Traci Depree's Blog, page 164

I'm back!

It's been way too long! I've missed you. I'll be back here, in the midst of editing great Christian fiction, writing my own and homeschooling my two youngest kids. Life is crazy-busy but it's good. Because God is good. I hope your Friday is filled with reminders of His goodness. Just look for them.

Hugs,

Traci

A Challenge to Christian Writers

Lately there's been a lot of talk about how authors are going to make a living in this new digital age. Free Kindle books abound. New, unproven authors are jumping into the fray. And for secular authors I understand the dilemma. Their livelihood has suddenly dried up as readers have a plethora of free options.

But we, as followers of Christ, called to proclaim the gospel until He comes, have a different calling. I know this is radical. But imagine a world where Christian authors cared enough about the unsaved to freely give that book or that study guide so new Christians could grow in their faith and in turn bring others to Christ.  I've seen how Bible studies transform lives, how people excited about their faith can't help but invite those they love to experience the same joy they've found.

As a new Christian in the 1970s I devoured Keith Green's "Last Day's Newsletter" every month as well as all his albums. Why? Because he offered them for free. Raised by a single mother in a trailer court, I didn't have money for such things. But Keith felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit to get out of his recording contract with Sparrow so he could offer his materials himself for free to those who couldn't afford it (and Sparrow let him out of that contract!). That conviction boosted me and many others on our faith journey. I thank God for it.

This digital age is a perfect opportunity to spread the gospel, to help new Christians grow in their faith! People who might never have the chance or access to such life changing content.

Will we put a ransom on Christ? Will we be so concerned about being paid for all our hard work that we will let the unsaved starve at our gates? If we are more concerned about getting that royalty check than we are about proclaiming the Good News of Christ we have missed the point. We are monetizing His sacrifice.

God knows every hair on our head. He has promised to take care of us! But we must trust Him. How quickly could we accomplish the Great Commission if we had that kind of faith? If we stopped worrying about ourselves and looked to Him with a reckless abandon? Oh, rise with me and meet this challenge. I know it isn't easy.

But there's NOTHING more I want than for Christ to return. More than anything, I want to see the clouds rolled back and the Son of Man returning for me.

Oh, that day!

I love you all,

Traci

A Challenge to Christian Writers

Lately there's been a lot of talk about how authors are going to make a living in this new digital age. Free Kindle books abound. New, unproven authors are jumping into the fray. And for secular authors I understand the dilemma. Their livelihood has suddenly dried up as readers have a plethora of free options.

But we, as followers of Christ, called to proclaim the gospel until He comes, have a different calling. I know this is radical. But imagine a world where Christian authors cared enough about the unsaved to freely give that book or that study guide so new Christians could grow in their faith and in turn bring others to Christ.  I've seen how Bible studies transform lives, how people excited about their faith can't help but invite those they love to experience the same joy they've found.

As a new Christian in the 1970s I devoured Keith Green's "Last Day's Newsletter" every month as well as all his albums. Why? Because he offered them for free. Raised by a single mother in a trailer court, I didn't have money for such things. But Keith felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit to get out of his recording contract with Sparrow so he could offer his materials himself for free to those who couldn't afford it (and Sparrow let him out of that contract!). That conviction boosted me and many others on our faith journey. I thank God for it.

This digital age is a perfect opportunity to spread the gospel, to help new Christians grow in their faith! People who might never have the chance or access to such life changing content.

Will we put a ransom on Christ? Will we be so concerned about being paid for all our hard work that we will let the unsaved starve at our gates? If we are more concerned about getting that royalty check than we are about proclaiming the Good News of Christ we have missed the point. We are monetizing His sacrifice.

God knows every hair on our head. He has promised to take care of us! But we must trust Him. How quickly could we accomplish the Great Commission if we had that kind of faith? If we stopped worrying about ourselves and looked to Him with a reckless abandon? Oh, rise with me and meet this challenge. I know it isn't easy.

But there's NOTHING more I want than for Christ to return. More than anything, I want to see the clouds rolled back and the Son of Man returning for me.

Oh, that day!

I love you all,

Traci

Check Back Next Week

Part of being a writer/editor is the looming deadline. This week I'm plugging away on a 500-page novel! That means not a whole lot of time for blogging. But I'll be back next week. Promise.

In the meantime I'll be praying for you and you can pray for me.

