Benjamin Wallace's Blog, page 18
December 1, 2014
Holy Crap, Free Books: Dumb White Husband vs. Santa
Holy Crap, Free Books: Dumb White Husband vs Santa
Happy holidays,
I got you something. It’s a short story about a dad, a kid and all of the things that go into making Christmas festive. It’s called Dumb White Husband vs Santa and you’ll get it for free when you sign up for my newsletter.
Dumb White Husband vs Santa
Erik has planned the perfect Christmas for his family. The plan is foolproof, bulletproof and flame retardant. Nothing can undo the hours of planning and preparation. Nothing but odd-shaped packages, ill-timed fruitcakes and an errant neighborhood Santa Claus. Get it now and have a Merry Christmas.
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November 25, 2014
Coming Soon: How To Host An Intervention
His friends are here to help.
Tommy’s friends are worried that his prepping is getting out of hand.
It’s no so much that he’s prepared. It’s what he preparing for.
This new short story has been called:
“Hilarious!”
“Fantastic!”
“I can’t believe you’re making jokes about something so serious!”
“You’re a horrible person!”
How to Host an Intervention will be released on November 30th and you can only get it in my newsletter. Sign up today and find out why I’m such a “horrible person!”
NOTE: You’ll get this story if you’re already a subscriber. If you’re a new subscriber, you’ll also get Pilgrim: Spit of the Demon. That’s pretty generous.
November 19, 2014
Rough Drafts: The Rougher the Better
I’ve been struggling to finish another full-length book this year. But, I finally realized what was holding me back and now I feel stupid because it was something I’d learned long ago. I wasn’t making my rough drafts rough enough.
THE PROBLEM: TOO MANY TASKS
I was writing my rough drafts so they would be fairly close to the finished work. I was showing, as per the old advice, not telling and trying to write each sentence to be its best.
That was stupid because that’s not what a rough draft is for.
Writing a book and telling a story are two different things. Both are important, but trying to do them both at the same time is a great way to get frustrated, hate everything and yell at your loved ones.
In doing both at once you’re trying to craft the tale and create engaging prose at the same time. That’s two things. That’s multitasking. And while we all claim to be good at multitasking deep down we all know we’re full of shit.
Separating the two processes speeds up the rough draft and the final work substantially.
THE SOLUTION: DON’T SHOW. TELL.
This is exact opposite of what everyone says. Show, don’t tell it great advice for good reason—telling a story is boring. Just listen to a kid tell you about their day. A book can’t be like that. But the rough draft isn’t for anyone but the author. And right now, they’re just laying out the instructions for the book to come.
The story is simply what happened followed by what happened next. So, I write my rough drafts like a 4-year-old tells a story: then this happened and then this happened and then this happened. Granted it’s a 4-year-old with a foul mouth and a twisted sense of humor, but a 4-year-old nonetheless.
There are a couple of steps to get to this point:
First, I write down what the book is about. Just the basic plot line: “Hero is facing a threat.”
Then I dived the story into thirds and write what happens in each third.
“The threat reveals itself.”
“Locating the threat.”
“Confronting the threat.”
Then come the chapters. I break each chapter into what needs to happen to advance the story. This is where the big scenes and moments that were playing in the back of my mind start falling into place.
This is where the rough draft really starts to take place and the 4-year-old really comes into play. Line by line I write what happens. Then what happens next. I tend to drop in dialogue as I go. But other than that it’s a line that says “the hero and threat fight. The threat gets the upper hand. A bear eats everybody. Etc.”
If I don’t have a name for a character I write THIS CHARACTER NEEDS A NAME and I’ll drop it in on the second draft. If I think there might be joke there, but I don’t know what it is, I’ll type JOKE HERE and move on.
Not only does this keep the story running in my mind and my fingers moving on the keyboard, it makes it easier to make changes. If I need to change something, I deleted a few lines of dry instruction instead of a thousand hard fought words that I might have fallen in love with.
Plots can be moved or abandoned without costing hours of work and new plots can be born just as quickly.
When I’m done with it I’ve got myself a perfect set of instructions to build the book.
THEN THIS HAPPENS: DON’T TELL. SHOW.
Every element is in place at this point. Every line of action is there. Everything that needs to be said is paraphrased. Every loose end is sewn up. Now it’s just rewriting. And that’s easy.
Really, now I’m just following my own instructions.
The line of instruction comes out and the captivating line of description goes in and everybody cheers.
WHY I RESISTED
Like I said, I knew all this. But, I hesitated.
It took me a while to embrace the roughest rough drafts.
I thought that the writing process would loose its fluid nature. I thought maybe the characters would no longer have control and they wouldn’t surprise me anymore. But, it still happened.
