Elizabeth Spann Craig's Blog, page 195

What Does Your Character Want?

We frequently hear, as writers, the advice that our protagonist needs to want something.

As Kurt Vonnegut put it: "Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water."

And Vonnegut did say every character…not just our protagonist.

Of course, though, it's natural to focus on what our main character wants. If there's something he really wants and we keep it out of his reach, we're creating tension and conflict with whatever is keeping him away from his goal.

It's also important for readers to know what our protagonist's motivation is. What his stake in the story is.

Sometimes it's fun to have the protagonist struggling to choose between two separate things that he really wants….things that might seem mutually exclusive. But have them both be extremely important to the character. Obviously, this creates even more tension.

What if our protagonist's goal and what he wants changes during the course of the story? What happens then?

But we also have antagonists to work with. And if her goal is opposite from our protagonist's, then we're setting them up for battle.

What about those characters who want the same thing that our protagonist wants…but maybe they're inept in some way or accidentally bumble through and mess things up. Unintentionally.

There are also characters who don't share the same goals as our protagonist, but they aren't antagonists on a huge scale. Maybe they're just holding back our protagonist in some way because their goals don't align completely with his. (Like our protagonist's boss. Our protagonist wants to be having adventures in Maui, but his boss wants him at his desk job.)

Does your character want something on an epic scale or a smaller one? Mine usually just want to put killers behind bars. :)

Twitterific

Below are my writing-related tweets from the last week.

The Writer's Knowledge Base search engine, designed by software engineer and writer Mike Fleming, makes all these links searchable—try it for searches on plotting, characterization, querying, book promo, and more.

I'm compiling a directory of ebook professionals—cover designers, formatters, freelance editors, etc.—to make it easier for writers to connect with services. If you'd like to be added, please email me at elizabethspanncraig (at) gmail (dot) com with your contact info, website, etc. The directory can be accessed here.

I also released an ebook this week. Progressive Dinner Deadly is a Myrtle Clover mystery and is available for $2.99 on Kindle and Nook. Hope you'll mention it to any friends who enjoy mysteries.

The love triangle trend in YA: http://bit.ly/peOvjb @wordforteens

14 Quick Tips for Fantastic Fantasy: http://bit.ly/off7k3

A 3-Way Conversation: The Authors-Agent-Editor Relationship: http://bit.ly/mRcrnS

Writing It All Wrong: A Survival Manual: http://bit.ly/oxzL2w

Helping Writers Make Sense of Death: http://bit.ly/nGUtL8

The Script Lab does a 5-point plot breakdown of "Legally Blonde": http://bit.ly/pGlS6j

8 Simple Ways to Defrost Your Writing & Improve Its Clarity: http://bit.ly/oeF3zx

How to Serialize a Novel (or Not): http://bit.ly/nfKWKr

5 online tools for writers: http://bit.ly/neyhpU

Why 2nd Novels Are So Different from the First: http://bit.ly/nml8uf

The Way We Publish Now: http://bit.ly/poYmZs @AnneRAllen

Are you writing the wrong genre? http://bit.ly/mQT08i @dirtywhitecandy

Sticking our readers into an interesting situation: http://bit.ly/rmsTGk

Finding & defining a profitable niche for your book: http://bit.ly/oP5qrh

3 Criteria for a Killer Title: http://bit.ly/pXXNeL @KatieGanshert

Agents Verses Intellectual Property Lawyers: http://bit.ly/oAbMxx

Blogging without a computer: http://bit.ly/pWFSXR

Building Allies: Working with Libraries: http://bit.ly/ol4YDx @ryanmwilliams

Tips for writing dialogue: http://bit.ly/n2L9kr

How To Find an Illustrator for Your Book: http://bit.ly/ppfZB3 @thecreativepenn @writetip

3 authors, 3 examples of the disruption in #publishing: http://bit.ly/pl58kk

International Conference Survival Tips: http://bit.ly/opcNPc

How Much Has Book Marketing Changed Since 2005? http://bit.ly/pbJR6e @janefriedman

3 Copywriting Tips for Writers: http://bit.ly/ptktSb

10 things 1 writer would have done differently: http://bit.ly/q6acdz @roniloren

Open your story with a (subtle) bang: http://bit.ly/qeblLZ

Book ideas for newbie writers: http://bit.ly/mYPe7g

How Gaming Invaded 1 Writer's Writing Worldview: http://bit.ly/qBWKg8

Writers--stop worrying: http://bit.ly/rhqUMh

Should You Respond To Every Email? http://bit.ly/oSwqbA

Debut authors--take a moment to enjoy it all: http://bit.ly/qdmaWZ

Hyphenation in Compound Nouns: http://bit.ly/ohmG8C

Tips for querying: http://bit.ly/pmmKDW

Building a Magical System: A Questionnaire: http://bit.ly/qzIRDe

Comparing long and short headlines for effectiveness: http://bit.ly/pdahh7

How to be a faster writer (Slate): http://slate.me/q9IOcY

Using Dirty Fighting To Escalate Tension In Your Story: http://bit.ly/q8ya7Y @jhansenwrites

Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing. The Myth of Knowing it All: http://bit.ly/qtFpYV