Big hugs,

Traci

Check Back Next Week

Part of being a writer/editor is the looming deadline. This week I'm plugging away on a 500-page novel! That means not a whole lot of time for blogging. But I'll be back next week. Promise.

In the meantime I'll be praying for you and you can pray for me.

Big hugs,

Traci

The First Draft

By now you have your basic outline and cast of characters, so it's time to write that first draft. First drafts can be daunting, all that whitespace. I hate first drafts. They make my brain hurt.

They require imagination overload. Editing once I have something written is far easier than staring at that blank page. I'm too self critical during the first draft and it often causes me to stop and go back, reworking before I have my skeleton laid out.

So, take that ten-page outline you started with and turn it into thirty pages, still in outline form, laying out exactly what each scene will contain, whose point of view the scene will be from, what conversations will occur in that scene, how it will move plot forward. I tend to forget what I have in my outline so I simply save a copy of it and write the actual scenes right over it as I go so I don't get sidetracked.

First draft is all about the pacing of your story. Keeping the plot moving forward, nothing else. This is what will keep your reader engaged later so it's critical that you do it well. Write as fast as you can, no self editing. Just let your imagination flow. Later drafts will bring details and subplots into focus. If something occurs to you, make a note of it if you must, but now is not the time to dwell on nitpicky issues.

Writing is like building a house--first you have a blueprint, that's your outline; second, dig the foundation, your characters and plot; third, frame up the house, this is your first draft. You wouldn't try to paint and decorate a room during framing, so don't do it during your first draft.

If you've studied writing at all you've heard the phrase "show, don't tell." This is a basic theme in life--after all, we judge someone's character by the things they do, not just what they say. And if the two don't align we know something is askew! In writing it's no different and it applies on many levels--I'll write more about this next week. At this phase, your outline tells what will happen; your first draft turns that telling into showing. Instead of, "They had an animated conversation about the price of beef and Shelley saw what a great wit Mark had" put the whole scene onstage. Let your reader be in on the conversation, hear Mark's wit for themselves, see the body language between Shelley and Mark that shows us whether they are interested in each other or not. Readers want to discern that the conversation is animated for themselves. Showing turns a flat, boring piece of information into a three-dimensional scene that the reader can partake of--far more memorable and fun.

A good rule of thumb: if you look at a page and see no quotation marks (dialogue) odds are there's some unnecessary telling going on that can be turned to showing. And since this is your first draft you're allowed to have some telling left in by the time you're done--as long as it's gone by the time you finish draft #2!

Set a daily page goal--five pages would be minimum for me, but if you can only manage one you can still write a book in a year! Ten pages would be optimal--a 300 page book in a month. That's pretty amazing. Odds are your first draft will be way under the final word count you're shooting for. That's okay. The next drafts will add in scenes, depth of plot and characterization, so don't worry about it. The word count will come. Story comes before word count.

That's probably enough for today. Have fun with it and don't be too intimidated by that blank page.

Warmly,

Traci

The Meddlesome Mother

Yesterday as Jem, my seven-year-old, was getting ready for school she paused and asked, "What's an anemone?"

I said, "A sea plant that stings. Clown fish live in them, like in Finding Nemo."

To which Jem replied, "So, what's a nemesis?"

I guess they do sound the same!

I enjoy my girls. They bring me great joy. We laugh together all the time. If you know me you know I love to laugh. Each has their own sharp wit, Haley especially with her dry sarcastic bent. I adore it. That doesn't mean there aren't challenges, but the challenges stretch me. Show me that how they turn out isn't entirely up to me but up to God and their own choices.

To be honest it's much easier to parent my younger two. Their lives are simple, their wants uncomplicated. They are happy just to spend time together. Snuggling is at the top of their favorite-things-to-do list.

It's the older ones that tax me. I can't control them and their choices any more--and as a mother that's a hard lesson to learn. Especially when I see them making poor choices! I want to yell at them, and admittedly sometimes I still do. But what good does it do? These are their mistakes to make, their lessons to learn, their own faith to grow. Not mine. Some mothers never learn this lesson. I know my dad's mother never caught on.

He was thirty years old and his mother was telling him what house to buy (the one in her backyard!); she meddled in every aspect of his married life. Some things she did were pretty horrific. Her manipulation the stuff of soap operas! Charlie was "her boy" and grandma never let my mom never forgot it. Eventually grandma's meddling played a part in their divorce and the devastation of my father's life after that. I'm not saying my dad didn't make his own choices. He sure did. But a mother that won't let go adds a whole other dysfunction to the mix.

