Angela Ackerman's Blog: Writers Helping Writers, page 25

What Are Your Questions about Writing & the Business Side of Being an Author?

Is it just me or did the month of January fly by? Seems like I was just putting away Christmas decorations and gearing up for the new year.

January’s always a busy time for Angela and me because it’s when we do our annual planning���figuring out what our goals should be and how we should allocate our time. Staying organized is more important than ever because we’re closing in on 16 years of blogging (crazy!), and things are a little busier and more complex at Writers Helping Writers than they were in 2008. So carefully planning our time is key to us staying sane.

But we still find ourselves looking back sometimes at the things we did when we were first starting out���fun launch events and opportunities that had to be set aside as our responsibilities grew and our time got squeezed.

One thing we miss is being able to answer your questions about writing and the business side of things. Angela and I have been studying writing craft and managing the business end for some time now, so if we have knowledge that can help you, we want to share it. To this end…

We’re bringing back our Q&A!

For now, we’ll include the Q & A in our Master Storytelling newsletter (see the latest edition here), and this means we need your questions!

So, is there something you’re struggling with and need help understanding? Or do you have a question about us personally? If so, let us know. To get your brain churning, here are some topics and questions:

Writing Craft and Various Aspects of Storytelling

How do I figure out my character’s wounding event?
What’s the difference between a change arc and a failed arc?
What tips do you have for showing instead of telling?
How do I identify my story’s theme?
How much description should I include when I’m describing my setting?
What nonfiction writing craft books would you recommend?
What story structure model do you like to use, and why?

The Business of Writing

I have a full-time job; how do I make time for writing?
Should I create a business plan, and how do I do it?
I’m attending a conference this summer. Any tips on maximizing that experience?
What are some ways I can use my writing skills to make money on the side?
How can I use A.I. to save time and maximize my efficiency as a writer?
What’s a mistake you and Angela made on the business side of things, and what would you do differently?

Publishing

Should I self-publish or go with a traditional publisher? What are the differences?
Do I need an agent?
How do I know my book is ready for submission?
How do I find a critique group?
How do I know what feedback to incorporate into my story and what to ignore?
How do I tell a legitimate publisher from a vanity press?
Do I have to hire an editor?
When should I copyright my work?
Can you recommend a formatter/cover designer/proofreader/etc.?
Why did you and Angela decide to self-publish your books?

Book Marketing

How do I gain visibility for my books?
Should I go wide or narrow?
How do I find my ideal reading audience?
What should I write about in my reader-focused newsletter?
What marketing strategies have worked the best for you and Angela?

Our Books, Resources, and Services

What’s the difference between your books and One Stop for Writers?
Which of your books should I buy for a friend who’s a beginning writer?
How do I use the Reverse Backstory Tool in Appendix A of The Negative Trait Thesaurus?
I just found your Goal, Motivation, Conflict, & Stakes tracking resource. How do I figure out why they want to achieve their goal?
Will you be turning the Fear Thesaurus into a book?
What was your favorite book to write?

Getting to Know Becca and Angela…

(because all work and no play turns you into this guy).

How do you collaborate on books – what does that look like?
What are your biggest struggles as authors?
Do you have a pet, and can you share a picture of them?
When was the last time you were embarrassed?
How did the two of you meet?
What have you learned about yourselves from writing your series?
Pineapple on pizza: yes or no?

This is just a sampling of the kinds of questions you could ask. Basically, we’re happy to answer anything writing- and career-related that you need help with and share a bit about our personal side, too. (If you have a question about your specific story, we won’t be able to answer those as we’d require a lot of specific knowledge about your project.)

If you’d like to submit a question, please use this form. You can enter up to 3 questions at a time; if you have more than that, just click the link and start a new submission. The more questions the better!

We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

The post What Are Your Questions about Writing & the Business Side of Being an Author? appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

Tension and the Power of Unanswered Questions

Have you ever been a bit hazy on the difference between conflict and tension? If so, you aren���t alone. It���s common to confuse the two because they���re often used together to deliver a one-two dramatic punch.

The difference between them is subtle, but important:

Conflict is a force that stands between your characters and what they want most.
Tension is the feeling of anticipation surrounding what will happen next.

Conflict is concrete���a roadblock, dilemma, danger, adversary, etc. that represents a real problem for the character. Tension is more under the surface, where less is known. There���s a problem bubbling, potential for disruption, or certain factors are coming together which point toward a specific outcome. But will this outcome be realized? Will the right things happen to create chaos? This ���will it happen or won���t it��� anticipation keeps readers on edge, which is why tension is so good for our story.

We can make good use of the reader���s need to know by building scenes that cater to it. For example, imagine a jerk character in our story who is dating two women, Alice and Shai. Neither is aware of the other, which is just how Logan wants to keep it. But in an epic goof, he asks them both to meet him for dinner at the same restaurant on the same night.