Commonly misused words: http://bit.ly/qc1RMy @authorterryo

The 5 Worst Ways to Title a Blog Post: http://bit.ly/nbLU78

Suffering and the Brilliant Author: http://bit.ly/ofypfh @SarahAHoyt

How To Comparison Shop For Books: http://bit.ly/oON2xL @galleycat

Plotting mysteries...with help from JK Rowling: http://bit.ly/qF8uAa @HP4Writers

The Art of Stringing 'Em Along: http://bit.ly/p2ZGyq @katieganshert

With Great Productivity Comes Great Preparation: http://bit.ly/p0W1Tv

What Does Your Author Bio Say about You? http://bit.ly/piaqA0 @JamiGold

5 ways to structure a plot: http://bit.ly/pBeJ9O

Why 1 writer loves writing in 1st person: http://bit.ly/qRbx8I @4kidlit @LisaGailGreen

5 Ways to Thrive in your Writing Career: http://bit.ly/rkabtW

3 Tricks for Ratcheting Tension: http://bit.ly/nCYJRG @victoriamixon

Using an image list to boost your creativity: http://bit.ly/nB96BY

For writers looking for critique partners: http://bit.ly/qOTlEB @clarissadraper

The writer's what-if: http://bit.ly/pC88jO

Cliched Contrivances: http://bit.ly/rnmil0 @RavenRequiem13

Business card ideas for writers: http://bit.ly/pln13P

Writing lessons learned from "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet": http://bit.ly/poPS4M @JulieMusil

An agent's thoughts on online browsing for books & the closure of brick and mortar bookstores: http://bit.ly/nOEsbT

A directory to help connect writers to cover designers, editors, and formatters: http://bit.ly/oYHAEF#

1 writer's list of 5 ways not to end a book: http://bit.ly/pCfymI

Easing your way into more responsibility: http://bit.ly/n1B0bj @jodyhedlund

Romance writing--unusual proposals: http://bit.ly/qNyjI4 & the big lie: http://bit.ly/qWdWXh

5 Creative Coaching Techniques To Get Yourself Unstuck: http://bit.ly/pobtkm

Relationships Focus Characters: http://bit.ly/qnWqZ7

A look at sleuths with troubled childhoods in crime fiction: http://bit.ly/nxNIet @mkinberg

Maintaining Your Enthusiasm Until the Book Is Completed: http://bit.ly/oSkYbN @KMWeiland

1 Harsh Reality of Blogging: http://bit.ly/q02qoR

Tips for staying organized: http://bit.ly/op9JhH

10 Uses for Forcefields: http://bit.ly/r7SKZA

Defining author brand: http://bit.ly/pk9pEE

Writing interesting places: http://bit.ly/p0nSUw

Why Are So Many Writers Plagued With Insecurities? http://bit.ly/pkihbn

A review of capitalization rules: http://bit.ly/rg5vS1

The importance of beta readers: http://bit.ly/o12aFU

7 Annoying Blogging Personality Disorders: http://bit.ly/oTiaoW

2 tricks for beating writer's block: http://bit.ly/pMO9Pv @victoriamixon

A Few Things Writers SHOULDN'T Worry About: http://bit.ly/o1scRR

10 commandments for a happy writer: http://bit.ly/mUSmtX

Tips for conveying your characters in queries: http://bit.ly/pjZqsg

How to handle bad reviews: http://bit.ly/nVirNg

The Dangers of Being An Apathetic Writer: http://bit.ly/r6ToBx

Crime Writers: Hostage Situations from a Criminal's Perspective: http://bit.ly/nsKE6E

Inclusion of lies and lying to enrich our stories: http://bit.ly/ogi5VN @JulietteWade

Don't Feel Guilty About "Playing Around" Online: http://bit.ly/n6Q5S4

Book collectors--buyer beware on signatures: http://bit.ly/nLN7N0

Writing conference tips: http://bit.ly/pO0xdZ

Authors value reader encouragement: http://bit.ly/p3F7SZ @JodyHedlund

Networking at writers' conferences: http://bit.ly/qmehAi

Character quirks and foibles: http://bit.ly/nDgB2P

What Every Writer Needs to Know About Cover Design – Even if You're not Self-Publishing: http://bit.ly/o1xusJ @dirtywhitecandy

Dealing with reviews and critiques: http://bit.ly/r3nFxR

Writing a book--marketing and promo: http://bit.ly/nUGHkk

1 writer's thoughts on reader reviews and rating books: http://bit.ly/q3wOSN @authorterryo

Thoughts on self-pubbing vs. traditional: http://bit.ly/pTq8fh

6 places to find critique partners & feedback on your work: http://bit.ly/oQWYr8 @ClarissaDraper

Why Your Blog's "About" Page Matters: http://bit.ly/qqN17z

Using the element of surprise in our writing: http://bit.ly/o7rmtr

An agent says that writing rules are just tools: http://bit.ly/qkj7oM

Grantwriting 101 for Writers: http://bit.ly/nOjpD6 @JaneFriedman

3 exercises to add layers of complexity to both scene and character: http://bit.ly/ocI9U1 @BTMargins

