_Hardy

9 Reasons Kids Need Comics and Graphic Novels:  http://ow.ly/7s6Y303QTEb @EricDeanSeaton

The Power of Pinterest in Novel Promotion:  http://ow.ly/Sqay303QTkq @diannmills

When a Beta Reader “Doesn’t Get” Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/i5OZ303QTa1 @KelsieEngen

The Writer’s Workout:  http://ow.ly/kA2Y303QTez by Vincent Mars

What Writing a Story Strip Taught 1 Writer:  http://ow.ly/iR5P303QU0S @JerryBJenkins

Inciting Incidents:  http://ow.ly/FkMk303QTvR @SPressfield

Practical Plotting:  http://ow.ly/oTFL303U2mU @p2p_editor

Book Pricing Strategies to Boost Indie Authors’ Sales:  http://ow.ly/bes1303PIi4 @Bookgal

Keeping Track of the Details in Your Story:  http://ow.ly/i7gI303PI9v @Ava_Jae

ISBN Q&A: Everything You Need to Know About Barcodes:  http://ow.ly/zCXv303PInd @rcutlerSpark

Selling Books in the Multi-Billion Dollar Gift Shop Market:  http://ow.ly/6lAU303PJQC @bookmarketing

How Helpful are Free Translation Services to Indie Authors? http://ow.ly/9PM5303PIWX @keithyd6  @IndieAuthorALLI

Involving your family in your writing career:  http://ow.ly/IkHp303PJdu @DebbieYoungBN

How Social Media Fits into Your Publicity Strategy:  http://ow.ly/88bO303PIEJ @CaballoFrances

The Team Dynamic in Crime Fiction: http://ow.ly/GxGP3047CRC @mkinberg

Cooking Up ‘Entrepreneurial Spirit’ in Publishing: http://ow.ly/QbkN3047sJa @philexposed @pressfuturist @pubperspectives

Book Hangovers: http://ow.ly/U9es303PIcG @AshKrafton

7 Ways to Keep Social Media from Ruining Your Mood:  http://ow.ly/vmMR303PIN9 @colleen_m_story

Book Discovery Sites Can Help You Find More Readers:  http://ow.ly/4QcM303PItD @dre_cal

Should You Pay for a Publicist?  http://ow.ly/dvs2303PIR4 @VoicetoStory @janefriedman

Ads Aren’t a Brand and Promotion Isn’t Platform:  http://ow.ly/u61y303PHqy @KristenLambTX

Ron Rash on Writing to Bring Out the Dead: http://ow.ly/zZI83049dwD @lithub

The Rule of Cool and the Audience’s Suspension of Disbelief: http://ow.ly/X3xi303PHcQ @Rachel_Aaron

Jonathan Safran Foer on his writing day and struggles:  http://ow.ly/LJiP303OMxZ @jonnyfoer @GuardianBooks

Authors including ‘trigger warnings’ for their book to indicate disturbing content:  http://ow.ly/CNSy3047IwN  @Porter_Anderson

Beware of attention residue when you’re writing:  http://ow.ly/Pgg63047xBL @pubcoach

On Becoming a Translator: 4 Points for Getting Started http://ow.ly/1JbU3047sqS by Lena Prisner @pubperspectives

9 ways to ensure dialogue works in your story:  http://ow.ly/Vb1J3047rfp  @rachaeldthomas @jemifraser

Finished Your First Novel? What Do You Do Now?  http://ow.ly/dfzj303ONqs @annerallen

Ebook Anatomy: Inside the Black Box: http://ow.ly/5b66303ONo5 @dkudler

Make a Series Bible Using Excel:  http://ow.ly/HWjS3047D7u @HeidiHormel @TheIWSG

Author Ãlvaro Enrigue Sees a ‘Globalization of Latin American Writers’ http://ow.ly/E6aW3047t26  @AlvaroEnrigue by Adam Critchley

How to Promote Your Latest Work With a Blog:  http://ow.ly/eW1m303PHwA by Matt Banner @mythicscribes

How to Be Active on Social Media without Losing Your Mind:  http://ow.ly/3OHR303PH9S @kikimojo

Where to Find Ideas for Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/4hu4303PH67 @Janice_Hardy

2 Goodreads Features to Try:  http://ow.ly/Z3sC303PHYr @K8Tilton @CaballoFrances

Yoast: Your Complete WordPress SEO Toolkit:  http://ow.ly/lfOj303ONyy by Jim Stewart

4 tips for subtle exposition from @DavidHSafford: http://ow.ly/Lvyk3047mPT

Conflict of Interest? Agents and Editors With Their Own Books:  http://ow.ly/Kpg1303ONrW @Kid_Lit

