Cristina Istrati's Blog, page 12

Give your writing its rightful place!(1)

I hope life is treating you well and that you are happy and stress-free! I also hope, of course, your writing’s going great guns!

As you know, I always ask for feedback on my books, articles and reports. Mostly, when people email me, they ask about technical issues or about advance techniques for fiction writing. However, recently, a few writers have asked if I might consider going “right back to basics” for them.

So, here goes…

Question. What makes a person WANT to write?

There’s no real easy answer. Some say the urge to write is God given, some say you’re born with it. Writing courses teach the craft and then, supposedly, you can do it. But why? WHY would anyone want to write? To create, to communicate, to share… Whatever your reasons, the process of becoming a writer requires that you first make a decision. Take a few moments now to ask yourself, “Why do I want to write?” Your reasons will be personal to you and should feel like a fundamental part of what you want from your life.

Furthermore, I`ve created 10 tips to help you kick-start your writing habit. We`ll go through the first 5 of them in this post. On our meeting next Monday, we`ll talk about the rest of 5….:)

1. Take a step back.

Slightly detach yourself from your surroundings. Stop participating and begin observing. Even when you’re in social situations, try to be objective about what is actually going on. Watch people, see how they act and – more importantly – interact. Be interested in the psychology of people. Why they do what they do? What do they want to achieve? What is the effect they’re after? How do they use their emotions to express their needs? Does it work? How? Why? Why not?

Don’t pass judgment. Take it all in. See the people around you as characters in a fictional setting. See the whole of them, including their surroundings – the objects and the colors, the textures that frame the image in your mind. Carry around these tableaus so that you can draw on them later when you write.

2. Look for the details.

As you go through your day, study everything. If you’re walking down a road, stop unexpectedly and look around you. Consciously notice the buildings, what’s underfoot, how the weather is, what’s just a few feet in front of you. At home, look at something you take for granted. A kettle, for instance. Find yours and study it. Notice the contours and the materials. Think about words you might use to describe it in detail.

3. Play your role.

Whenever you’re in a situation, think about how you would describe it. It’s a simple technique. Your mother is making tea and you are chatting to her. Take a mental step back and describe what you see and what’s happening. “I watched as her delicate hand turned the tap to the right. Water gushed into the old silver kettle. The sound was hollow…”

Similarly when you’re outside, in any environment, describe it to yourself as though you were writing it down. For instance:

“Beams of sunlight pierced the overhead canopy of trees. The light was soft and warm. Multicolored parrots hopped to and from low branches, cackling like excited children.”

4. Just put the pen onto that paper. You`ll know what to do next.

Many novices are desperate to write but can’t think of anything to say. Or they agonize over looking foolish to the extent that cannot write! Don’t worry about it. Everything you write is personal. You don’t have to show it to anyone. It’s yours until you set it free.

In the mean time, just WRITE. If you’re having trouble starting, force yourself to write anything – anything at all. A shopping list. An overheard conversation. Describe your bedroom. Don’t wait for inspiration – just write!

If you can, completely switch off your conscious, logical mind and write the first thing that comes to you. It doesn’t matter how personal it is, or how trivial, just get it down! This exercise helps because it subtly adjusts the mind to realizing that this is how you want to express yourself. Do it for a few days in a row if the urge to write dissipates and you’ll soon be back on track.

5. Wake up, wake up!:)

Set your alarm clock for an hour earlier than normal. This may be difficult at first but it’s important and useful. The night before, commit yourself to getting up as soon as you hear the alarm. Promise yourself you’ll do it! When you hear that alarm, get up. Don’t get dressed, bathe or eat. Don’t even make coffee. Just get out of bed, stagger to your writing space and write the first thing that comes into your head for five to ten minutes. Get into the habit of writing nonsense for a few

minutes every morning before you start work on something more important. It works for Ray Bradbury!

So, here you have 5 of the 10 tips I`ll be sharing with you:)

I`ll talk to you next time and feel free to share your comments with me:)

See you soon!

Cristina Istrati

Discover how YOU can write a book and sell it with Cristina Istrati`s “I`ve Decided! I want to write my Own Book !”. Cristina helps you with the writing process, and demystifies the publishing trade. Read Cristina’s site and subscribe to her popular freelance writing ezine, Fab Freelance Writing Ezine.

Let`s explore Fiction`s realm…!

Let’s start with a simpler question: what is fiction? In the broadest sense, fiction is simply a made-up story. The business of making up stories has been going on for a long time. Somewhere in the shadowy past, our cave-dwelling ancestors began conjuring stories and telling them to each other. The tradition grew, and some of these stories eventually attained the “best-seller” status of myths, tales destined to be passed on through generations and to migrate across continents and to shape the way people thought. At some point, some of these stories started to get written down with the intention that they would be read.

An enterprising Mesopotamian writer chiseled The Epic of Gilgamesh into stone tablets some four thousand years ago, and if you think revision was difficult on a typewriter . . .

Anyway, this brings us to the more narrow definition of fiction: a made-up story told in prose with words alone. Words alone.                                  

That’s the unique challenge and wonder of written fiction. There’s no actor or storyteller using gesture and inflection. No painter or filmmaker showing settings or close-ups. Everything is done with those little symbols we call letters, which are melded into words, which multiply to form sentences and paragraphs.