Why it's important to keep POV consistency: http://bit.ly/psotDh

What makes slang stick? (Slate): http://slate.me/p7msGX

A history of steampunk: http://bit.ly/pm2B4J , http://bit.ly/n54uCS , http://bit.ly/nwbi8a & http://bit.ly/nqeaej

Why You Need A Literary Agent… Or Do You? http://bit.ly/n3cPKD @mjcache

How to Check Your Book Proof in 3 Simple Steps: http://bit.ly/mP4kly

Creating great villains: http://bit.ly/ojbsky

5 Ways to Know You Need More Life Balance: http://bit.ly/n99dbI

5 Slang Words That May Never Be Legit: http://bit.ly/q3yZ6L

How To Find the Book on the Tip of Your Tongue: http://bit.ly/nNxiFV @galleycat

4 Steps to Breaking Out Your Creativity: http://bit.ly/nqRiHb

Why Do Agents Close To Submissions? http://bit.ly/qx9dt3

A book blogger with tips for getting your book reviewed (and pitching a blogger): http://bit.ly/oiZ80x @jesslaw

Beware the Bog of Back Story: http://bit.ly/r0iP57 @KristenLambTX

How to Get an MFA equivalent in 5 steps: http://bit.ly/nXXdsW @sarahlapolla

3 Questions to Ask Before You Publish Your Next Blog Post: http://bit.ly/o9EkW5

Using Scrivener Software to Plot a Novel: http://bit.ly/o7YmBp @sarahketley

Authors, Do You Have a Facebook Fan Page? http://bit.ly/oNusBx

5 More Ways To Kill A Sentence: http://bit.ly/opqShL @Grammar_Diva

How to Lose Fans & Alienate People: http://bit.ly/oIYx1E @MuseInks

What to Say on Social Media When You Have Nothing to Say: http://bit.ly/oyt6W5

Words That Should (Not) Be Capitalized in Titles: http://bit.ly/oPQPs2

Are You Missing This Crucial Skill Set as a Writer? http://bit.ly/p8tZvJ

Internet Resources For Writers: http://bit.ly/nDy2Lr @ErinORiordan

3 Principles for Facebook Fan Pages: http://bit.ly/pW6MxP @janefriedman

The Sagging Character: http://bit.ly/pCJdvU

Strategies for making time to write: http://bit.ly/p9iLyx

How to begin a story: http://bit.ly/rstlNH @BTMargins

9 Tips for Becoming A Freelance Writer: http://bit.ly/oW2u6Y

A look at Pottermore and engaging our reader electronically (and, who are we trying to serve?): http://bit.ly/rbBQ02 @HP4Writers

Best Articles This Week for Writers 8/19/11: http://bit.ly/oo7Io4 @4kidlit

Are You Wasting Your Time Trying to Get Published? http://bit.ly/p3LNcw @JaneFriedman

Thinking = Plotting: http://bit.ly/p8j8UW

Stop being an 'aspiring' writer: http://bit.ly/qbGkwx @JaneFriedman

Live Intentionally But With Breathing Space: http://bit.ly/ojU7PM @JodyHedlund

Do Writers Read Differently Than Non-Writers? http://bit.ly/qLT88g @jhansenwrites

Addressing the reader in our stories: http://bit.ly/oAJyEZ

Those who argue with rejections: http://bit.ly/pxvZw7

My tweets are archived and searchable at the Writer's Knowledge Base: http://bit.ly/dYRayA

Who's In Charge of Writing This Story? http://bit.ly/qOrS8U

Romance writers--don't make Mr. Fabulous *too* fabulous: http://bit.ly/nzLK4Q

Tips on Self-Destructive Protagonists: http://bit.ly/mUoCAS

How to Reverse-Outline Your First Draft: http://bit.ly/ru8Kug

Platform 101 for Regular (Not-Famous) People: http://bit.ly/pFm2NH

Publishing on Kindle - A Tutorial : http://bit.ly/owzBEV #ebooks

Time management tips for the marketing author: http://bit.ly/nbSMwa @rileymagnus

How to Read a Book Contract: http://bit.ly/oLQJOf @PassiveVoiceBlg

Personalizing Your Query: http://bit.ly/pLlM4w

7 Lessons 1 Writer Learned by Starting Over with Blogging: http://bit.ly/qgdjvc

Novel Ideas For Indie Bookstores: http://bit.ly/nThQd5

10 ways to survive crazy conference roommates & other advice: http://bit.ly/qfU8Ov

What book publicists earn: http://bit.ly/paNw9F @galleycat

10 ways to find Mr. Write at a writers conference: http://bit.ly/puwZgN

Finding a Quiet Place to Write: http://bit.ly/qjzC2R @jodycalkins

Publishing terms that writers should be familiar with: http://bit.ly/nzOUz4 @selfpubreview

Autograph Your Ebooks: http://bit.ly/r2VGNX @PassiveVoiceBlg

An agent asks writers to think about their project before starting it: http://bit.ly/qc9Fn7

Help for Writers—in Case You Missed It

Is it just me, or did this week go by in a blur?

In case you missed it (and I think a lot slipped by me this week), here are three different helps for writers:

Critique sites.  Clarissa Draper focused on critique groups this week on her blog, Listening to the Voices.  She talks about what it means to be a critique partner/beta reader, launched a critique partner match-up feature for her blog, and linked to six other sites that match writers with crit partners.

