Kimberly A. Bettes's Blog, page 18
August 30, 2011
August 23, 2011
Guest Article
A week or so ago, Dan DeWitt called on indie authors to help with his new project, helping other indie authors. I wrote an article for his website pertaining to keeping a timeline in your story. I was the first one to participate. Yay, me! I've decided to copy it here along with a link to Dan's site, where you can find other articles designed to help authors by those who've learned things the hard way.
This is the article as it appears on Dan DeWitt's site (which is here: http://dandewittfiction.blogspot.com/2011/08/diy-writer-1-keeping-proper-timeline.html#more).
The DIY Writer #1: Keeping a Proper Timeline
This is an entry in the "DIY Writer" series in which writers share their tips, tricks, and experiences to help guide others from the opening sentences to self-publishing.
The story you're reading starts on a Monday. You know this because the author said, "Monday morning, Joe drove to work." The character goes to work a couple of days, and the next thing you know, it's Friday. You think, "Hm. That's odd. They didn't mention Joe was part-time help, and I don't think I slept-read again so what's up with that?" You're confused. You decide to have a drink and mull things over. Still confused, you have another. You stare at the words, which by now are running amok on the page like horny ants. So you have another drink to make them stand still. You forget why you're drinking, so you have another. The next thing you know, you're a raging alcoholic who refuses to attend your AA meetings because they might make you read a pamphlet, and reading will bring the traumatic memories of a reckless timeline to the surface. My point? No one wants to read a story that can't follow a timeline. Not even alcoholics.
It's easy to lose track of your timeline when writing, what with character A cheating on character B, and the murder of characters C and D, who already dropped the money at location #1 and planted a bomb at location #2! So how do you keep your days straight when writing?
Used to, I just did my best to remember. And as we all know (especially people who know me personally), the human mind is faulty to say the least, mine being no exception. In fact, my mind is probably from where that fact derives. What was I saying? Oh, yeah. Timelines.
Last summer, I wrote a novel called The Good Neighbor. While writing it, I decided to create a file in which to make a street map so I could keep track of whose house was located where and the relation to everyone else's house. Then, I decided to list each character and their characteristics (i.e., hair color, eye color, jobs, etc.). Then, I decided that since I had already created a folder where I was keeping notes for the story, I might as well go ahead and keep track of everything else. After all, I was getting confused. I was keeping track of the whereabouts of 8 people, one of which worked two weeks on night shift and two weeks on day shift. (You see how this could be confusing.)
So I went back to the beginning of the story and read through, marking in my file on which day the story started and each day since. It was no surprise to me that when I'd caught up with myself, I'd already gone a day over where I thought I was in the story. I fixed it, and have kept track ever since. Work smart, not hard.
For something to be so simple and so obvious, it certainly took me long enough to stumble upon it. But it's an excellent habit to get into. Each and every time I start a story, I create two Word documents. One labeled [Title of Story], and the other labeled [Title of Story Notes]. In my notes document, I put the following:
1) I list characters by name and every detail about them. You may think you know your characters well enough to not need a list, but eventually, you'll forget who had the braces and who had the freckles.
2) I write down everything I want to happen throughout the story (I've never been one to make an actual outline) – not necessarily in order – and I check them off as I write them. I could delete them, but years from now, I may want to go back and look at my thought process, so I put a line through it.
3) During the course of writing the story, things pop into my head. I add them to the document and they eventually end up in the book's description or as a clever line in the story.
4) I write on which day the story starts, and each day that passes. I also make a note of what day any major events occur, so I can reference it later. You don't want to say in Chapter 20, "When the bomb killed Joe on Friday…" if the bomb actually killed Joe on a Tuesday in Chapter 4. It's distracting to the reader. It draws them out of the story, which is exactly what you don't want to do. And of course, you make yourself look silly. I mean, for crying out loud, if you can't keep your story in order, it must not be worth reading. The next thing you know, your book sales drop and alcohol sales skyrocket.
5) And as a bonus for myself, I write the date, and how many words I wrote. It's amazing to go back and look at which days I wrote 8,000 words, and which days I only wrote a few hundred. As a writer, you can detect any patterns in your writing. If you never write well on Mondays, you can plan to spend Mondays working on your blog, practicing your ninja skills, preparing for the inevitable zombie invasion, or whatever you like to do in your spare time. If you write better on Fridays, you know to clear your schedule on Fridays, lock the doors, lay down the throwing stars, unplug the internet, and turn off the ringer on the phone. Chances are, this is NOT the day zombies will invade.