And by some alchemical process those words interact with the reader’s imagination in such a way that readers are taken inside the reality of a story—like Alice stepping through the looking-glass—and once there they can experience and feel and care about this alternate reality as deeply as they do for the meanderings and heartbreaks of their own lives. For us humans this process is strangely important. We seem to have a primal need for fiction, or really any kind of story, that is as deeply rooted as our need for food, shelter and companionship.

I see two reasons for this.

The first reason: entertainment. We crave entertainment, and stories are one of the key ways we satisfy this desire.

The second reason: meaning. Our curiosity, and perhaps insecurity, compels us to explore continually the who, what, where, when, and why of our existence. Some call this lofty goal a search for Truth.

A good piece of fiction will satisfy one or both of these needs extremely well and do so in a miraculously low-tech manner. All fiction ultimately requires is words interacting with the reader’s imagination, a combination that provides, for many people, the most powerful form of storytelling possible, not to mention the most portable.

A MATTER OF FORM

We’ll come back to entertainment and meaning shortly, but now let’s take a brief look at the basic forms of fiction. First, the novel. Typically a novel runs at least eighty thousand words (about 320 pages of double-spaced typing). Some novels run a bit shorter than this and many run way longer. Novels are usually broken into chapters, which give the reader a much-needed mental break.

A novel is the literary equivalent of a symphony, the big, ambitious form of fiction. Novels aren’t just longer than other forms of fiction. They generally have more of everything: more characters, more scenes, more developments, more heft. They may have a central story, but the story is usually surrounded by a whole swirling world of activity.Someone once told me she could tell if a work was a novel or short story simply by hearing the first sentence. Interpret that as you may.

Some novels are sprawling.

Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace is an ocean, bearing countless characters over numerous years and thousands of miles, immersing the reader in a span of history, encompassing all aspects of

humanity. But J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye covers only a few days and never leaves the side of that mixed-up teenager, Holden Caulfield.

And then there’s James Joyce’s Ulysses, which staggers on for almost eight hundred pages, weaving in and out of various minds and styles, but staying within the confines of a single Dublin day. Writing a novel is a long haul that can swallow years of a life, a test of endurance for even the hardiest of souls.

Nevertheless, for many an aspiring writer, the novel is the great white whale of fiction, and these people will not rest until they have spilled the blood of several hundred pages.

Hope you`ve enjoyed this article about fiction:) So, what do you think? What`s your main reason for writing fiction? Is it something you do out of your own pleasure? Or, perhaps, it`s more than that? Is it a passion?I am interested to know your opinion so please share it with me:) I`d love that!

See you next time!

Cristina Istrati

Back from the holiday…:)

Black Sea is a gorgeous place, with lots of memories for me. I have been there before too, some years ago, so this year when it came about choosing a holiday place, I chose the Black Sea. I don`t know why but I like it very much. This year was different from the rest of the years: I was there only with a group of fellow writers. It was a great experience! We would have long talks about all kinds of things, we would go and have lunch or dinner together, we would also go for walks…! I had a terrific time! And best of all, I got to meet other writers as well! They were from the Northern part of Romania. Usually peoples` accent from there is somewhat different from the Southern accent so I could listen to these people like for a whole week! I love the way they talk!:)

The resort which we were in is called Neptune and it`s very beautiful. In the first days or so I was so busy discovering it!:) Yes, I have to admit that I love venturing myself into unseeing territories. Of course, I didn`t see the entire resort as it is quite big but I did see the main touristic points…:) so it was alright from this point of view…:)

Walks, chatting, shopping, restaurants, sitting on the beach…everything was great! I enjoyed very much my time there and I am really grateful to the Universe for arranging things this way…:)

This holiday brought to me a lesson too, a lesson that I won`t easily forget. It`s about the sea. In one of the days, I and another friend of mine went out on a restaurant to have lunch. It was a restaurant that had a superb view toward the sea. My friend asked me whether I want to stay inside or on the terrace. Of course, I took the second option as I really love admiring the sea. So we were all set at the table, waiting for the food. After having a little discussion with my friend, I turned my gaze to the left side, where the beautiful blue sea was. For a moment, I only looked at it, without even thinking. As a matter a fact, I didn`t even want to think! I just wanted be into the silence, into that subtle bond between me and the sea. I starred at it for a couple of minutes.

“It`s so beautiful…The sea is so wide, so powerful…so LIMITLESS…!” I thought.

When this last word popped in my mind, I felt like tears were coming in my eyes…I was very much inspired by that word, by the sea itself! Limitless…? Yes, I love that. Be fearless, be strong, be bold, be EVERYTHING you can be! This is what the sea was teaching me while glancing at it and this is what it was showing to me! I couldn`t have asked for a clearer example, and I couldn`t1 have asked for a better teacher. In that particular moment, it was only the sea and I. I would watch at its broad and blue horizon, at its strength and might, at its wisdom and intelligence…I have received the sea`s message, that is for sure.

“You really love the sea, don`t you?” my friend had asked me. I looked at her and smiled.

“Yes, I love the sea. Not only it is beautiful, but it is a great teacher too” I replied. Then, the waiter came with our food and we started eating. From time to time, I would look at the sea again. The word Limitless was on my mind…

Every time I go on a trip or vacation, I have this intention to learn something out of it. I guess it`s a desire of mine for evolution and development. I can`t help it and I can`t do it any differently. I want to grow, I want to extend myself, I want to evolve as much as I can, as a human being. Otherwise, why coming on this Earth? Why bother?