Once they reach adulthood our kids need to choose how they are going to live their lives for themselves. Hopefully the foundation we've laid is a good one--one of love for God, respect for others, and self love. Clearly my dad didn't have such a foundation. But I'm trusting God that that cycle has been broken for my kids. Proverbs 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it." I"m holding onto that, though a part of me doubts how well I accomplished the training part! I guess I'll have to trust God on that.

That's the thing I've learned. When I'm stressing and fretting about the choices my daughters may or may not be making I'm forgetting to trust God. My children aren't MY property. They are His, entrusted to my care for a short time. He loves them way more than I can possibly love them. He won't let them go. I can rest in that. And in the meantime, I can enjoy them. This has been a hard lesson for me to learn since my girls started leaving the nest. I keep having to relearn it! Eventually I'll catch on.

Happy Wednesday, all,

Traci

The Meddlesome Mother

Yesterday as Jem, my seven-year-old, was getting ready for school she paused and asked, "What's an anemone?"

I said, "A sea plant that stings. Clown fish live in them, like in Finding Nemo."

To which Jem replied, "So, what's a nemesis?"

I guess they do sound the same!

I enjoy my girls. They bring me great joy. We laugh together all the time. If you know me you know I love to laugh. Each has their own sharp wit, Haley especially with her dry sarcastic bent. I adore it. That doesn't mean there aren't challenges, but the challenges stretch me. Show me that how they turn out isn't entirely up to me but up to God and their own choices.

To be honest it's much easier to parent my younger two. Their lives are simple, their wants uncomplicated. They are happy just to spend time together. Snuggling is at the top of their favorite-things-to-do list.

It's the older ones that tax me. I can't control them and their choices any more--and as a mother that's a hard lesson to learn. Especially when I see them making poor choices! I want to yell at them, and admittedly sometimes I still do. But what good does it do? These are their mistakes to make, their lessons to learn, their own faith to grow. Not mine. Some mothers never learn this lesson. I know my dad's mother never caught on.

He was thirty years old and his mother was telling him what house to buy (the one in her backyard!); she meddled in every aspect of his married life. Some things she did were pretty horrific. Her manipulation the stuff of soap operas! Charlie was "her boy" and grandma never let my mom never forgot it. Eventually grandma's meddling played a part in their divorce and the devastation of my father's life after that. I'm not saying my dad didn't make his own choices. He sure did. But a mother that won't let go adds a whole other dysfunction to the mix.

Once they reach adulthood our kids need to choose how they are going to live their lives for themselves. Hopefully the foundation we've laid is a good one--one of love for God, respect for others, and self love. Clearly my dad didn't have such a foundation. But I'm trusting God that that cycle has been broken for my kids. Proverbs 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it." I"m holding onto that, though a part of me doubts how well I accomplished the training part! I guess I'll have to trust God on that.

That's the thing I've learned. When I'm stressing and fretting about the choices my daughters may or may not be making I'm forgetting to trust God. My children aren't MY property. They are His, entrusted to my care for a short time. He loves them way more than I can possibly love them. He won't let them go. I can rest in that. And in the meantime, I can enjoy them. This has been a hard lesson for me to learn since my girls started leaving the nest. I keep having to relearn it! Eventually I'll catch on.

Happy Wednesday, all,

Traci

Loneliness is an Ailment God Loves to Cure

I've been lonely. Yes, I know that Christ is the friend who sticks closer than a brother. And He definitely is this for me. But for a while now I've been asking God to bring me some strong Christian friends. Women who can share with me in the area of my life that is core to who I am. Ever since the deep friendships I made in Bible school I'd been missing that connection. Several months ago I heard about a Beth Moore Bible study starting in my little town. It was the perfect opportunity. So I signed up and dragged my daughters along, and some of my other friends and their daughters.

What a wonderful time to connect with other women, dig into God's word, and grow! Continued study of God's work throughout history deepens my faith and understanding of who He is. And friends to share this excitement with--priceless! We share our heartaches and our joys. We share our excitement over new discoveries as well as prayer requests. We encourage one another. It's so much easier to share your burdens than it is to carry them alone.

Looking for answers to this particular prayer can be like a story I once heard. A man was caught in the midst of a terrible flood. He climbed onto the roof of his house and prayed for God to rescue him. Along came a boat. The driver said, "Hop in! We'll save you."

The man replied, "No, I'm waiting for God to rescue me."