 

Alex J. Cavanaugh is launching the Insecure Writers Support Group.  As he explains in this post :

I've noticed a lot of posts lately about doubts, concerns, and a lack of confidence. Insecure is a term most writers use to describe themselves….

I thought it would be cool if one day a month, everyone involved in the Insecure Writers Support group posted either:

A situation where they need some encouragement Words of encouragement for others about to face a situation

Alex is working out the logistics of this project and was looking for feedback in his post on Friday.

I applaud Alex for setting this up because I think if a writer is confident (and maybe even stubborn), they're going to go far with their writing and stick with it.

And, this week, I opened up a free directory for writers looking for cover designers, ebook formatters/converters, freelance editors, etc.  It's not pretty (my spreadsheets always look clumsy), but all the information is there to get you started if you're in the process of looking for a pro to help you with your ebook.

 

I also released an ebook this week. :)  Progressive Dinner Deadly is a Myrtle Clover mystery and is available for $2.99 on Kindle and Nook.

Anyone else got anything to announce or promote for the week?

Writing About Real People

I'd been hearing good things about Paula McLain's The Paris Wife, so I recently downloaded it to my Kindle and read the book. I really enjoyed it.

I found, however, that I kept sympathizing with Ernest Hemingway instead of Hadley, which is not what I think I was supposed to do. :)

As a writer, it's hard not to, though. After all, he was a literary genius. He's got to get those books out there. Don't hold him back, Hadley!

There were other times, of course, when Hemingway was less than likeable.

This book is a novel based on real events, so we can't really treat it as a biography, but it does have a lot of really interesting insights into the couple (and McLain did a ton of research.)

One of the things that apparently created some concern for Hadley Hemingway was the way that Ernest wrote about their friends and even parodied one friend's work (destroying some friendships in the process). And the fact that he didn't write about Hadley in The Sun Also Rises.

Apparently, everyone knew who Hemingway's characters were drawn from.

So some people were upset at being portrayed in a particular way and some were upset at not being portrayed at all.

This could become a problem with our own stories, too. Friends or family could get their feelings hurt. The thought of libel isn't too thrilling, either.

For me, it's more fun to take lots of small bits of different people and make it into a sort of Frankenstein's monster of a new character. That way I've still got the solid traits that I can easily describe, but I'm not drawing too much from one person.

And I don't put people's secrets into my book. Although I don't know too many secrets! And the fact that I'm a writer might be why. :)

To me, it's just not worth losing friends over. Some characters may be amalgams of many different people I know, but I'm not going to use one person's life or appearance to base a character or story on.

Do you write about people you know? Do you have a line you won't cross?

The Element of Surprise

One of my favorite things about reading a book is being surprised. (Which is interesting, because in real life, I don't like being surprised.)

This surprise doesn't have to be anything as dramatic as a twist ending. It can be something as minor as a character showing an unexpected bit of depth or an unusual facet of his personality.

But I also like it when I've expected the plot to take a particular trajectory and something else happens.

I like to see an unexpected bit of trouble thrown at a character, too. How will they react? How does it change the direction of the story?

What surprises are good for:

As a distraction: A suddenly erupting argument or a quickly-contained but alarming grease fire provides a wonderful opportunity to slip in a clue under the radar. Writers of other genres can also use this slight of hand technique to protect a larger surprise later in the book.

For adding humor or quirkiness: You think a character is going to behave in a particular way. You've carefully portrayed Agnes as an uptight prude. Your protagonist views Agnes that way. Then Agnes says something outrageous and brazen that completely shatters this stereotype. Or Agnes invites the protagonist to lunch—and serves McDonald's Quarter Pounders with Cheese on her delicate china. With Bloody Marys.

For suspense: You can write a fairly ho-hum scene with a character going through her usual routine…which is suddenly interrupted when she's carjacked.

As a change of pace: Is your scene getting stale? Is your character going through the same motions every day? Liven things up with something unexpected. It doesn't have to be something major (scary landing during their plane trip)—it could be something as minor as a flat tire or a broken air conditioner that takes their day on a different and surprising trajectory.

As a way to add depth to a character: While we want our characters to behave in character, it's always fun to see different facets of a character, too. How do they react when we put them into an emergency situation? How do they react when we poke fun at them or put them under stress? What happens when we press their buttons? Sometimes their reactions can surprise us.

Do you enjoy throwing in surprising elements to your story? Do you use big or little twists?

Backing Up

This is my public service announcement for the next few months. :)

Y'all—back up your work.

Back up your writing and everything else that's important to you on your computer.

And…back up to more than one place. What if your backup fails? It's happened to me before.

Here are some backup options to consider that range from low to higher tech:

Use an online location to store your writing. You can email your book to yourself using any email address that can be accessed by webmail. You can also store your writing on Google Docs or an online story organizer (like Hiveword, from my friend Mike Fleming.)

Use a flash drive. Cheap. Easy.

Use an external hard drive. Word files don't take up much space, but you might want to buy an external hard drive if you have a lot of music or pictures to back up.

Print a copy. Bulky and a pain, but an option for anyone looking for a really low-tech option.