5 Key Ingredients of Young Adult Novels: http://ow.ly/bVnM3047qKz @katiemccoach

7 Ways to De-clutter Your Writing and Your Life:  http://ow.ly/kjW5303OBPJ @ElawReads

7 Rules for Writing Fantastic Dialogue: http://ow.ly/Kq7r303OBLx @nownovel

Emotional Wound Entry for Writers: Being Bullied: http://ow.ly/2A8E303OBJA @AngelaAckerman

Pros and cons of sharing our work in progress: http://ow.ly/Gkys303OC2B @JamiGold

8 Ways to Recognize Helpful Criticism (and How to Ignore the Rest):  http://ow.ly/nI3y303OBW8 @ElawReads

8 Steps to Writing a Coherent Novel:  http://ow.ly/LJfh303OBEH @mmhoffman14

The top writing links of the week are on Twitterific:
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Creative Challenges Within a Single Genre

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Whenever I talk to anyone about my writing, the question usually comes up:  would I like to try writing anything other than mystery?

Then I explain that I actually have written something other than mystery.  But it was a one-off, a ‘cozy zombie’ book (yes, I did make that genre up).  But that was what’s called an ‘attack book.’  The story had been bothering me for years to write it, and finally I did to get the story to shut up.

What people seem most surprised about is that I don’t get bored writing my genre.  That I’m not tired of writing the same types of stories.

I’ve always said that I found it a special creative challenge to work within the confines of genre and series.

In lots of ways, it’s much easier to write in a series.  For one thing, it’s a good deal faster.  You’ve already got your main/recurring characters.  The setting will likely be the same.  You put these characters into new situations in the same setting and have them respond.

In other ways, it’s that creative challenge I mentioned.  Oh, it’s easy enough to come up with something shiny and different for the first few books.  But then you usually run into a couple of problems.  One, you need to take careful note of story details so you won’t contradict yourself with something you stated in a previous book in the series (just ask me about one character’s cat allergy.  Or, rather, please don’t).  A story bible is very useful for this.

For another, you’re trying to keep things interesting.   Trying to allow the characters to grow but have them still be recognizable.   Trying to keep the series fresh and not have it go stale or be too similar to the other books.  At the same time, you can’t let things get too different, or readers likely won’t be happy.

And then there’s the genre strictures.  For a cozy mystery (the subgenre I write), the stories have a particular pattern to them.   I also need to adhere to the genre guidelines (amateur sleuth, no gore, focus on the puzzle not forensics, etc).

I came across a blog post recently by writer Wendy Paine Miller that linked over to an interesting TED talk by artist Phil Hansen.  A tremendous setback forced him to change his art forever–but the change (as he calls it, “learning to be creative within the confines of our limitations”) made him successful.  In fact, he states that limitations can be “a source of creativity.”

Although Hansen’s limitations were physical, I think we can find that same creative drive within a genre and find just as much satisfaction that way.

Not every writer wants to stick with one genre.  Some receive their creative satisfaction by writing many different genres and types of stories.  But I think that we don’t have to do that to obtain creative satisfaction.  That it’s possible to get it from within the confines of our genre.

Do you see the creative challenges in series writing or in sticking with a particular genre?   Have you seen this TED talk (and have you got any others to recommend?  I love that stuff).

Sticking with a genre can provide satisfying creative challenges:
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Become an Exposition Ninja with 4 Sneaky Steps

by David H. Safford,  @DavidHSafford

Few elements of our craft vex us more than exposition.

Perhaps this is because the rules aren’t written in stone.

To you, the writer, it feels necessary to share everything that you’ve dreamt up about a character and his/her world.

But to the reader, there may be mass confusion about things you never dreamed would be unclear.

This is why so many conversations with early readers or critique partners can drift toward the defensive. We, the writers, have assumptions about what the reader should understand, or “get.”

Yet our readers often have much different experiences than we expect, and this is horribly frustrating.

To pave a smooth road for our readers – and to become proper Exposition Ninjas – we need to understand the purpose of exposition, otherwise we won’t know why we’re using it. Effective stories always handle exposition purposefully.

The Purpose of Exposition is to enhance three things: The characters’ goals, stakes, and consequences.

That’s it.

Any “backstory” that doesn’t provide depth for these three elements (character goals, stakes, consequences) is fluff that should be cut immediately.

One of the biggest mistakes that authors make is beginning their story or novel by “setting the scene.”

And while setting is important, it’s not essential.

What is essential is conflict. Risk. Stakes.

The stuff that matters.

And if you don’t begin with the things that matter, your reader won’t stick around.

So what do we do?

Here is some Exposition Ninja training that will sharpen your skills as you deal with this terribly tricky aspect of story-telling.