When the women arrive (at the same time, of course), that���s conflict. When they both cross the room, unaware they���re meeting the same man, that���s tension.

Tension draws readers in by causing them to mentally ask questions:

Will the women find out Logan���s dating them both?
Will he worm his way out of it somehow?
What will the women do?
Will there be a big blowout?

Strong tension follows a pattern of pull-and-release���meaning, you let the tension build until it reaches its peak then resolve it by answering some of those unspoken questions.

We���ll imagine that Logan sees the two women. Doom is approaching on stilettos, and he has no idea what to do. One thing is certain, though: when they reach his table, it���s over.

Now, if we wanted to continue building tension, we could add an event that delays the inevitable. Maybe Shai drops a scarf halfway to the table and Alice notices. She retrieves it and stops Shai to return it.

Tension builds as they trade a few words. Logan watches this horror unfold: Will one of them mention me? Point? Will they turn on me with death in their eyes?

Readers know Logan is dead meat���unless we cut him some slack by flipping his tension from negative anticipation to positive.

We can do that by introducing another event.

Perhaps after accepting the scarf, Shai glances toward the restroom. Logan watches, his mind ablaze, hoping against hope she���ll head there, not the table, so that when Alice reaches him, he can quickly make an excuse that he���s sick and they need to leave. Then he can text Shai while she���s in the restroom with a similar explanation for his absence.

Readers watch this new development and think, Will she go to the restroom? Is this his way out? 

Anticipation builds and again we achieve pull-and-release by answering internal questions.

As the authors, we decide Shai doesn���t hit the restroom, and so both women arrive at his table at the same time. Sorry, Logan, you jerk. No easy out for you.

After a moment of confusion, the blowout that Logan and the reader have anticipated happens. Shai and Alice start shouting at him, and every diner stops eating to watch the show. Embarrassed, he pleads for them to calm down, which only fires them up. Finally, Alice snatches a bowl of soup from a passing waiter���s tray and dumps it over Logan���s head. Tension is again released.

Shai asks Alice if she wants to get a drink, and the two leave. Logan, dripping chowder, signals for the bill, relieved that the restaurant is far from home and no one he knows will have witnessed this.

This last line provides us with a classic opportunity to use another tool in our tension belt: foreshadowing.��What might that look like?

Perhaps as Logan picks clams off his face, he catches someone filming him with their phone, and he realizes they���ve likely caught the whole, messy scene on video. His guts tightens because he knows nothing good can come of this.

And the reader does too. More internal questions arise:

Will that video show up online?
Will someone see it and recognize him?

As you can see, tension affects both readers and characters. A new situation, threat, or obstacle appears, and provided something���s at stake, an unasked question hangs in the air: What comes next?

Tension can result from all kinds of conflict scenarios, such as when the character���Is wrestling with competing goals, needs, or desires.Must make a decision without all the facts.Is unable to resolve a problem.Is waiting on an outcome.Has no good options.Doesn���t know how bad the fallout will be.Doesn���t know who will pay the price for their actions.Doesn���t know who to trust.Can���t predict how someone will react.

Notice the repeated theme here: something is unknown. Exploit that ignorance or uncertainty and let the tension build.

The post Tension and the Power of Unanswered Questions appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

The One Rule No Writer Should Break

Ah, the euphoria of holding one���s own book. Nothing compares, does it? In that moment, the months (or years) of writing, revising, editing, polishing, and finally publishing are in the rear view mirror. All we know is the joy of seeing our hard work compressed into pages and fitted with a stunning cover.
We dream of happy readers, bestseller lists, and maybe even awards. And we can have these things…if we haven’t broken the cardinal rule of publishing.

As someone who studies storytelling from all angles, I can spot quickly when the cardinal rule has been broken, and every time, it guts me. Each book starts with untapped potential, ripe with the imagination of its creator, ready to bring something new and fresh to readers. But this one rule, when it’s broken, limits a book’s potential, keeping it from being all it can be.

So, what is this cardinal rule that stands above all others?

Don’t Rush

Stories take time to write, and even longer to refine, especially as we’re all developing writers. We each have strengths and weaknesses and are building our skills as we go. Sometimes we don’t know what we don’t know, and so may not be the best judge as to whether a story is ready to move forward.

And yet, I see writers rush toward publication, skipping some of the necessary steps to ensure their book is as strong as it can be. And unfortunately, it ends the same way – a book that wasn’t ready, and the author feeling disappointment and disillusionment when their novel fails to gain traction with readers.