I see life as an opportunity to grow and develop yourself. This is life`s main purpose, if you ask me. I will always want to expand and extend myself. It`s a strong desire that comes from within and I ask life to bring me all those circumstances that will help me grow. Till the very last day on this Earth, I will be asking for them. At the Black Sea, life has once again showed me that it knows about my wish. Thank you, life. Thank you, Black Sea.

See you soon!:)

Cristina Istrati

What’s a plot, anyway?

You might be one of those writers who likes to have the story all worked out in your mind before you write your novel. You preplan, plan, and revise the plan before writing. Maybe you have index cards all over your wall or you store your scenes in your computer.

Or you might be one of those seat-of-the-pants writers who loves to plop down each day at the computer or over a pad of paper and just write, letting the story flow without planning, anxious to see what your wild writer’s mind comes up with.

You could also be a ’tweener who does a bit of planning but still seeks some surprise and spontaneity in the daily output of words.

No matter what kind of novelist you are, there’s one thing you will have when you’ve completed your manuscript—a plot.

It might be a lousy plot, a disjointed plot, a mess, or a masterpiece. But the plot will be there, staring you in the face.

The only question at that point will be, “Does it work?”

By “work” I mean connect with readers. That’s the function of plot after all. The reading experience is supposed to transport people, move them through the power of story. Plot is the power grid that makes it happen.

You may be one of those writers who doesn’t care if your novel connects with readers. You write what you want, the way you want it, and that’s that.

Writing is its own reward. If someone happens to like it, fine. But you don’t want to be bothered with bourgeois concepts like plot.

Fine. No one’s forcing you to connect with readers. But if you want readers, if you dream of writing novels that get published and sell, then you have to give plotting its due. Because that’s what agents, publishers, and readers think about when they open books. Consciously or not, they are asking questions:

•What’s this story about?

• Is anything happening?

•Why should I keep reading?

•Why should I care?

These are all plot questions, and if you want to make it as a writer of novel-length fiction, you must learn how to answer them satisfactorily, wonderfully, surprisingly.

I`ll talk to you next time and feel free to share your comments with me:)

See you soon!

Cristina Istrati

Discover how YOU can write a book and sell it with Cristina Istrati`s “I`ve Decided! I want to write my Own Book !”. Cristina helps you with the writing process, and demystifies the publishing trade. Read Cristina’s site and subscribe to her popular freelance writing ezine, Fab Freelance Writing Ezine.

Interview with Cristina Istrati…

Thank you again for taking part in this blog interview. I’m very grateful for taking time out from your writing to answer these questions.

Q: Please tell us something about yourself and how you came to be a writer.

A: My name is Cristina Istrati. I began writing four years ago. I`d say my entrance into the world of writing is a bit uncommon, because it happened due to a…dream. In one summer night, back in 2007, I had a dream in which I saw myself writing books. In the next day, I grabbed the pen and with some white sheets, I started writing. As I was doing that, the pleasure and joy were coming over me minute by minute and the outcome of that was my first book, a romance novel called Seductive Ambiguity. Today I know that everything that started with a simple dream, turned out to be my biggest passion and love. Today I know that writing is my vocation.  

Q: What genre do you generally write and have you considered other genres?

A: I generally write romance. This is my favorite kind of literature and I have to say that it expresses me the most. I love to write romance. Of course, I`ve considered to write other genres and as a matter a fact, I`m quite looking forward to start. I write Children`s Stories too.

Q: What have you had published to-date? How much of the marketing do you do?

A: I published in 2009 my first romance novel. It was a 28 chapter novel and I wrote it in six months. I don`t really do all that marketing part but I have my site and I`m managing that.

Q: Do you have an agent? Do you think they’re vital to an author’s success?

A: No, at this moment I don`t have an agent but I`m in the search of having one. I already sent queries to the literary agencies and hope to hear from them soon. To have an agent is a good thing nowadays and surely helps you in your writing career. I think every respectful writer should have one. And yet, I don`t think that an agent is vital to an author` success. A writer can very well write without having an agent too. If we look at mankind`s biggest writers from a century or so ago, they didn`t have a literary agent and still they wrote amazing, everlasting books. Victor Hugo didn`t have an agent, William Shakespeare didn`t have an agent and yet they became famous writers. I think it`s all about how much you invest in yourself and how serious you are in regards to your writing.

Q: Are your books available as eBooks? If so what was your experience of that process? And do you read eBooks?

A: No, my books are not available as e-books; at least, not for the moment. Yes, I read e-books.

Q: What was your first acceptance and is being accepted still a thrill?

A: My first acceptance was good, didn`t even expect it to be like that. I was given a beautiful surprise. Of course, being accepted will always be a thrill. Maybe not like the first one but definitely, it is a continuous thrill.

Q: Have you had any rejections? If so, how do you deal with them?

A: Yes, I had rejections too. It`s a part of the process, you can`t stop or avoid them. At first, I was getting upset when I faced them, as I wanted for all the people to love what I was writing but that period is gone now. I understand now that people are free to do and say whatever they want and really, it`s not something personal. Some of them won`t like what you write. What`s the problem?  None, as long as you see it that way. Don`t let that get to you and keep on writing.