Even when writing in this very basic fashion I see the characters and scenes vividly. It’s all born in my head and describing it in the most basic way doesn’t change how I’d pictured it. It was just that I freed myself from writing it down and was able to focus on building the story.
WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?
At my fastest I could rough out two chapters in a full day. Twenty to thirty pages. Now it’s five to seven chapters in a couple of hours.
I’d know where the story needed to go but couldn’t get it there. That’s frustrating. Now it’s easier to stay enthusiastic about a story.
Writer’s block isn’t even a thing anymore.
A rough draft would take two to three months if I was lucky. Now, I can turn out a rough draft in about a week.
I yell less.
So, when it comes to rough drafts, the rougher the better.
Here are some other writing mistakes I’ve made.
Get a free story about pilgrims that’s not about eating.
Sign-up for my newsletter and you’ll get it included with the confirmation email.
Together with his Croatan companion, Umpagos, Jonathan Parker searches the new world to locate and destroy the monsters of Native American “mythology.”
This month’s newsletter will also include an exclusive story called How to Host an Intervention.
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November 17, 2014
Fewer buckles. More knuckles. Free stories for Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is coming up and soon we’ll all gather to fall asleep in front of a football game to celebrate.We’ll talk about almost everything but the Pilgrims and their supper with the Indians. You know why? It’s boring.
Don’t get me wrong. It’s nice. It was cool of the Indians to bail the Pilgrims out of starvation, but “they were hungry and they all ate” isn’t a real exciting tale.
So, I thought what if there was a Pilgrim on the Mayflower that wasn’t here looking for religious freedom?
What if he was sent by the church to battle the demons and monsters that inhabited the New World?
What if he wasn’t really that nice?
That led me to Pilgrim: Spit of the Demon, which I’m giving to you for free.
I’ll also be sending out a free story at the end of the month called How to Host an Intervention which will only be available to newsletter subscribers until later this year so sign up now.
Here’s a little more about Pilgrim.
Jonathan Parker arrived in the new world on the Mayflower. He signed no compact. He attended no feast. His journey was not one of religious freedom but of religious edict. Sent by the church to make the new world safe for Christian settlers, the pilgrim warrior is charged with clearing the forests, rivers, mountains and prairies of ancient demons. Together with his Croatan companion, Umpagos, Parker searches the new world to locate and destroy the monsters of Native American “mythology.”
To the Abenaki people, Ato-sis is a being of the ancient age. Feared for his lizard-like form and cannibalistic nature, he has always been a part of their world. To Parker he is simply another demon that stands in his path to redemption. When he finally encounters the beast, however, he discovers that there is more to this “myth” than he had expected.
Sign up now and get it with your confirmation.
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November 7, 2014
Screw The Muse: Brest Fortress Memorial
Here’s my basic creative process. Fill my head with information until my brain is full and a story falls out. Then fill it up again. I spend a lot of time filling up my head.
Jack London said, “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.” I say, screw the muse. I’ll find my own inspiration. Here’s something I found:
There’s a statue of a giraffe in front of the Dallas Zoo.
That’s not a big deal. It’s not even 70 feet tall.
Pictured here: An unimpressive giraffe.
What is a big deal is that it is the fifth tallest statue in the US.
And that sucks.
Here’s the ranking:
Statue of Liberty
Our Lady of the Rockies
National Monument to the Forefathers
Golden Driller (Sadly, a former ad gimmick)
Big, Stupid Giraffe
It’s sad. I’m right down the road from the 5th biggest statue in the country and it’s not even a thing.
But you know who can build a statue? Commies.
The Soviets and the Chineese—man, could they build a cool statue.
Here’s one of a giant angry man at the Brest Fortress Memorial in Belarus.
Picture here: Soviet disgust at your puniness.
From what I gather, the Brest Fortress was the Soviet Union’s Alamo during World War II. To honor those who defended Brest, they carved this mean looking bastard out of stone.
This is what we need here. We need a pissed off Davy Crocket towering behind the Alamo, standing in defiance over the mission that means so much to Texans and confused Americans who forget that Texas was it’s own country.
What’s there now? I think it’s a mall.
pics from google earth
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November 3, 2014
Writing the Sequel
I put not focusing on a series at the top of my list of strategic self-publishing mistakes.
But, it’s not entirely true.
Almost every thing I’ve written was intended to be a series. But each works in a different way.
The Dumb White Husband series was supposed to be a bunch of short stories that turned everyday events into impossible obstacles because I believe we make everything harder than it needs to be.
The Bulletproof Adventures of Damian Stockwell were intended to be standalone books in a massive series of adventures much like Doc Savage. Continuity, character development and any kind of timeline was secondary to the punching of things. They were intended to be fun adventures with lots of jokes and little else.