It's VERY important to keep your timeline straight. You owe it to yourself and your reader to keep them from becoming confused alcoholics. As a writer, you must've read at least one book in your life. You know how frustrating it is to find inconsistencies in the story. It pulls you out and draws your attention to the mistake. And this, folks, is a no-no.
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Be sure to stop by Dan's site to check out the other articles he has waiting for you there. Who knows? You may just learn something.
August 19, 2011
Thoughts…
Well, school is back in session. As a matter of fact, it has been for 3 days now. So, I sit here asking myself why I haven't been writing. I tell myself it's because I worked myself stupid over the summer, writing 2 novels and several short stories, publishing 7 stories, setting up a website, getting on the Twitter…But, really, is that any kind of excuse? It is, and it isn't. I needed a break. That's true. But I also need to write. I'm in the middle (well, more like the end of the 1st quarter) of a short story that I LOVE, but haven't finished. Plus, I've had a couple new ideas for stories in the last couple days. Those are on top of the hundred I already have. I NEED to write. And I will. Today? Probably not. Tomorrow? Maybe. I do like having a little time off, but with so many ideas running through my mind, I absolutely have to get them out. If I don't, my personality will likely start to change and I'll have a whole Jekyll and Hyde thing going on.
I wonder if that's why I've been bitchy lately…
August 15, 2011
August 11, 2011
Summer, In Retrospect
As summer break winds down to the last few days, I look back to see how I've spent my time. I've been so busy, it's all rushed by in a blur. But now that I stop, turn around, and really look at it, a lot of things happened.
I lost my grandmother. Since her death, I've met some family members that I hadn't met before and have reunited with some that I hadn't seen in years. As nice as that is, it's a horrible way to do it.
In the Spring, I'd set a goal for myself to write 2 novels during summer break. Then I thought, if I can write 2, surely, I can write 3. After all, I have this huge folder of story ideas, complete with tons of notes, and I've been thinking about them for so long, I already know every single thing that's going to happen. And I've been putting off writing several of these stories. Why? Who knows. So I changed my goal to 3. Unrealistic? Probably. I could've made the goal of 3 easily, though. I was on track to have all 3 finished with time to spare. But after the death of my grandmother, I lost a couple weeks. Then, the next month, my neck began giving me a lot of problems, and has cost me 2-3 weeks time that I could've been writing. And then, out of nowhere, my computer gets goofy on me, and I lose 4 days fixing it. So, I reached my original goal of 2, but fell short of my goal of 3. However, I did many other things regarding my writing that more than made up for the lack of a third book.
For example, I wrote many short stories. Also, I self-pubbed 2 novels and 5 short stories that I've had lying around. I create all my own covers, which takes time, but I love doing it. I've been spending a lot of time networking, meeting other authors, reading blogs, and learning. I've also invested some time to building my fan base. I like to interact with my readers. I respond to every email and every message. Which, coincidentally, has left me very little time to read. I read like a madman during the winter, but as soon as summer came and I started working on my own stuff, it left me no time. I managed to read Jeff Strand's The Sinister Mr. Corpse. I'm currently reading Scott Nicholson's Ashes (a book of short stories) and Benedict Martin's Escaping Entry. Plus, I'm trying to finish writing a short story and editing the 2 novels I wrote. Although, I must admit, I'm not trying too hard. Call it my end of summer slowdown. I don't feel so rushed now.
On top of all that, my husband has been obsessed with putting a new roof on our house. Which would be fine, if he wasn't always having me look stuff up for him. As if I'm sitting here doing nothing. Then, there was the back to school shopping last week. Wouldn't have been so bad if it hadn't taken me 30 minutes to talk my son into trying on a pair of jeans. Kids. Plus, the shoe choices these days are ridiculous. Why must all shoes be hideous? Or white? No fear, though. After 3 stores and lots of looking and trying on, we finally found his 2 pairs. Whew. Now tomorrow, eye doctor appointment. Monday is Open House at school. Wednesday, school starts. With a new school year, will come 8,000 pages of filling in the same information that I have for the last 9 years. Oh well. It's part of it.
So as you see, it's been a very hectic summer, and I don't feel at all like I've had a vacation. But that comes in the fall for me. We take a lot of walks, have a lot of picnics and tailgate suppers, and spend a lot of time outdoors piddling. I have to admit, I hate to watch summer break go, but I love to watch it leave!