Q: What are you working on at the moment / next?

A: I finished writing my second book, which is a fifty chapter’s romance novel. It will be published in September. Having this done, I`m enjoying now a small break and after this I will start my third novel. Don`t know exactly the whole story but I`m pretty sure I`ll place it somewhere in the Oriental part of the world. I`ve just returned from Austria:) (this was the country where the second novel was set). Now, I`ll go to a sunnier place

Q: Do you manage to write every day? What’s the most you’ve written in a day?

A: No, I don`t manage to write every single day as I have also classes to attend and sometimes I simply don`t feel like writing, don`t have that natural, abundant flow and at that moment, I know it`s better for me to do something else instead. The most I`ve written in a day was four hours.

Q: What is your opinion of writer’s block? Do you ever suffer from it? If so, how do you ‘cure’ it?

A: Writer`s block is a very common thing among writers and I know it can be so annoying at times. I remember I had it once, for about five days. I couldn`t write anything and I was so upset as I was getting so close in finishing the novel on which I was working at that time. Eventually, I let it go, I embraced my lack of inspiration and soon after, I could write again. That was the first time I`ve “suffered’ out of writer`s block but that experience didn`t repeat itself again. Usually, inspiration comes easily to me. If I see something beautiful or looking for reasons to praise, it`s enough to trigger my desire to write. When I write on a book, it`s that eagerness and excitement to see what`s the next step of the story that keeps my inspiration flowing.

Q: Do you plot your stories or do you just get an idea and run with it?

A: Usually, I get the idea and run with it. Everything else unfolds to me as I write.

Q: Do you have pieces of work that you think will never see light of day?

A: When it comes about my books, I`m sure all of them will see day light. But, I also have a notebook where I write and it`s that that I`m not sure it will see it because there are works very close to my heart, very private. It`s the place where I literally write whatever I`m feeling and I think I should keep it in a more hidden form.

Q: What’s your favorite / least favorite aspect of your writing life?

A: My favorite aspect of my writing life is that I can create my own stories, places and characters. I love to create destinies and to play with my imagination. The least aspect is the typing process. It`s like reading the same book twice.

Q: What advice would you give aspiring writers?

A: If they love to be in service for others, have a burning desire to do a hard work but rewarding and mostly, an unshakable wish to write, they should do so. Otherwise, they will give up on the first moment when writer`s block comes.

Q: What do you like to read?

A: I like to read good books, related to history, self-improvement, spirituality, romance.  Also, I like to read well written novels, almost on any subject.

Q: Are there any writing-related websites and/or books that you find useful and would recommend?

A: Yes. There are several writing sites as :

http://www.writers.com/

http://www.fictionfeedback.co.uk/index.php

http://www.everywritersresource.com/

http://www.pw.org/magazine

As for the books, there are three that I particularly like. It`s about:

Brian Tracy- Eat the Frog

Allan Pease- Questions are the answers

Donald Trump- Think big and kick ass.

Q: In which country are you based and do you find this a help or hindrance with letting people know about your work?

A: I am from Romania. Yes, it can be helpful in letting people know about my work.

Q: Are you on any forums or networking sites? If so, how invaluable do you find them?

A: Yes, I am on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Goodreads, Behance . I think they are a great way to promote yourself and your books, to tell the world who you are.

Q: Where can we find out about you and your work?

A: You can find everything you want to know about me from my site, http://cristinaistrati.com

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to mention?

A: I`m most happy for taking part in this interview. I had a good time answering the questions and I hope they will be an advantage for those writers that already have a background, as well like guidance for those that are at their literary beginning. Thank you!

Interview made by Morgen Bailey

Email: morgen@morgenbailey.com

Blog: http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com

Website: http://morgenbailey.com

 

What makes a Scene?

In the first place, scenes happen in real time. It’s as if the reader is a fly on the wall, watching and listening as characters talk and move. We hear the characters speak in their own voices, we observe their body language, and we do it at the pace of real life, with no authorial summing-up tricks to make it go faster.

Second, scenes involve conflict. Not necessarily shove-a-gun-in-someone’s-face conflict, but at the very least a sense of the characters being at odds in some way, out of sync, one wanting something the other can’t or won’t give.

Why conflict? Because two people agreeing about absolutely everything would be amazingly boring, would fail to move the story, and we readers would wonder why that scene was in the book at all.

Unless, of course, it’s part of the setup. Oh, that’s it, we think as we read about the happy couple. They’re in total agreement now, but just wait—the big breakup is coining.

Because at bottom all stories are about change (or, in a very few cases, failure to change, which is in itself a form of change because opportunity is offered and declined, which means our protagonist doesn’t just go back to where he was at the beginning, he’s worse off because he could have changed but didn’t.) That’s the inexorable math of Story: no character can possibly come through Story unscathed. (See The Remains of the Day for wonderfully evocative proof of this fiction maxim.)

So if change is at the root of Story, how does it manifest itself in the small picture, the scene?

A Scene Driver Named Desire

Our protagonist wants something. If he’s a detective, he wants to know whodunit. If she’s a suspense heroine, she wants to go back to the peaceful life she had before some wacko started sending her dead flowers. If he’s a spy, he wants to save the free world; if she’s in a legal thriller she wants to get the Pelican Brief to the right people before the wrong people whack her.