Both of these series have sequels.
But, the Duck & Cover stories…there’s the pressure. What should be a fun jaunt through the apocalypse ended up being something bigger than I expected. It was intended to be a series of adventures as well, but the character went and got developed and now I can’t just stop.
WHY A SERIES
Of course, you don’t have to write a series. A lot of people are averse to them. But, I like a series. Some people don’t. Many more claim they don’t, but they’re lying. I’m not sure why everyone complains about a sequel to hit a movie when they all end up seeing it. Probably because people are stupid.
But the fact is that series sell. Many readers say they won’t bother with a book unless they know there are two more books right behind it. They want to be invested in the characters and the world they live in. It’s not worth that investment if the story will end with the last page of a single book.
WRITING THE SEQUEL IS HARD
I said earlier that the first book is hard, the second is easier and the third is really freaking hard. That’s not even talking about the sequel.
So many people became invested in my first book that I didn’t want to screw up their trust. I started writing just for me and generally didn’t care what other people thought. But, people were too nice and I didn’t want to let them down. So, I pushed to write the follow up.
I’ve started the sequel to Post-Apocalyptic Nomadic Warriors several times but once I got into it, I knew it was the wrong story. And if I tell the wrong story now, how much does it screw up down the road?
The initial sequel I started writing was going to be fun but the further I got into the more I realized the story came much later in the character’s life. I started another one, and it was the same deal. I had villains, great locations and everything else. But, unlike the other stories I’d written, the main character’s development played a crucial role in the story and it felt like I was jumping ahead.
FINALLY WRITING THE SEQUEL
It helped when I finally looked at the character’s entire story. I spent a lot of time thinking about what would happen to him over the course of his life. As a result, even though I haven’t written the book, I know what the next six or so could be if I want to take it that far.
I learned something important. I found that plot was important but not nearly as important as the characters story. I’ve always wanted to write books that were fun to read. Lots of action and packed with laughs. I never thought I’d be developing a character like this. But, now that I’m armed with this character arc as an outline, I’m finding it much easier to start writing the sequel.
I know what needs to be accomplished in the main characters life and that’s where it needs to go. More importantly, I know what needs to happen after that. The rest is just jokes and post-apocalyptic action.
Is this right for everything? No. Most series are just another adventure in a character’s life. I don’t ever see Damian Stockwell changing much. He’ll always go through his life punching evil in the face until good wins. That’s what he does and that’s what right for the story. But if you’re stuck like I was it may be worth taking a step back and figuring out how the character will grow over time and what drives that change. Will he/she eventually lose hope? What causes that. Will they fall from grace? Will they ever recover? How does their life end? Happy? Broken? Forgotten? Do they become a legend? If they do, you’d better have something worthy of that in there.
MY PLANS
My own plans are series heavy. They were always intended to be that way and I figure it’s time for me to deliver.
I’m writing the sequel to Post-Apocalyptic Nomadic Warriors now. After that it will a third Bulletproof Adventure of Damian Stockwell. Then back to the wasteland before I start filling the request for a sequel to Tortugas Rising. And, I’ll be honest, that one scares me most of all.
Then again. This could all be me. Maybe some people have no trouble with the sequel.
What’s your experience been?
What suggestions do you have for writing a sequel or series?
Or are you against it all together?
-ben
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October 31, 2014
NEW RELEASE, UNCIVIL: VANDERBILT’S BEHEMOTH
In the cold north of the North a secret lab works without rest to develop new weapons and tools for the Union Army. One project is of particular interest to the President. It is a device so terrifying, so powerful and so awesome it could single handedly win the war against the South.
But, project updates have ceased and it’s up to Pinkerton special agent Daniel Lansing to discover what has become of Vanderbilt’s Behemoth.
Vanderbilt’s Behemoth is a lighter look at the alternate history we explored in The Immortal Engine.
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October 22, 2014
New Cover Day!
I love new cover day. Things start to seem real.
Sign up for my newsletter to know when the story is released.
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October 16, 2014
Self-Publishing Mistake 1: Slowing Down and How To Fix That
As I mentioned in my original 5 mistakes post my biggest mistake was slowing down.
I have a thousand excuses for this. Life got in the way blah, blah, blah. It doesn’t matter. I had slowed down the output of words which led to fewer books which led to less news to share which led to fewer sales.
There are precious few things we can control as writers. We can’t control what the social media sites will do with their algorithms. We can’t control who pays attention to our news. We can’t control our placement in the ranks. And we certainly can’t control the trends of the day.
About the only thing we can control is our writing. So, that’s where the focus should be.