Rushing Burns Bridges

With more books than people on the planet, readers have endless choices. So, the very best thing we can do is give them an amazing experience when they pick up our book, because when we do, they’ll be back for more. But if we rush and the quality isn’t there, readers notice. Not only is it unlikely they’ll stick with us as an author, but they may also leave poor reviews that dissuade others from taking a chance on our book, too.

Rushing also hurts if we’re on the hunt for an agent or publisher. If we submit something that’s clearly not ready, that’s the end of the road with that agent or editor. And what if they remember us and our rushed manuscript if we submit to them down the road���will they be less inclined to ask for sample pages?

Rushing Can Be Expensive

When we rush, we seek out editing before a story is ready for it, meaning costs go up as there’s more to fix. A reputable editor should let the writer know if the project is not ready before they get in too deep, but this is an ethical line that you can���t count on everyone to follow. And if a writer doesn’t carefully vet their editor, they might end up with someone who isn’t skilled enough to offer the level of help needed yet is happy to keep billing round after editing round.

Most of us must budget carefully when it comes to our writing, and editing costs that balloon can fill us with frustration and guilt and may cause us to question our choice of pursuing this path.

Rushing Can Open Us to Scams

All careers require time, effort, and training to become great at them. But unfortunately, we can forget this when it comes to writing. Maybe we think having an abundance of imagination and our creativity will carry us through, or a past career where we wrote a lot on the job makes us believe we can zip through the learning curve. Here’s the thing – imagination requires craft to apply it well, and writing and storytelling are two different skill sets. Believing there’s an easy route to publishing opens us to scams.

There are plenty of vanity publishers and other “assisted publishing” businesses that make big promises to do all the work the writer doesn’t want to do. Because their business model is to make money from writers, not the sale of books, they don’t care about the product. Writers end up shelling out huge dollars for something subpar and are often locked into contracts where they are required to also purchase a large quantity of their books themselves.

Rushing Can Damage Self-Esteem

When we query or self-publish before we’re ready, the results won’t be what we hoped for, and this can cause us to feel inadequate. When our self-belief plummets, it can steal our energy and make it harder for us to pivot or rebound from mistakes and failures. And even when we write great books, mistakes and failures come with the territory, so we need to learn how to process these moments and learn from them.

If we’re always beating ourselves up for every misstep, we’ll eventually decide we aren’t cut out for this career. And we are! Each of us is capable of learning what we need to know to write amazing stories and steer ourselves toward a fulfilling career.

Bottom line: there is no easy button when it comes to a quality book and successful career. Prepare to work hard and open yourself to learning all you can.

Pressure to rush is something we all understand
but must resist.

When other writers are pounding out stories and getting them out into the world, we think we need to be doing the same, forgetting that we’re all in different stages of development, and each journey to publication will be unique.

When we give ourselves the space and time to write the strongest story we can, it may take longer, but our chances of pleasing readers will go way up. And we grow through the process, gaining new knowledge and refining our abilities, which will help us become masterful storytellers.

So, embrace the learning curve and enjoy the journey! It���s there to help, not stand in your way.

Help for Anti-Rushers:

How to Write a Book From Start to Finish in 13 Steps
Self-Editing Your Own Writing
Story Feedback: Free and Paid Options
Critique Etiquette: The Ultimate Guide for Giving and Receiving Feedback
When Am I Ready for Professional Editing?
Best Practices for Working with a Professional Editor
How to Navigate Editorial Feedback and Revise Your WIP

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Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Phony Politician

In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes���”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He posited that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another.

Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create.

But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story.

But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.

DESCRIPTION: This character is the stereotypical politician. Charming, hypocritical, morally flexible, and often corrupt, they’ll say and do anything to get votes.

FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: Greg Stillson (The Dead Zone), William “Boss” Tweed (Gangs of New York), Frank Underwood (House of Cards), Mayor Richard Wilkins (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

COMMON STRENGTHS: Adaptable, Ambitious, Analytical, Calm, Charming, Confident, Decisive, Diplomatic, Enthusiastic, Extroverted, Focused, Friendly, Funny, Intelligent, Observant, Persistent, Persuasive, Resourceful, Socially Aware

COMMON WEAKNESSES: Cocky, Cowardly, Dishonest, Disloyal, Evasive, Hypocritical, Lazy, Manipulative, Self-Indulgent, Selfish, Sleazy, Unethical, Vain, Verbose, Vindictive, Weak-Willed

ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES
Being charismatic
Speaking eloquently
Knowing what they want and being singularly focused on those goals
Instinctively knowing what to say and how to say it
Thinking strategically and analytically
Deftly working a room
Adaptability; being able to think on their feet
Speaking ambiguously so they can be flexible in their pursuits
Using scapegoats as fall guys when things go south
Working hard to keep potentially harmful past events buried

SITUATIONS THAT WILL CHALLENGE THEM
Facing public backlash and personal repercussions (such as a spouse leaving them) for their corrupt actions
Encountering a legitimate opponent who is both competent and ethical
Losing key allies or political leverage

TWIST THIS TROPE WITH A CHARACTER WHO���
Has a secret desire for redemption and engages in small acts of kindness to “balance the scales” for their behavior
Has noble motivations behind their unethical actions
Has an atypical trait: subservient, grumpy, idealistic, introverted, quirky, etc.