Well, they can’t get those things, can they? Not in Arc One, that’s for sure. [image error]

So for scene purposes, they need to want something else, something lesser but still connected to the big goal, something that, ideally, pushes them harder into the plot point that climaxes whichever arc they’re in.

This is vital. Every single scene in the book must start from a position of wanting.

“I want to have a good time at this party”—but it’s going to be hard now that the host is dead on the floor. My amateur detective’s nice simple want has turned into a situation that will force her to turn detective and start asking questions.

“I want to get the people who killed my girlfriend”—and in order to do that, I’ll volunteer as a spy so I can go after Mr. Big Bad Guy, but right this minute my want is to pass all the tests so the spies will take me on as a recruit.

The small scene-level wants are like acorns from which spring giant oaks. They are the tiny pieces of colored glass that will, when put together, shine forth from the stained glass window of your plot.

Just as in the overarching plot-line, just as in the arc, the scene contains a goal, a complication, tension, and resolution. At the end of every scene in the book, bar none, the protagonist must experience some change, for better or worse.

Worse is better. Change for the better, in the first three arcs, should turn into worse as soon as possible, or should contain the seeds of later getting worse-ness. Why?

Because when things get worse, when the protagonist fails to get what he wants, he is forced to do something else. Something that propels him into more dangerous waters.

So every single scene must end with a “No, and furthermore”?

Not necessarily. Sometimes a “Yes, but” is more interesting than a straight No and sometimes a Yes brings a lot more headaches than a No would have done. It’s all a matter of pushing the protagonist out of her comfort zone and into territory where she will be tested to the max.

But none of that can happen unless she wants something at the beginning of the scene—a scene goal that the reader understands from the outset. That’s one of the beauties of the mystery form; we readily accept the detective’s need to know as a perfectly clear, perfectly reasonable scene goal, and everything follows from that.

What does the suspense hero want as a scene goal?

To understand what’s happening to him. To enlist official help in tracking down the bad guys. To have someone believe her. To get a passport or a ticket to Hong Kong or the key to the safety deposit box. To find that old photo album or grandfather’s will, anything that will help unravel the tangled secrets of the past. To get Aunt Maisie out of her Alzheimer’s fog just long enough to tell our heroine the truth about that long-ago phone call the night Daddy died.

It doesn’t matter exactly what she wants so long as the reader understands what she wants and why she wants it and it relates in some way to the novel’s big goal.

Write with joy, write with love…:)

Cristina Istrati

A smile….

Legend has it that everything started with a smile.  The world we live in has been created with a smile.  But let’s go to the very beginning…

Once  upon  a  time,  everything  looked  different  as  we  know  our  world  today.

“But  if  the  world  wasn’t  from  the beginning  as  it  looks today,  then  how  did  it look  like? ” You may think.

Well,  as  far  as  we  know,  at  first  everything  was  covered with  darkness. It  was  not  a  pleasant view to see  but  this  is  the  truth.  All  was  dark, without  even  the  smallest  raze of  light; more  than  that, at  first  sight  you  may have thought  that  nothing  was  possible to  evolve  into  that  darkness.  But,  in  that  “black  world”,  far  ahead,  a  small  light  appeared.  It  was  so  little  but  powerful  in light,  passing  bravely  throughout  the  great  dark.  This  light  was  moving  through it  as  if  it  was  looking  for  a  place  to  stay,  and  somehow,  to  change  the  place  in  which  it  was  crossing. 

This light…was God. When  God  saw  Himself  surrounded  only  by  dark,  He  wanted  to  change  this  and create  something  else.  At  first,  He didn`t  know what  to  do,  but  a  great  desire  of  change  was  growing  in  His  soul.

Crossing  through  the  darkness  one  day,  God  smiled   because  of  an  idea  that  He  had  and  it  was  making  Him  very  happy: to  create  a  whole  new  world  leaving  that  dark  and  sad  view  behind.  He was the one who could do this! It  was  such  a  great  joy  for  God  to  know  that  it  was  in  His  power  to  change  the  place  in  which  He  were.  His  only  wish  was  to  create  an  Universe  where  The  Supreme  Gift (Life)  can  be  lived and  loved  under  the  light  that  the  sun  brings. Being happy of this new horizon, God said:

” Let there be light!”

And light appeared!  All that  could  not  be  seen  because  of  the  dark,  now was  revealed  under  a  magical  and  away-taking-breath:  nature  in  whole  its  beauty  and  perfectness ! The green  trees,  the  mountains,  the  oceans…all  could  be  seen  and  it  was  perfect! How  could  it  be  any  different  when  The  Perfection  itself  had  created  it? God  was  watching  all  this, being  happy  of  what  His eyes  could  see. So, a few  days  had  passed;  God  was  enjoying  what  He  had created.

But then He had a thought:

All  this  is  perfect  but  I  am  alone,  and  this  green  space  needs  to  be  filled.  I  want  to  see  Life  in  all  the  ways  and  under  any  form.

Then  God  smiled  again  because  of  the  idea  He  was  having:  all  kinds  of  animals  in  any  form  should  populate  this  paradise!