WHY SPEED MATTERS
It doesn’t. It doesn’t matter to anyone. This is something that worried me. I thought that if I put things out too fast readers would be skeptical of the quality and stay away. That’s simply not the case. As long as it’s a quality story, readers will accept it whenever it arrives. Actually, they’re waiting for it. Some of them are begging for it. Some threaten.
You’re a writer. You’re itching to tell stories. Why worry about windowing or perception when no one else is? Tell the stories you want to tell. It’s what you were born to do. The more stories you tell, the more ways there are for people to discover you. And, once they discover you, they have more to read while you put out the next piece of work.
Speed begets speed. Once you’re into a habit of writing to a certain pace it’s get easier and easier to write at that pace. Then it becomes easier to step it up. The satisfaction you get has little to do with releasing works. My two favorite words to write are THE END. The story is told and it’s ready to share. I love that feeling. I’m hooked on it. The more I get to write it the happier I am and the less bitchy I am to the people I love.
THINGS THAT SLOWED ME DOWN
Life blah, blah, blah is certainly one reason and that definitely falls into the category of personal problems. Those are personal, so I won’t get into it. But there’s always going to be something: work, kids, family, yard work—it’s usually the kids though, isn’t it? Work around it, because this is work. Happy fun time was finger painting back in kindergarten. Serious means delivering no matter what.
I wrote some well received books. I got lucky right at the start. And I love the people that read my books. But, with every reader I felt more of an obligation to make sure they weren’t disappointed. I didn’t want to let anyone down. This apprehension grew with each book. And I’ll tell you this, the second book is harder to write than the first. The third is a total bitch. The fourth was easier. And the fifth. But the sixth..and let’s not get started on sequels.
Things were going well. I’m not cursing my luck. I just didn’t acknowledge it was luck. With every climb up the charts I tried to figure out what lever I pulled, what button I pushed that made it happen. Trying to duplicate those results took up more and more of my time—time I should have been writing. But, those were things I could not control. I can control the writing.
I got a couch. Yep. I set up a sweet little writing space did my writing from the couch. And my napping. And over time I learned you’re not supposed to be that comfortable when you’re working.
SPEEDING UP
So here’s what I learned long ago, forgot, then learned again. I learned it the hard way both times. And that’s just stupid. The easy way is to learn from my mistakes. Here’s how you can write faster without sucking any more than normal.
Start without a plan. No, wait. That’s the dumbest thing you can do. Outline. Outline, outline, outline. Know where you book is going. It might not end up there, but you’d better know what you’re trying to say before you start saying it. I tried to write a book without an outline once. Once.
Sit your ass in a chair. Up right. And not a recliner. This is a job. It’s the best job there is but the second you don’t treat it like a job it turns on you. Sit down and write. Don’t get up until you’ve written something. Commit to being in that chair for hours. Even if it’s just staring at a blank screen. Eventually you’ll write out of boredom.
Write scene by scene. Psychologists call it chunking. Parents call it baby steps. If you write scene by scene, the weight of an entire novel isn’t wresting on your shoulders. What’s more daunting? A novel length historical murder mystery set against the backdrop of the American Revolution that explores a potential secret relationship between Washington and King George or fice pages of someone discovering a body? That’s what I thought. By the way, you can have that George/George plot twist—I won’t be using it.
Have a page count. You might not make it. You might not be close. But as time goes on you’ll blow by that goal. And don’t make the page count one or two pages. That’s for amateurs and you’re a pro. Five, eight, ten, twenty. Pick it and hit it. My personal goal is to get back up to twenty pages a day. I’m starting with ten. Within a few days I was over ten. It’s all about habit.
Don’t stop for anything. Typos. Plot twists. That green squiggly shit that Word throws up when it doesn’t understand something. If something you just wrote isn’t working bold it and move on. If you think of something you need to add drop a note at the bottom of the chapter. Don’t rewrite anything. That’s what second drafts are for.
Nike the shit out of it. There’s no other way but to just do it. If you sit around and waiting for the muse she will never come. But she is attracted to the sound of typing. Start without her. It will get her attention. Then when she comes to check it out, club her on the head and tie her to the desk so she never gets away again.
When you’re done writing, write some more. You’re not ready to look at that first draft anyway. Go right from The End into a dark an stormy night. Start the next story right away. See that? You never stopped writing.
Getting back to this approach I wrote two short stories and 5 chapters in a sequel this week. That’s with 40 hours worth of work, kids stuff and blah, blah, blah. Oh, and this post.
Sit down. Write. Repeat until it drives you nuts not to do it.
Now it’s back to the sequel for—which is a topic for another post.
While you’re here, sign up for my newsletter and get a free Halloween short story.
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