CLICH��S TO BE AWARE OF
The behind-the-scenes puppet master who uses manipulation and seduction to achieve their nefarious ends
Cardboard baby-kissing politicians who are obviously fake, but no one seems to notice

Have you seen this trope before? Let us know which characters are good examples of the stereotype���or ones that have been tweaked into something a bit more interesting.

Other Type and Trope Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (16 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, and then give our Free Trial a spin.

The post Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Phony Politician appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

Phenomenal First Pages Contest

Hey, wonderful
writerly people!

It���s time for Phenomenal First Pages, our monthly critique contest. So, if you need a bit of help with your first page, today’s the day to enter for a chance to win professional feedback!

Entering is easy. All you need to do is leave your contact information on this entry form (or click the graphic below). If you are a winner, we’ll notify you and explain how to send us your first page.

Contest DetailsThis is a 24-hour contest, so enter ASAP.Make sure your contact information on the entry form is correct. Three winners will be drawn. We will email you if you win and let you know how to submit your first page. Please have your first page ready in case your name is selected. Format it with 1-inch margins, double-spaced, and 12pt Times New Roman font. All genres are welcome except erotica.Sign Up for Notifications!

If you���d like to be notified about our monthly Phenomenal First Pages contest, subscribe to blog notifications in this sidebar. 

Good luck, everyone. We can’t wait to see who wins!

PS: To amp up your first page, grab our  First Pages checklist from One Stop for Writers. For more help with story opening elements, visit this Mother Lode of First Page Resources.

The post Phenomenal First Pages Contest appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

Turn Your Readers into Detectives

Imagine inviting us into your protagonist���s house or whatever you deem to be their most sacred  physical space. But while we���re so excited to meet your protagonist, they���re not actually there. We can���t hear what they say or observe the way they move in order to get to know them. Or can we?

Now imagine that you���ve asked us to become a detective in their space. To piece together who your character is based upon what our senses tell us through clues. We���ve been asked to figure out who your character is without ever meeting them. Is this even possible?

In our own writing, we���re most effective when we set up ���crime scenes��� for our readers and invite them in to snoop around. The more we let the reader���s senses process the story world, the more they engage. The more they work. The more they get the satisfaction of knowing your character with greater precision and depth. In turn, this tricks them into feeling like they���re physically inside the story and into feeling they know your character on a deeper level.

Consider the two examples below. As you read them, feel out which one draws you in more as a reader:

Greg loves the beach.

Or���

Greg���s kitchen cupboard is overstuffed with brightly-colored margarita glasses. Some are hand-painted with palm trees and beach umbrellas and little flip-flops, while others have words printed along the rim. Places like Destin, Myrtle Beach, and Emerald Isle.

Chances are, you felt reeled in more by the second example. Why? Well, because the first one told you about Greg. It outright explained him as a character to you and asked you to take it at face value. There wasn���t any room for you to work. To deduce. To decide who Greg is on your own. The fact was served up cold, and this creates distance between you and the writing. Furthermore, you���re not left with any understanding of the size and scope of Greg���s love for the beach.

Whereas in the second example, you became a detective. Greg���s collection of glasses gives you a sense for just how much he craves that feeling of being on the beach with a margarita in his hand. It tells you not just that he has a lot of glasses, but leaves you room to deduce how much the beach appeals to him and how he probably yearns to be there now. So we don���t just walk away knowing this fact that he likes the beach, we know Greg on a deeper level because our senses have processed clues.

Now, it���s important to note that while offering these physical clues is much more inviting for your reader, there���s actually room to take things up a notch. We���ll break our own rule for a moment and let Greg slip into the scene so we can see what he does with that cupboard of glasses.

Greg���s hand wavers back and forth inside the cupboard packed with margarita glasses. He grins with a distant look in his eyes and carefully pulls one out. ���Emerald Isle��� is printed along the rim.

Notice how we���ve moved from the efficacy of that second example (Greg adores the beach, has clearly been to many of them, and doesn���t mind annoyingly cheery colors) into an even deeper level of Greg���s characterization. His movement now conveys his emotions both in this moment and as it seems to pertain to a memory. He handles the glass carefully���that tells us about his emotions toward the glass itself, the beach, and the memory. We���re invited in even further to wonder why he���s chosen the Emerald Isle glass in this exact moment, which propels us forward with curiosity in the story.