Use an online storage solution like Dropbox or Carbonite.

Blogs:

You should also backup your blogs. They sometimes disappear, too. Here is an article on the Guide to Literary Agents blog that discusses how to backup a Blogger, WordPress, and LiveJournal blog.

Also, if you're on Google Reader, remember to subscribe to your own blog there. You'll be able to access all your old posts from the Reader.

Go forth and back up! And, while you're at it, change your passwords, too. :)

What do you use for backing up?

A Release and a Directory

It's out! Progressive Dinner Deadly, a new Myrtle Clover mystery is now available on Kindle and Nook for $2.99 .

This is a follow-up to Pretty is as Pretty Dies, published by Midnight Ink in 2009. I'm publishing this book myself.

When intrepid octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover caught Jill, her new housekeeper, peering into her medicine cabinet, she should have been upset. But discovering that Jill wasn't such a squeaky-clean goody-goody made her vastly more interesting in Myrtle's eyes.

Myrtle would have happily continued figuring out what made Jill Caulfield tick…if Jill hadn't foolishly gone and gotten herself murdered.

Thanks to Kendel Flaum, who designed the lovely cover, and Keith Snyder from Typeflow who formatted and designed the interior of the book.

I wanted, also, to go ahead and share with y'all a work in progress—the ebook services directory. It's in a Google Spreadsheet format and divided into cover designers, formatters, freelance editors, ghost writers, and book trailers.

It's a work-in-progress because I don't frequently work with spreadsheets (which you'll probably be able to tell!). :) I'll be coming up with a badge and a bit more of a polished look, soon. Also, it's something that it looks like I'll be adding to every couple of days (I'm getting in plenty of additions.) But I wanted to go ahead and make it available since I'm already getting emails from writers asking for it.

I did put a caveat emptor on there because, unfortunately, I don't have time to vet everyone. As always, and with any business arrangement, please enter the relationship with caution. This directory is intended to be a starting point to connect writers with services, since currently the ebook industry seems to be working on word of mouth.

If you want to be added to the directory or see any errors, please contact me at elizabethspanncraig (at) gmail (dot) com.

Thanks!

Twitterific

Below are my tweets from the last week.

The Writer's Knowledge Base search engine, designed by software engineer and writer Mike Fleming, makes all these links searchable—try it for searches on plotting, characterization, querying, book promo, and more.

I'm also compiling a directory of ebook professionals—cover designers, formatters, freelance editors, etc.—to make it easier for writers to connect with services. If you'd like to be added, please email me at elizabethspanncraig (at) gmail (dot) com with your contact info, website, etc.



An interesting interview with a publishing insider: http://bit.ly/om8fmz @ajackwriting

Alternative magic systems for the fantasy writer: http://bit.ly/nIypxp

All about urban fantasy: http://bit.ly/nUFw5C

Revise Grand Entrance Scene to Set up Character Relationship: http://bit.ly/nj2NGA

The Number One Reason Why Marketing Tactics Fail: http://bit.ly/r8DFpZ

Literary Agents: Top 10 Ways to Make or Break that Relationship:The Agent as Superman/Superwoman: http://bit.ly/o6KauM

A series on avoiding mushy book middles: http://bit.ly/pJEiLg http://bit.ly/mQ3YQ3 and http://bit.ly/oqpJiA

Tips for landing an agent: http://bit.ly/qtENRG

10 things 1 writer has learned about blogging: http://bit.ly/qZPkcl @CatsEyeWriter

3 Ways Social Media Can Help You Avoid Procrastination: http://bit.ly/pmNz1a

The positive side of distractions: http://bit.ly/qrdawY

7 Ways to Pick Yourself Up After a Painful Rejection: http://bit.ly/pzEuKj

The Secret to Twitter That Can't Be Taught: http://bit.ly/nr5JcW

Finding Rest Is Essential to Creative Inspiration: http://bit.ly/oj8eQS

Capitalization Rules for the Names of Games: http://bit.ly/r16PHc

1 writer's homemade MFA: http://bit.ly/nUVLDv @BTMargins

Is literary jargon alive and well? NY Times: http://nyti.ms/oqweSN

The Audubon* Field Guide to Unpublished Writers: http://bit.ly/q1dwnU @GeoffreyCubbage

7 Reasons Reviews Sell Books: http://bit.ly/pmlW8Z @BookBuzzr

An author's thoughts on libel and fiction: http://bit.ly/q8ygZ0

Joe Konrath addresses ebook misconceptions: http://bit.ly/nGj7Ts

Publishers Playing the Social Media Game: http://bit.ly/o6sLxI @WriteAngleBlog

Writing for fun for 10 minutes a day: http://bit.ly/niWZpJ @BookEmDonna

A singer/songwriter recommends focusing on writing, not social media: http://bit.ly/pSEwrm

Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing: Writers Don't Need to Practice: http://bit.ly/nWQstW

Weeding out weaknesses in our books: http://bit.ly/r9ez1g @Mommy_Authors

Keeping personal bias out of your stories: http://bit.ly/pwJthO

How to Query Agents Part 1: http://bit.ly/prn1s8 @EmilyCaseysMuse

Superhero Comics Could Learn a Thing or Two from Superhero Films: http://bit.ly/n05s7P