“Let  there  be  animals,   as  well  on  land  and  under  sea,  to  bring  richness  and  beauty  to  this  world” He  said.

And there it was!  Animals as we  know  today,  were  swimming  in  the  oceans  as  underwater  animals  and  on  land  living  as  terrestrial  animals,  fulfilling  in  this  way  God`s  desire:  Life  was  experienced  through  any  form!  That made him very happy!  So  God  was  now  among  all  the  animals,  being  amazed  by  their  intelligence  and  friendship  that  they  were  giving unconditionally.

One  day,  God  was  on top  of  Himalaya  mountain,  watching  and  admiring  all  that  He  had  created.  His  heart  was  filled  with  joy  and  love,  seeing  the  blue  of  the  sea,  the  green  of  the  trees  and  grass,  and  hearing  the  sweet  sounds  which  birds  were  making, along  with  the  animals  that  were  listening  to  them.

All was in great harmony and love! But  then  God  got  a  little  bit  upset;  He  was  having  a  thought  that   wouldn`t  leave  him  at  peace.

“All is perfect but I am alone.  It`s not my wish to enjoy this all by Myself.  If  I  am  alone,  then  I  wouldn`t know or  experience  that  I`ve  created  all  this.  I want to share this with others ” He said.

But  He  had  no  idea  with  whom  he  could  share  the  magical  world  that  He  created.  Days  were  passing,  and  God  was  more  and  more  upset  because  of  this  idea.  One  day,  as  He  was  walking  among  the  trees  and  watching  with  love  the  animals  playing,  God  reached  a  cherry  tree.  For  a  few  moments,  He  just  looked  at  it and  then  He  lifted  up  His  hand  and  touched  one  red  and  beautiful  cherry.

“ You  are  so  perfect  and  beautiful”  He  said,  with  love  in  his  heart.

Then  He  touched  another  one,  and  finally  He  rose  up  His  gaze and  looked  at  the  whole  tree.

“You  all  are  perfect  and  beautiful;  there`s  no  difference  between you  because you`re coming  from  the  same  Source…”

Then He had The Idea of all times! He smiled again, being extremely happy about it!  God  saw  himself  as  being  the  cherry  but multiplied  in  billions!

“I want other  forms  of  Me  to  exist!  Both,  as  male  and  female  and  these  creatures  should  live  all  over  the  world,  so  that  I  can  Experience  Life  in  all  its  ways. And  these  living  creatures  I  bless  them  with  Intelligence  and  Absolute  Free  Will  so  that  they  can  choose  and  fulfill  the  greatest  version  of  the  most  extraordinary  idea  that  they  have  about  themselves!”

And  human  beings  appeared,  as  we  know  them in  our  day !  The  most  Magnificent  and  Fascinating  thing  that  God  ever  created.  The  human  being  is  God`s  greatest  pride  and  He  loves  it  beyond  everything! As  He  sees  himself  in  every  one  of  us! God  blessed  the  human  factor  with  all  the  treasures  of  the  Universe  itself,  so  that  they  can  live  happy  and  in  all  Wealth  and  Joy  that  there  is.

And  God  smiled  again and  again  due  to  all of  the experiences  that  reached  him through the  human  beings  because  in  Every  One  of  Us  there  is  God  and  we  all  are  connected  to  Him.  In  God`s  Universe ,  Everything  is  in   a  Perfect  Harmony  and  Balance,  it`s  only  humans  who`re   seeing  things  in  a  different  way.  After  He  did  all  this  Creation,  God  went  again  on  top  of  the  Himalaya  mountain  being  very  happy  of  all  that  his  eyes  could  see,  blessing  and  acknowledging  all  that  He  had  created.  Now,  He  could  see  other  forms  of  Him  walking  on the  streets  in  New  York,  or  fishing  on  ice  in  North  Pole,  or  picking  up  tee  leafs  in  China,  or…living  in  tribes  near  the  wild  animals  in  Africa.

His  soul  was  singing out of Joy  and  Love  to  see  all  that  and  all  of  it  was  his  creation.  He  smiled  again,  watching  at  the  Great  Treasure  that  was  evolving  in  front  of  him.

This  is  the  story  of  planet  Earth, as  we  know  it  today,  and  if  we  look  at  it  just  a  little  bit  closer,  we  can  see  that  truth  lies  in  this  story.  When  you  look  at  somebody  and  you  smile  to  that  person,  they  smile  back and here  you  go,  you  have  created  a  relationship  background.  If  you  have  many  things  to  do,  and  you  feel  like  there  is  no  way  out  from  that  situation,  just  smile  and,  you  know  what?  A  new  horizon  of  the  situation  will  appear  to  you  and  you  will  think  that,  indeed,  Everything  is  Perfect  in  the  Universe.

When  you  are  upset  or  angry,  just  look  up  to  the  sky  and  smile,  you  will  see  that  a  new  way  of  thinking  will  be  given  to  you,  so  that  you  can  enjoy  life  higher  and  higher!  A  relationship  with  your  best  friend  can  begin  with  a  smile, the  relationship  with  your  soul-mate  can  begin  with  a  smile,  and  the  best  of  all,  your  self-esteem,  love  and  respect  can  begin  with  you,  just  smiling. You  can  make  someone`s  day  more  beautiful  if  you  smile  at  that  person.