The takeaway? Physical description of your character���s space + movement is the best way of all to reveal your character to the reader. Rather than pausing the story to describe the setting or who your character is, we employ our readers much more like detectives when we let them put physical detail and character movement together.

Still, for the sake of exploring and getting the most out of the setting, it helps to scoot your character out of their spaces so they can���t grab control and outright tell us who they are or how they feel.

Here are sensory-based prompts you can address to help us get to know who your character is before you invite them back into the scene to interact with those spaces:

Visual

What does the style of the furniture in your character���s home (or even just their bedroom if it���s a younger character) say about who they are as a person? Is it modern, farmhouse style, antique, beat-up, hand-me-down furniture?

How is the furniture arranged? Is it in a way that reflects their tendencies toward being open, closed-off, organized, or chaotic? Intentional or haphazard?

What sorts of objects tell us about the way they spend their time? Are there tools or equipment that reflect their hobbies? Memories they hold dear? Whose pictures are posted, if any? Keepsakes from events they���ve attended or greeting cards from specific loved ones?

Are there patterns on things like bedding or clothing that reveal a deeper tendency toward something?

What colors dominate their decorations or functional items (cups, towels, bedding, etc.)? How do those colors reflect their propensity toward certain moods?

What���s hiding in the back of their closet? Their drawers? What���s shoved far beneath their bed?

How is the lighting? What does this show about their comforts or their fears?

Touch

What sorts of linens have they chosen for bedding? Window dressings? Pillows or throw blankets? Rugs? What might those textures let us glean about their personality? Are linens smooth and crisp, or wrinkly?

What sorts of fabrics dominate their cache of clothing? What do we feel when we open dresser drawers or run our hands through your character���s closet? How do the textures of each of these reflect their need for or rejection of comfort?

If we run our fingers along surfaces, which ones have gathered dust and how does that reflect avoidance or neglect for certain aspects of their life? Which ones are spotless to reveal care and a desire to maintain?

Auditory

What sorts of music or sounds drift through their spaces? How does that music or certain sounds reflect their personality or the way they have sentimental attachment to something? Do the auditory clues change depending on which space we���re in?

Are their windows open or closed to the outside world?

Are there objects that suggest auditory preferences (ear plugs, headphones, earbuds, instruments, white-noise machines, etc.)?

What does the range of their music collection tell us about their range of moods?

What size or how many speakers are around their home? What does that suggest about their reliance upon music and sound in processing emotions?

Scent

What are the scents in the different spaces where they spend time? How might those tell us something more about their interests or what they value?

Are they utilizing diffusers, candles, or plug-in scent items to evoke mood? To cover up something?

How does scent reflect the amount of time your character spends in their sacred space(s)?

Are the scents suggestive of memories or favorite times of year? Favorite places (e.g. tropical candles might suggest a preference for summer and beach getaways)?

Taste

If we open the kitchen cupboards, refrigerator, or the medicine cabinet, are there items that reveal your character���s lifestyle choices to us? Their cultural background? Their financial means?

How do the foods we see suggest a tendency toward snacking versus eating full meals? Having time to cook or relying on conveniences?

What sorts of food wrappers or food waste are sitting in the trash can?

How does the volume of food on hand suggest their outlook on life?

Are items in the fridge expired? Organized?

Again, as shown in that third example above, all of these clue-based details are best mixed with action. Nothing drops the tension faster than the narrator pausing to tell us what a character is wearing or what the character���s bedroom looks like. The most effective descriptions are woven together with movement. The more you concoct the facets of your character���s spaces with intention, the more your reader steps in like a detective, working through your clues and getting to know your character on the deepest levels.

*Marissa also shows you how to approach your novel like a winning trial lawyer,
delivering your reader to the verdict you want.

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Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Dark Lord or Lady

In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes���”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He posited that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another.

Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create.

But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story.

But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.

DESCRIPTION: Evil personified and seemingly invincible, this antagonist is out to rule the world. They often use fear, intimidation, and the extensive resources (magical, military, or otherwise) at their command to dominate and control others.

FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: Sauron (The Lord of the Rings trilogy), the White Witch (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe), Voldemort (the Harry Potter series), Thanos (the Marvel Universe), Emperor Palpatine (the Star Wars franchise)

COMMON STRENGTHS: Adaptable, Alert, Ambitious, Analytical, Bold, Confident, Decisive, Efficient, Focused, Independent, Industrious, Intelligent, Meticulous, Pensive, Perceptive, Persistent, Persuasive, Proactive, Resourceful, Talented

COMMON WEAKNESSES: Callous, Cocky, Controlling, Cruel, Devious, Disloyal, Evil, Greedy, Haughty, Impatient, Inflexible, Judgmental, Manipulative, Obsessive, Perfectionist, Possessive, Pretentious, Resentful, Suspicious, Temperamental, Unethical, Vindictive, Violent, Volatile

ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES
Having a strategic mindset
Being single-minded in their pursuit of the ultimate goal
Carefully controlling their emotions
Having a big presence that fills the room
Wearing clothing meant to make them more intimidating
Walking confidently with long strides
Taking quick, decisive actions
Being emotionally unavailable
Having little tolerance for mistakes; being unforgiving
Easily replacing allies or underlings who fall short of the character’s expectations

SITUATIONS THAT WILL CHALLENGE THEM
Loving a child, parent, sibling, or spouse who disagrees with the character
A seemingly insignificant challenger defeating or eluding the character
No-win scenarios
Their methods or goals being challenged by a trusted lieutenant

TWIST THIS TROPE WITH A CHARACTER WHO���
Offers a measure of grace when people make mistakes
Cares and offers protection for someone vulnerable
Has an atypical trait: merciful, vulnerable, honest, socially aware, sophisticated, humble, etc.

CLICH��S TO BE AWARE OF
Dark rulers with a physical deformity that represents their corruption and evil
A dark lord who kills off loyal followers for minor infractions
Megalomaniacs who refuse to listen to anyone’s counsel

Other Type and Trope Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (16 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, and then give our Free Trial a spin.

The post Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Dark Lord or Lady appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

How to Generate Powerful Story Conflict

Conflict is a powerful tool for storytellers, allowing us to place roadblocks, challenges, adversaries and more in a character���s way so the road to their goal is much more difficult. Deployed well, conflict creates tension and intensity for reader, capturing their attention for the length of the book.

So what does deployed well mean?

For conflict to have a strong foundation, we need to focus on three things. First, readers need to feel connected to a character for them to care when something bad happens to them. For example, if a car hits a dog-kicking, old-lady-scamming protagonist and breaks both his legs, will your audience be upset? Not at all���in fact they may actually cheer. But if the protagonist is a single mother of three who scraped and saved to go to night school and create a better life for her family, seeing such a terrible event happen to them will really rip your readers up. So, building flesh-and-blood characters readers will connect to is crucial for scoring a strong conflict hit.

The second thing conflict must do is present a character with a problem that���s not easy to resolve. A danger or threat that can be avoided if the character simply does one thing will feel like a cop-out to readers (unless you���re purposefully luring the character into a trap so it leads to spectacular, unexpected fallout).

The third component of well-written conflict is that it will be original in some way, giving readers something they���ve not seen before. And this is where some writers trip, especially if they���re working with a conflict scenario found in many stories, or it���s common within a genre. Romance readers will have experienced plenty of stories where a romantic competitor enters the scene, Fantasy readers know that at some point, an adventurer will get injured, and anyone who reads superhero stories has seen more than a few characters discovering they have unwanted powers.

The thing is, readers expect to see these conflicts, so we need to include them. But we shouldn���t copy what others have done. Instead, we should find a way to make the situations fresh���and hopefully more difficult. Here are some ideas:

Make the Outcome Uncertain

To keep readers from easily predicting the result of a conflict scenario, sow some doubt���a.k.a., don���t go easy on your protagonist. Put them at a disadvantage���or, if you���re feeling evil, give them an easy win that isn���t a true victory. Maybe a character with friends in high places gets a big promotion, only she doesn���t realize her ���friends��� are setting her up as a scapegoat for their criminal behavior. Winning can also trigger unforeseen consequences. If your character doesn���t pay now, make her pay later.

Withhold Something the Character Needs

When a character has everything���information, financial backing, a mentor, the support of others���it���s an easier skate to the finish line, and what���s the fun in that? Think about what your character needs most to succeed, and take it from her. If she needs medicine, put it in a glass vial that, at a critical point, will shatter. When she needs a map to navigate, let it be ruined by a dunk in the river. Knowledge, a way to communicate, a weapon���characters who are forced to act when they don���t have what they need often screw up, leading to more conflict.

Make the Stakes Personal

Every story should have high stakes, where something is at risk if the character fails. But when the stakes are personal, winning becomes more crucial because of what they could lose. Get to know your character and the people, places, and things they hold dear. Then endanger them: a child���s life, the character���s job, their reputation, or their marriage. Most characters will walk through fire to protect the people and things they cherish.

Consider a No-Win Situation

The most heart-wrenching times for your character are when they have to make a decision in which someone will pay regardless of their choice. These story moments take courage because the character must decide between two equally bad outcomes. Do they save their daughter if doing so means abandoning their son? Do they stay and risk capture, or run and risk death by exposure? No-win scenarios create obvious tension for characters but also for readers, who recognize an impossible situation when they see it and wonder what choice will be made.