1. Wait For It.

This bears repeating. So many authors fill their first 1—10 pages (or more, God help them) with background information because they think it’s “necessary” for the story to start.

This is completely wrong.

The story starts because characters make choices to pursue their goals. The background can come later.

Try not to let “classic” books be your guide here. Some classics don’t follow this rule and get away with it (Lord of the Rings comes to mind). But we judge these works with a biased scale and they gain new readers on the basis of “classic” status and Hollywood films.

You don’t have that benefit.

Odds are you are trying to climb up the Amazon rankings and you’re going to need a killer beginning to get people to buy your book. You can still be artful while getting to the point. Most great writers learn how.

So can you.

2. Space It Out.

A page-long block of blatant exposition is an excuse for the reader to skip ahead.

My wife admitted to doing this while reading my novel, so I begged her to flag the pages for me so I could break the “mega” paragraphs up.

Exposition needs to be delivered in short, controlled bursts.

That’s what your early drafts are for – to weed out the rambling, devolving fluff and identify the 1-2 key details that are necessary.

Remember that readers are interested in dialogue, action, and relevant information – not a lengthy history lesson.

Of course, many books include history lessons that detail their settings and cultures.

However, most of them wait until these history lessons matter.

And when I say they matter, I mean they matter to the characters – more specifically, to the characters’ goals, the stakes they are putting up for it, and the consequences of their choices.

If it takes a short history lesson to explain why Bob’s choice was so risky, then do it.

But not until Bob is beginning to make the choice or facing consequences of it.

3. Legitimize It

This is a tough pill to swallow, but it is an important pill nonetheless.

If the expositional information doesn’t affect the character’s pursuit of his/her goal, then it doesn’t matter.

Readers love to see characters wrestle with the world of the story. They love choices and consequences. The exposition’s purpose is to enhance the goals, stakes and consequences of a character.

If the background information is only there because “it’s interesting,” then I have news for you: What’s “interesting” for you is not necessarily interesting for everyone else.

Always keep in mind that people who are reading your book will keep reading it because they are interested in your characters and the painful choices they make in order to get their goals.

The rest is just set-dressing. Without the stakes, the rest falls away.

So connect that “interesting” stuff to character pursuits. Otherwise, it’s only fluff.

4. Hide It

Here’s the thing with exposition: No one wants to “see” it.

Think of exposition as the tunnels under Disney World, bad CGI animation, or the inside of a Chinese take-out kitchen.

You don’t want to see it. No one really wants the magic ruined.

So it is with exposition.

It needs to be carefully and precisely hidden throughout the story. The moment it peeks out and gets caught is the moment the reader wakes up from the dream of your story.

The story loses its “magic.”

So hide that exposition in places that communicate the information to the reader, but the reader doesn’t expect it.

Hide It In Dialogue.

Slip the most important bits of exposition into a character’s dialogue. Keep these bits both short and pertinent to the conflict and stakes. It’s also important to distribute information evenly amongst characters, lest certain characters become “exposition machines,” spewing information without mattering to the story.

Hide It In Brief Scene Description.

When characters enter a new setting, you will likely want to paint a picture of that world. Tuck the most important expositional details into the observations of these characters, focusing on ones that connect to character goals, flaws, and insecurities. Let the readers observe with the characters, not through the eyes of a narrator.

Hide It In Choices.

When a character makes a high-stakes choice, this affects the characters and world around him/her. Rather than explaining all the details before-hand, reveal the relevant exposition after a character has made a decision, and leave it to the reader to judge the impact of that choice.

A Ninja Always Attacks

Ninjas are masters of the sneak attack.

And exposition is, in a way, a sneaky offensive initiated by the author.

Think of exposition this way: Since it is literally “back-story,” exposition could be represented by a backwards arrow: ß

But your story doesn’t move backwards, at least in terms of characters pursuing goals.

Your story needs to move forward.

Its characters move forward with choices that affect the future – represented by a forwards arrow: à

While the stuff of exposition, past choices and details, affect the present, they aren’t quite as important as the actions of the present. Expositional details need to be selected with extreme care and placed in the story with great precision.

You want your story moving forward, à, not backward, ß.

Always be moving forward. Just like a ninja.

If you take a step back (reveal some exposition), it must actually be a part of a forward attack (advancing a character’s actions and choices).

Master this, my young apprentices, and Exposition Ninjas shall you be!

What do you think? What skills have helped you become an Exposition Ninja? Respond in the comments below!

4 tips for subtle exposition from @DavidHSafford:
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David H. Safford is the author of The Bean of Life, the story of a man who decides to save the world with coffee.

Read a free preview or get an early-access copy here before the September 20th launch. When he’s not drinking a whole pot of coffee, David loves singing Disney songs with his daughter and helping other writers tell their stories.

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