So the boat left. Along came a helicopter, that blasted, "Grab the rope and we'll pull you to safety!"

The man shook his head. "No, God will rescue me." Finally the man, exhausted from fighting the wind and the waves succumbed and slipped into the waters, drowning. When he got to heaven he asked God, "Why didn't you save me?"

God answered, "I sent a boat and a helicopter. What more did you want?"

Sometimes God's answers don't look like answers at all. They aren't seemingly miraculous. They're simple, mundane. Like the starting of a Bible study in your town. But what exactly is miraculous? We're so used to miracles in everyday life--the sun that is the perfect distance from earth to sustain life, that we can breathe air that is perfectly formulated for life, and so many others--that we cease to see them as such.

So, if you're lonely, ask God to bring you a Christian friend. Then open your eyes to see how He'll answer. Because He will!

Traci

Auditioning Your Cast of Characters

Hopefully by now you have an outline. Don't carve this in stone just yet because you need to create your cast of characters. If characters have the right dimension they'll push your outline into new places you didn't think of before. That's okay! Just go back and rework your outline as you need to so you still have that map for later.

Novels are meant to take on a life of their own--it's evidence that your book is becoming "real." And if it's real to you, the writer, it will be real to your reader.

So, sit down and start thinking of the who part of your novel. Start with your main characters, then go on to more peripheral ones. Characters need depth to resonate with your readers. By depth I don't mean dump a load of information on the reader up front. That's overwhelming and readers simply can't retain it all (besides, they want your PLOT to pull them forward and information dumps aren't plot). Some details you create may never come to light in the book, only you will know them. But in order to write a character well you need to know them intimately.

Note that often as I'm writing I don't really know a character until I've written the full draft or even a couple drafts as the details of that character's life take form. But add in as much detail as you can think of now and go back later to fill in more as it reveals itself to you.

Here are some questions to consider as you brainstorm who will be in your novel:

1. What does your character look like? Their ethnicity, eye and hair color, height. Often this is the first thing the reader will learn about your characters. Don't lose track of this as you write! Readers will notice.

2. What is your character's history? Their life before the story began, their family background. What has caused them to become who they are at story's start? These things should weigh into what they do in the course of the story.

3. What are your character's strengths and weaknesses? Every character should have both if they are to be like people we know in real life. Sometimes the character will be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses, sometimes not. It's often more fun if they are clueless about what they are good at or awful at. And remember that often a person's strength is also their weakness--two sides of the same coin. For example, the brilliant scientist who can find the cure to horrible disease but because of his brilliance can't relate to people to save his life. That kind of juxtaposition will be rich for your reader.

4. What are your character's "markers"? These are defining quirks, expressions, speech patterns, body language that is specific to them. These touches add a depth to characters with very little work. They help SHOW the reader who your character is in the nuances. So give your character a lisp, a limp, they touch a scar on their face, maybe they sigh when they are frustrated... These should be used sparingly so they don't feel overdone, but just enough to add the right spice.

5. What is your character's world view? This will of course be affected by their history, but every person reacts differently to similar situations. Is your character a sunny person or rather dour? Do they have complete faith in God or are they as carnal as they come?

6. What does your character want? This is their personal arc within the story, not the plot necessarily though the two should be tied together. Keep in mind that what they want will likely shift altogether by story's end. For example in the movie Shrek, he thought he wanted to get all the woodland creatures out of his swamp so he could be alone (because he felt rejected), but by story's end Shrek discovered he wanted love, connection. Each character wants something, even minor characters. It can be something simple or something enormous. Let your imagination run wild!

7. How do you characters interact with each other? It's always more interesting to your reader if your cast of characters is diverse. How one character plays off another can add a lot of fun to your novel. Banter makes readers smile! Let one character's weakness be another character's strength. Look at other casts and see if there are elements that you might like to add to your story. For example take a look at Winnie the Pooh's cast: Pooh, steady calming bear; Owl, wise know-it-all, rather condescending; Piglet, quiet, sweet, loves on everyone; Tigger, energetic, spontaneous, fun; Eeyore, the cup is more than half empty... The characters play off of each other, making each character more memorable. 

8. Name your characters. A name says a lot. We have general ideas about people based on their name. Dickens used this greatly in his novels--just think Scrooge! A man named John is trustworthy. A woman named Betty is ditzy and usually rather plain. There are subtle stereotypes in names that we can use to our advantage, so let's use them.

Have fun with your casting call!

Traci