Keep Your Character Moving

Did you know that if sharks stop swimming, they���ll die? This is a lesson we can apply to storytelling because when a character settles down for too long, the tension flatlines. So, keep them moving. If they find a haven, fill it with hidden dangers that compel them to leave. If a romantic relationship is becoming routine, introduce a disruptor���a secret being exposed, a hopeful ex-lover showing up, or a complication that forces a physical separation.

This goes for inner movement, too. If the character isn���t moving forward and resolving their internal conflict, create a crisis that jeopardizes everything they���ve worked for. Remind them that they need to keep evolving to get what they want, even if this means facing hard truths or examining old wounds.

Shake Up the Team

If your character is relying on others, find a way to introduce dysfunction and friction. Disagreements, misunderstandings, egos, rivalries, or a sense of entitlement can shake the foundation of a relationship, create a power struggle, and leave your character without their much-needed backup.

Tighten the Timeline

There���s nothing like a ticking clock to pile on the pressure, so think about how you can shorten a window of opportunity, move up a deadline, force the character to wait, or give them an ultimatum. Characters who rush can get sloppy and make mistakes, compounding the conflict.

Pull the Trigger

All characters carry some baggage from the past. If they���re navigating a change arc, they���ll have an unresolved wound, and chances are, they���ve buried it deep. The problem is, for them to move forward, they need to deal with whatever is holding them back. A well-placed trigger can cause that wound to resurface.

Maybe your character Tamara has been avoiding her cousin who captained the boat the day her sister drowned. But now she must work side by side with him to save their family���s business. Or your character must perform a wellness check on someone who lives in the building where her abusive parents raised her. Exposing your character to fears and painful memories can awaken them to the realization that the past is holding them prisoner.

Include a Sacrifice

A character facing a challenge that���s beyond her must make some hard choices if she wants to avoid losing everything. Maybe she must abandon one goal to put more energy into another, or give up on a passion to stand by a friend. Sacrifices are meaningful and will cause readers to care, so don���t be afraid to use them.

Turn to Your Genre

Every genre will have specific opportunities to ramp up conflict. Does your character live in a historical time when certain illnesses were prevalent, or their rights were restricted because of their race, gender, or religion? Is there a specific technology that is hampering your character���s ability to move undetected in a future world? Pull organic conflict from the very bedrock of your genre by considering the character���s reality and the challenges they might face.

Don���t Make Violence Your Go-To

As you seek ways to power up conflict, it can be tempting to use violence to hammer home a threat. Sometimes this is warranted and fits the scenario, but other times it���s used as an easy way out. Before going to this extreme, pause to see what���s best for the story. If you decide to use it, don���t make it the only tool in your bag of tricks. Writers should also think twice about using gratuitous violence to characterize, especially in situations that directly target women or children.

Need more ideas for story conflict? Check out the 225 scenarios covered in the GOLD and SILVER editions of The Conflict Thesaurus: A Writer���s Guide to Obstacles, Adversaries, and Inner Conflict.

The post How to Generate Powerful Story Conflict appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.

Failure in Fiction

Writers need to have a sadistic streak to inflict pain���emotional or physical���on our beloved characters repeatedly, but failure is important in fiction. Without it, the story drags.

Why to Include Failure

Without failure, we decrease the stakes, consequences, and slow the pace. And, most importantly, without failure there is no character arc. The story may seem messy and uncomfortable when we add failure, but it also adds authenticity. Mistakes and failure are part of life. If we don���t shy away from failure, the characters��� journey feels real.

Think about it this way. Who would you rather champion���a character who worked hard, persevered, failed a gazillion times, and still achieved massive success or someone who inherited a business?

How to Include Failure

It���s not difficult to make a character fail. The possibilities are endless. Failure might result from the character���s flaws, fears, insecurities, inabilities, or simple mistakes and oversights that have major consequences later in the story.

Here a few examples:

Trusting the wrong personRefusal to accept help or adviceMisheard informationTripping, slipping, fallingUnable to follow simple directionsLosing something that���s important to the storylineRushing without forethoughtMisunderstanding a friend/parent/mentorMisunderstanding directions, plot clues, etc.Misreading a situationOverhearing something incorrectlyMisplaced suspicion of an innocent person and/or act of kindnessPhysically failingArriving too lateArriving too earlyDropping an important object that shattersLosing something importantSpeaking without thinking things through firstUnwilling to stay quietSneeze or cough at the wrong timeNot speaking up when they shouldForgetfulnessNot trusting or second-guessing their own capabilitiesNot being willing to take a needed riskWhere to Include Failure

We don���t need major complex issues to fail. Speedbumps in every scene help with pacing. Our character doesn���t need to be a complete klutz, but they should make mistakes. Otherwise, the character won���t feel real.