From Good to Better: 10 Tips On Editing Your WIP: http://bit.ly/ormO2D @AnneRAllen

6 Effective Ways to Become Persistent: http://bit.ly/qJfnn6

Pretend your main character isn't there: http://bit.ly/p2sP1X @dirtywhitecandy

How to write a great novel (WSJ): http://on.wsj.com/r0BTJR

The art of discovering your innate genius: http://bit.ly/pWpP06

Great Ways for Writers, Authors, Speakers, and Readers to Use Google+: http://bit.ly/rkyA0E

Remind yourself of the joy of writing: http://bit.ly/qVEBRp

Search my tweets-- http://dld.bz/KPgS

Making Writing Work For You When You Still Have To Work: http://bit.ly/qukQ7I

Regency sex ed: http://bit.ly/pdAaB1

Ladies, Don't Let Anyone Tell You You're Not Awesome: http://bit.ly/pItmlT

25 ways to abuse your characters {strong lang.}: http://bit.ly/rtt2iZ

Editorial Agent, or what? http://bit.ly/o4oLXU

The Publishing World Turned Upside Down: http://bit.ly/oao4Gh

Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir: http://bit.ly/qYNmEI

The 5-Second Trick To Writing More Each Week: http://bit.ly/qegvTE

POV confusion? Helpful links: http://bit.ly/hJZD8n

How to Read a Book Contract – Who Decides What Contracts You Sign? http://bit.ly/mTB8lX @PassiveVoiceBlg

7 Ways to Make Family and Pets Respect Your Writing Time: http://bit.ly/p9OL3Y @KMWeiland

Why Novelists Can Embrace Unexpected Life Change: http://bit.ly/mYaCqu @writeitsideways

Writing Psychic Superheroes and Psionics: http://bit.ly/qnXsTN

Ebook cover designers, formatters, & freelance editors--I'm compiling a directory. To be listed: http://bit.ly/pmIdny

The Inevitable Traffic Jams on the Journey to Publication: http://bit.ly/nmbQra @jodyhedlund

3 tips for writing thrillers: http://bit.ly/nGpJIz

Enrich Your Life – Go on a Digital Sabbatical: http://bit.ly/okQqbT

How authors can get started with video blogging: http://bit.ly/pdKOke @jfbookman

Seeing Stars: Why Some Reviews Matter . . . and Some Don't: http://bit.ly/mYogy6 @YAHighway

Switching From Literary To Genre Fiction: http://bit.ly/q8ER5z @thecreativepenn

The Low-Down on Literary Magazines: http://bit.ly/ruDknQ @LTWFblog

An agent talks about questionable practices by literary agents: http://bit.ly/ncB06h @rachellegardner

Break Writer's Block: Become the Storyteller, Not the Writer: http://bit.ly/qtzGwX

7 Types of Hyphenation That May Seem Wrong But Aren't: http://bit.ly/pA5WKW

Networking as a means of promotion: http://bit.ly/pNpUll

Tips for naming characters: http://bit.ly/rmNh2H @BTMargins

Russian Publishing 101: http://bit.ly/o1OLb7 @pubperspectives

Start Today, Not Tomorrow: http://bit.ly/plV164 @jeffgoins

10 Twitter Hashtags for Writers: http://bit.ly/rnVn4I

Why Self-Published Authors Know Best: http://bit.ly/q0cVhb

5 mistakes that turn your ebook promotion into spam: http://bit.ly/q0Ya1H

"My novel's too 'fringe' – will any commercial publisher on the planet be interested?" http://bit.ly/rapJvJ

Knowledge Plants the Seed. Imagination Makes it Bloom. http://bit.ly/r2SNQw @SherryIsaac @joanswan

Getting the Reader's Sympathy: http://bit.ly/rtZFZW

Will print and ebook publishers ultimately be doing the same books? http://bit.ly/qCQe5l

Wake up your readers! How to thicken a plot: http://bit.ly/pG0jbP

3 Steps to Finding Your True Writing Voice: http://bit.ly/ng96ke

7 things one YA writer has learned so far: http://bit.ly/oZFZ65

The Power and SEO Behind Blog Commenting: http://bit.ly/q4PIu6

10 Tips For Polishing Your Manuscript: http://bit.ly/oNaLhF

Giving "It's Not Quite There" Feedback: http://bit.ly/o4SyIG

Sympathy For The Devils: How To Make Disagreeable Characters Agreeable: http://bit.ly/ouqw6r

10 keys to hosting a successful Twitter chat: http://bit.ly/qT9Eaz @michellerafter

Surviving the Literary Gong Show: http://bit.ly/mSKUGj

A Guide to Publishing an Ebook on Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/ofgO7p

6 Steps to a Winning Writing Workshop: http://bit.ly/p1CdiE

Need research help with your character's medical ailment? A doctor to the rescue: http://bit.ly/o1bsHq via @spunkonastick