We  are  Incredible  and  Unlimited  creatures!  And  we  have  been  blessed  to  be able to  smile,  this  is  the  key  through which  every  door  opens.  Isn`t  it  great?  You`re  really  making  a  joy  to  your  body  when  you  smile.  Your body simply  loves  it!  And  you  will  feel  that  all  the  greatness  and  powers  of  the  Universe  lies  in  you!

Everyone  can  be  your  friend  if  you  go  smiling  on  the  street;  so  there  is  no  bigger  lie  on  this  Earth  as the one  that  we  are  alone.  Nobody is alone!  We  are  living  in  God`s  house,  He  created  this  World  for  us,  beginning  with  a  smile.

So,  you  see,  Everything  starts  with a smile , and  you  already  knew  this….Now,  you  are  just  remembering  it.

What`s your genre?

Chances are your book idea falls into a category or that it’s very close. If you understand what a reader’s expectations are,

you can make the book stronger and more likely to be sold to a publisher. Of course, the reader’s anticipation of something inside the book can be spoiled by something on the outside of the book, perhaps poorly chosen artwork (which you can’t always control) or an inappropriate title. If you call your romance Slasher From Hell, you’re not likely to attract readers who are looking for the type of experience you’re providing, and the readers you do attract are going to be disappointed.

So, you want to be careful with titles, and you want to be careful with the language you use, making sure it’s similar to other books in the category you’ve chosen to write in.

It’s important you know your audience and study your category. Go to bookstores to familiarize yourself with the various

genres, then read a lot of books in your genre of preference. In fact, if you’re not reading the genre, you probably shouldn’t be writing in it. Your first successfully published book will, almost inevitably, be centered around some category you really love. You don’t “write what you know,” as the old saw has it; you draw upon what you know. But you write what you read. One of the things this category/genre business does is help the publishers and the bookstore owners know where to place your book in the bookstore. When your novel comes out, you’re not really competing with all the other books in the store; you’re only competing with all the other books in your genre.

So, without diverging too much from what’s expected, you ought to be thinking about how you’re going to make your book different from others in your category. And that difference comes from knowing your genre well enough that you can spot a “hole,” or good idea, as was done with the idea of a historical murder mystery featuring Christopher Marlowe as a detective or with Walter Mosley’s Easy Rawlins novels, such as Devil in a Blue Dress, about a black PI in the late 1940s.

MEETING THE READER’S EXPECTATIONS

Know your audience. One of the biggest differences between books and other media forms is that movies and TV don’t discriminate by age and gender. In general, books are written with a specific audience in mind. Self-help books, for example, have a strong female readership, while adventure travel books, such as man against nature (for example, Into Thin Air or The Perfect Storm) are bought and read mostly by men. Only those books that become big sellers transcend those limitations. As I mentioned, each genre has its own conventions, that is, a set of expectations. Genres are not just confined to books.

All forms of art employ categories. In classical music, for example, you can write an opera, a tone poem, a symphony, a concerto. Depending on the genre she chooses, a composer is also guided by the form of that genre, be it the sonata form, the fugue form, the AABA melodic structure common in popular music, or another form. You can mix genres, coming up with what is called a cross genre.

One of the great masters of mixing genres and raising popular trash to an art form was William Shakespeare. His command of poetry and insight into the human condition allowed him to blend bawdy comedy with fragile romance, combine powerful drama with Renaissance masques and turn medieval mystery plays (religious plays about good and evil) into something new and brilliant. Daniel Defoe in Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders, took the seventeenth-century equivalent of the kind of story that appears nowadays in the National Enquirer, and elevated it into art.

Hope you`ve enjoyed the article and that it was useful for you. As always, your opinion is most welcome about the post and would really like to know it. Thank you!:-)

Talk to you next time!

Cristina Istrati

Discover how YOU can write a book and sell it with Cristina Istrati`s “I`ve Decided! I want to write my Own Book !”. Cristina helps you with the writing process, and demystifies the publishing trade. Read Cristina’s site and subscribe to her popular freelance writing ezine, Fab Freelance Writing Ezine.

Writing is a physical activity…:)

A writer is like an athlete; a competitor or skilled performer in physical exercises, to quote the Concise Oxford Dictionary. Because we spend so many hours seated at our desks, it is easy to forget this – until our body protests. Our neck shoulders and headache, our eyes refuse to focus, our wrists succumb to repetitive strain syndrome, and then we remember that our mind operates through a physical organ in a physical body with needs of its own. These aspects of a writer’s physical make-up need particular attention:

the brain

the eyes

digestion

joints, muscles, heart and lungs.

Keep your brain alert

Like all our bodily organs our brain needs nourishment, a rich blood supply, plenty of oxygen and adequate rest in order to function well. Hours of sitting hunched in a stuffy room, skipping meals or eating junk food will put it at a disadvantage.

The simple acts of opening a window, circling your arms and breathing deeply will boost mental processes tremendously. If you find it hard to remember to do these things, write a note to yourself and place it where it will catch your eye from time to time.

Brain food

Our brains thrive on foods rich in iron, phosphorous and the B vitamins (particularly B6, which is said to help with ‘writer’s block’). Liver, fish, pulses, grains, wholemeal bread and green vegetables are all excellent writers’ foods. My current favorite ‘boosts’ are extract of malt, or thick wholemeal toast with tahini, banana and honey. Oh no? OK – what’s yours?