We enjoy watching others fail. It���s human nature. How many of you have gotten frustrated with a cyclist who���s holding up traffic? Have you ever wished the car in front of him would open their door? Or the tires would blow, sending the cyclist over the handlebars?

Admit it. We���ve all experienced similar thoughts. Do we want the cyclist harmed? No. We just want him out of our way. And let���s face it, if he crashes it���d be a lot more interesting. Dark thoughts entering our headspace doesn���t mean we���re bad people. It means we���re human.

Failure creates conflict.Conflict creates tension and raises the stakes.Tension is far more interesting than continual success, which gets boring fast.

To answer the ���Where?��� question, include failure when things are going a little too well. Now, it doesn���t need to be a major failure. The character arc shouldn���t change.

Four quartiles or Parts (each represent 25% of the book) of a character arc should look like this:

Part I���The Setup: Introduce main character, hook the reader, and setup First Plot Point. In terms of character, they���re like a newborn experiencing the world for the first time. With an uncertain future ahead of them, they should fail. A lot. Part II���The Response: Main character reacts to their new reality, the goals, stakes, and obstacles revealed by the First Plot Point. They���re trying new things and failing a great deal. Part III���The Attack: Midpoint information or awareness causes the MC to change course in how to approach obstacles. The MC is now empowered with intel on how to proceed, rather than staying reactive. We still need failure, but they���re smaller mistakes.Part IV���The Resolution: The MC summons the courage and growth to find a solution, overcome inner obstacles, and conquer the villain(s). Failure is minimal here, if at all.When to Include Failure

Let���s say your character is cruising along. They���ve met many of their scene-level goals and are making decent progress. Now would be the perfect time for failure. I���ll show you what I mean���

A scene is broken into two parts, Scene and Sequel.

Scene Structure

Goal: What does the character want to achieve? What���s their objective?

Conflict: Obstacles preventing the character from reaching that goal. *Here���s a great place to add failure.

Disaster: Things worsen. *Or here.

Sequel Structure

Reaction: How does the character react to the Disaster? *Another perfect spot for failure.

Dilemma: A no-win situation. If they do A, B might happen. But if they refuse to act, the fallout will be worse.

Decision (which leads to the Goal of the next scene): The act of choosing what to do. *We can even add failure here (i.e. short-sightedness).

On a micro-level, include failure in motivation-reaction units or MRUs.

Motivation (external): Something elicits a response in our character.Reaction (internal): How the character responds to the outside stimuli.

Also known as cause and effect, failure can only occur in the reaction. Why? Because the MC has no control over external stimuli. Could their past actions or mistakes be responsible for the motivation/cause they���re facing now? Absolutely. Hence why failure is so effective in fiction. As mentioned above, failure leads to conflict. And conflict drives the story.

What types of failure have you included in a WIP?

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Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Funster

In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes���”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He posited that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another.

Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create.

But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story.

But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.

DESCRIPTION: This character lives to make people laugh by telling jokes, playing pranks, and clowning around.

FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: The Weasley twins (the Harry Potter series), Merry and Pippin (The Lord of the Rings), Matilda (Matilda), Viola (Twelfth Night), Jim Halpert (The Office)

COMMON STRENGTHS: Adventurous, Bold, Charming, Confident, Creative, Easygoing, Extroverted, Flamboyant, Flirtatious, Friendly, Funny, Independent, Perceptive, Playful, Quirky, Spontaneous, Spunky, Uninhibited, Whimsical, Witty

COMMON WEAKNESSES: Childish, Cocky, Devious, Dishonest, Disloyal, Disrespectful, Flaky, Frivolous, Impulsive, Inattentive, Irresponsible, Mischievous, Rebellious, Reckless, Rowdy, Self-Destructive, Self-Indulgent, Selfish

ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES
Attending many social events and parties
Knowing a lot of people
Being a good host
Having a good sense of humor
Taking risks
Being resilient emotionally
Knowing how to read a room
Being unpredictable
Being insensitive to people’s feelings
Not always knowing when to stop
Making impulsive decisions

SITUATIONS THAT WILL CHALLENGE THEM
Being around people who don’t appreciate their sense of humor
Unintentionally insulting someone important (or someone they care about)
Their prank backfiring and causing serious damage or trouble for others

TWIST THIS TROPE WITH A CHARACTER WHO���
Is the protagonist rather than the sidekick
Also has a serious goal
Has an atypical trait: philosophical, responsible, sentimental, studious, morbid, etc.

CLICH��S TO BE AWARE OF
The funster who has no depth and only exists as comic relief
A funster as a support character with no arc

Other Type and Trope Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (16 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, and then give our Free Trial a spin.

The post Character Type & Trope Thesaurus: Funster appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS��.