Thoughts and tips for handling backstory: http://bit.ly/qiFNdU

Favorite snacks of great writers (NY Times): http://nyti.ms/r1LXq3

8 Personal Development Mistakes: http://bit.ly/pIWHoj

Crossover genres (genre blending): http://bit.ly/o2mbEm

The Speed Of Writing: http://bit.ly/n8Uxul

Adjusting To The Paradigm Shift in Publishing: http://bit.ly/oYhCf4

Public speaking tips for writers: http://bit.ly/o0sTdR @jhansenwrites

Genre blending crime fiction to lure non-mystery-reading friends: http://bit.ly/ro13WQ @mkinberg

A Writer's Tools: WriteWay Pro: http://bit.ly/oYRtux @manon_eileen @GeneLempp:

An agent explains what you should bring to a conference: http://bit.ly/njQqi4

To blog or not to blog about writing: http://bit.ly/r2k3Aj @LauraPauling

What Do You Do When You Can't Write? http://bit.ly/ru9TZi @writeitsideways

Sign up for the monthly WKB newsletter for the web's best links and interviews: http://bit.ly/gx7hg1

How Starving Artists Can Support Their Work: http://bit.ly/pYr46F

Pacing and 4 types of rests in books: http://bit.ly/pBLFTE @FantasyFaction

Concerns (and Solutions!) for Freelance Writers: http://bit.ly/qEudl5

Resources for finding an agent: http://bit.ly/r3ZDJU

Writing A Book – Structure: http://bit.ly/p5Vw72

The (Not So) Dreaded Synopsis - 5 Tips To Set You Free: http://bit.ly/nBzkAD @roniloren

6 reasons an agent/publisher will stop reading your submission: http://bit.ly/pGfX9n

The difference between ebook conversion and ebook formatting: http://bit.ly/qQPZc2

Critique Workshopped The Voice Right Out Of There: http://bit.ly/ogmvEi

An agent advises: don't clutter your story with stuff: http://bit.ly/nRjTcN @greyhausagency

A summary of the Assoc. of Amer. Pub.'s sales data for books (online retail is tops): http://bit.ly/pHJpWi @PassiveVoiceBlg

The rule of 3: http://bit.ly/pOCKFC @iggiandgabi

5 reasons Facebook and Twitter won't replace 1 writer's blog: http://bit.ly/r07EML @CatsEyeWriter

Investigation into Underpayment of Ebook Royalties: http://bit.ly/nDsZx5 @PassiveVoiceBlg

An Entrepreneur Tackles Book Publicity: http://bit.ly/mSVNsn @BlurbIsAVerb

A screenwriter on endless producer notes: http://bit.ly/nxLI9r

Writing A Book – Discipline: http://bit.ly/o4FLdP

Dreaming in Two Languages – Writing In The Second: http://bit.ly/pKl5gW

10 Terms of Gender Identity: http://bit.ly/p4WmoM

Why It's Hard To Write Well (And How To Do It Faster): http://bit.ly/pUroCC @ChandlerWrites

Cover design:Color: http://bit.ly/nL2ppj Image: http://bit.ly/r8q4xv Font: http://bit.ly/pZDHPX Layout: http://bit.ly/pcoxQY @clarissadraper

Can You See Your Lion? http://bit.ly/pQQs2D

Are you an expert? Plan to Promote Your Work: http://bit.ly/omGEsi

3 Tips To Help You Choose An Editor: http://bit.ly/nIfPXi

Tips for finding an agent: http://bit.ly/pqhr1e @bubblecow

Insiders and Outsiders (in Worldbuilding Cultures): http://bit.ly/o9JYK5 @JulietteWade

Spam Toad vs. Author Brand: http://bit.ly/mOx2ib @KristenLambTX

Tips for writing back cover copy: http://bit.ly/qxWsDF @WriteAngleBlog

Best Articles This Week for Writers 8/12/11: http://bit.ly/nEdcKU @4kidlit

4 Keys to Unlocking Your Creativity: http://bit.ly/pDPKa4 @jodyhedlund

Creativity Tweets of the Week — 8/12/11: http://bit.ly/pFiBWm @on_creativity

4 techniques to create a likeable character: http://bit.ly/pOA79i

How Do You Deal with Difficult Characters? http://bit.ly/mSWsQ5 @JamiGold

Writing a Saleable Book: http://bit.ly/qY23Yl

Conflict v. Tension: http://bit.ly/qdV7IL @AngelaAckerman

5 Ways to Reduce Use of Prepositions: http://bit.ly/nPvRcu

"The process of this first revision is as much about rereading as rewriting." @BrunoniaBarry http://ow.ly/61gje RT @Porter_Anderson

Description and Your Characters' Lens: http://bit.ly/qCe2sK @bluemaven

The importance of covers: http://bit.ly/qvHiIc

Figuring out your strengths and weaknesses: http://bit.ly/pqpLw1

5 things to do between writing projects: http://bit.ly/rkX3Of

How to Create an Informational E-Book: http://bit.ly/mXhXBS @AlexisGrant

Need help with pacing? http://hiveword.com/wkb/search?q=pacing

Why Writing Can Be Dangerous: http://bit.ly/qCs1fF

Is Your Character a Windbag? http://bit.ly/oa8sHd @KMWeiland

How to Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul: http://bit.ly/pyAgMw