Brain fatigue

We need rest, not only to combat tiredness but to enable the body to replenish its cells – which, of course, include our brain cells. For this reason, burning the midnight oil (a common symptom of ‘writing fever’) may reduce our mental and physical efficiency over time – something we may find it all to easy to forget or ignore.

Many writers have found it beneficial to replace their late night writing habit with an early morning start when the world is just as quiet and their brain is rested. Efficiency is also improved by a regular change of task – on average, every hour and a half.

Use a timer with an audible signal as a reminder to take regular breaks. Ideally, leave the work room and do something physical. Have a list of suggested activities to hand – anything from a short-duration household task to a brisk walk around the block. Physical movement will invigorate your body. Also it can, in itself, trigger a flow of words and ideas.

Keep your eyes healthy

Computer users

If you use a word-processor, you probably spend many hours staring at the screen. An anti-glare screen, either built in or added on, is essential. If over-exposure causes sore or itchy eyes, try bathing them with a cooled herbal infusion of eye-bright and camomile. Your local pharmacy will also carry a number of good remedies for this condition. Such exposure can leave eyes deficient in Vitamins A and B2, so supplements of these vitamins are advisable. Vitamins C and E also promote eye health.

Alleviate eye and neck strain by having the monitor exactly at eye level. If necessary, place some blocks underneath it to achieve this. Positioning your feet at the correct height is also important.

Ideally both the knee and the ankle joints should be relaxed and should form right-angles.

So, enjoy your writing but don`t forget about your body. It needs love, care and most of all, a good physical routine. Remember, if it wouldn`t be your body, you wouldn`t be writing in the first place…;) So, give it everything it needs and requires…:)

Wishing you a beautiful day! And a Marvelous Week ahead!:)

Have fun, smile and….keep on writing!:)

Cristina Istrati

Creating unforgettable characters…

When writing fiction, one of the greatest challenges is to come up with compelling characters that both interest the reader and fit the story. On the surface, fitting the story might seem like the lesser of the two considerations, but it really isn’t. Beyond being interesting, the character must also be the type of person who will respond to your plot. Whatever the action of your story is, it needs to matter to your characters. You have to care about why these things are happening to this character, and take great interest in what the character will do, or will fail to do, about it.

Most people’s ideas for a character begin with some spark. That spark can come from anywhere: A voice, a look, a profession, a line of dialog, or a plot you want that character involved in. Whatever that original aspect is, that is what

you need to explore first. Expand upon that dialog; describe that voice.

Whatever the first spark of life is, explore it until it begins to take shape. Once you have moved beyond the first spark, you need to create a picture of that character in your mind. This starts out very simply. Are they male or female? Does he have a bald spot? Does she wear glasses? What kind of clothes do they wear? How old are they? These are all very basic questions, but it is surprising how often they are ignored. 

Next, explore the character’s background. What is their profession? Does the person even have a job? Where do they live? What is their family like? What kind of friends do they have? What kind of things do they own? This last question can be very telling. You can approach it from several angles. What is in their home? What is in their office at work? What do they carry in their pockets? How many keys do they have? Once you reach that point, it’s time to dig a little deeper. Ask yourself, what makes this character interesting, compelling, different? Try to come up with a single-sentence description that will vividly show a reader what kind of person this is. This isn’t necessarily the way you will describe them when you sit down to write out your story, but it’s important to have a clear image in your mind.

Some people would consider putting this earlier, but really, until you have all these details, I would not get too anxious to name the character. If a name has already come to mind, great, but until now the character doesn’t absolutely need

a name. At this point though, it becomes important. You know who they are, you know what they’re like, now give them a name. Names should match the character, but without being cliché. A boxer named “Punch” is a little silly. Sure, a nickname may spring up that mirrors the character’s personality, but the name itself should only suit the character, not pigeonhole them. Whole volumes can be written on naming characters alone, but suffice to say that buying a book of baby names and going through it until you find one that feels good will work.

Now you can try all sorts of ways to get further into your character’s head. Interviewing the character is a good step. Ask them questions as if you’re a reporter for Rolling Stone, People, or a magazine appropriate to your character’s background. Ask them about themselves. Let them speak. If you have other characters in the story, ask them about your character. What do they think about this person? Do they see him or her differently? Another way to explore your characters can be to visualize them in the midst of their everyday activities. How do they wash their clothes? What route do they take to work? What stations do they pick out on the radio? How do they party? How do they respond to their boss? What kind of expression is on their face? Do they smile often, or rarely? Picture the character five or ten years ago, and five or ten years in the future. Where will they be, and how will the circumstances of this story effect that?

After you’ve created your character, it’s important to remember that they need to be treated as individuals with their own needs and agendas. Don’t make a character violate their basic nature just to suit the plot. If this character’s actions would change your plot too much, you need to either re-examine the plot, or create a more suitable character. Allow your characters to have quirks and contradictions though. Most people have a thousand little contradictions.

So following these simple steps, you can go ahead now and create your characters…:) It may be a bit twisting at the beginning, but as you will write and write you`ll see that both writing and creating characters can be easy. And fun too!:)

Wishing you the best of thoughts..:)

Write with joy, write with passion…

Cristina Istrati