Take 5 Minutes to Make WordPress 10 Times More Secure: http://bit.ly/ohTDcE

Suggestions for your writer's reference shelf: http://bit.ly/raccT0

How to write and market an ebook: http://bit.ly/nB5Loq

New publishing numbers and some insight: http://bit.ly/oDxm9u

Tests of character: http://bit.ly/qfKbpM @JulietteWade

8 Reasons Authors Don't Complete Their Manuscripts: http://bit.ly/o7GDlk

Ideas for Real Life Characters: http://bit.ly/r51Ycu

How Literary Agents Can Survive the Digital Revolution: http://bit.ly/ncJJNe @GalleyCat

Conflict - The most frequently screwed up story element: http://bit.ly/n5QwpN

An agent explains what agents do: http://bit.ly/qQnX0Z

Scrivener: The Ultimate Multitool for Writers: http://bit.ly/odiEJm

Why There'll Never Be a Perfect Time to Write: http://bit.ly/pY251B

What to write? http://bit.ly/p8CEhy

Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing: The Myth of Talent: http://bit.ly/qTiYS3

Pseudo-Agents Take Advantage of India's Aspiring Authors: http://bit.ly/oQmdOA

An agent explains how to become a literary agent: http://bit.ly/mYIc2E

Writing a Book – Finding Time: http://bit.ly/orhCTJ

What Does it Take to Craft a Historical Novel? http://bit.ly/rnck34

The agent as friend: http://bit.ly/nbv9HH

The Anxious Writer: 200 Questions Before Lunch: http://bit.ly/pELL9M @BTMargins

How high are your stakes? http://bit.ly/n0jDoJ

Sticking our Readers into an Interesting Situation

Friday afternoon my husband and I had a nice lunch together, then he asked if I could run an errand for him (he was going back in to the office) and return a purchase to a major electronics chain store.

I walked into the store, in my usual sort of absentminded fog, strolled over to the customer service area, and immediately noticed that everyone was very angry.

There were two men from management looking grim and anxious with their arms crossed. The customer service representatives were frozen. There were two customers being helped at the same time and both were sort of leaning in over the desk, looking tense. There was a police officer (who is frequently assigned a beat at the store) watching intently. The customers in line seemed very stiff and kept looking sideways at each other.

And I had just sort of wandered in in a very peppy mood and into this tension. What's more, I couldn't even tell what was going on. Finally, the elderly lady in front of me turned around and said in a fierce tone, "Someone should help that woman!"

"That woman?" I asked, nodding to the middle aged woman at the desk. "What's happening?"

But I didn't get an answer because suddenly the woman erupted like Mt Vesuvius, yelling that that was the worst customer service she'd ever seen, going up to the police officer and seeming to make some sort of low-voiced suggestion to her (maybe that they arrest the customer service department?!) then storming out the door, still yelling.

Afterwards no one looked at anyone else and the customer service people started quickly helping the rest of the line. And I never did find out what was going on.

But it made me think that this is the kind of thing we want to do with our readers.

We don't know what kind of day our readers are having. Maybe they've just had a nice lunch and are feeling happy and daydreamy, like I was. Maybe they're having a rough day or week.

We want to drag our readers into something different—something funny, something tense, something interesting. We want to provide some escape and something to pique their curiosity or interest. We want to get them hooked.

Read any good openings lately? Written any? How do you propel your readers into a new world?

A Few Thoughts on Book Pricing

I've noticed my buying habits, as a reader, are changing.

Some of it is due to necessity. I've got several avid readers in my house and the library is, sadly, not able to purchase the new titles that are frequently on our to-be-read lists. If there's limited availability at the library, I'll buy the books we want to read.

I've also found that I'm reading more and more with my Kindle. It's easy to get books. If I wake up with insomnia in the middle of the night (a common occurrence), I can download a book, where I couldn't drive to a bookstore or the library.

Reading on my Kindle has made me more apt to give new authors a try. I'm also more open to impulse buying. This is, I'm almost certain, because there's not a big financial risk in doing so—ebooks are (usually) inexpensive. I'll read about a book on a blog or I'll see something on Twitter that looks interesting and it's instant gratification—I download it immediately before I can forget the author and title.

I think, in fact, book pricing is especially important for that very reason. It's important for a reader to either feel confident that they'll like a book enough to buy it, or that they're not losing much money in case they don't.

I've read lot lately about ebook pricing on different blogs. The impression I've gotten is that $2.99 seems to be a good price point. Then you can run sales on your book, bringing it down as low as $.99 or free….then return it later to the $2.99 (where you still get a decent percentage of the book sales as royalty.)

As a reader, $2.99 doesn't make me blink at all. That's not much of an investment for hours of reading time. That's so low that I wouldn't think twice about downloading something that's not a genre I usually read or from an author I'm not familiar with.

This being said, most of my ebooks are $6.99 and up. :) That's because my publishers have set the price (yes, I've gotten emails from readers before…not that I have any control over the pricing, but they think I do.)

I think that traditional publishers will eventually be lowering ebook prices for their mass market and trade paperbacks (I'm not sure about bestsellers/hardbacks.) Otherwise, long-term, I'm not sure how well they'll be able to compete in the book market.

What kind of price range are you either publishing in or looking for, as a reader?