Amanda Meuwissen's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing"
Impact Readers with Real Locations in Fiction
There are as many locations in fiction as the mind can think up, because fiction never needs to be based in reality. If you’re writing about colonization on the moon, chances are it’s not going to be based off of any real place. Even when writing contemporary fiction, there are no rules that say you HAVE to write about a real city; you can make one up, and many authors do.
But there is something to be said about taking real places, places that the author knows well or researches thoroughly, that can have even more personal impact for readers.
My series, The Incubus Saga, has many real life locations mentioned, particularly one of the main settings, my home of Minneapolis, MN, and its surrounding suburbs.
When I describe the apartment complex in St. Louis Park where the brothers in the story first meet Sasha Kelly, that’s a real location I passed on the bus many times.
When I describe what’s around Loring Park, those are real details.
Schuester’s high-rise apartment by Lake Calhoun? You better believe I salivate over those awesome lofts, and that I even looked up the apartment layouts to give an accurate description of that building’s accommodations.
Obviously, there is some liberty taken with specifics, interior design, and the view a certain Irish Pub might have of the city it overlooks, but I always strive to capture a real location and give details someone who lives there might recognize. If someone happens to live in Chicago, Pittsburgh, or even Rushville, MO, it may not be as detailed as I can make my own hometown, but it will be as close as I can get it.
How do you use real locations in your fiction? Do you prefer to always make locations up instead? If you do use real places, feel free to share pictures or details of the town/city/location that inspired the setting of your story and why it was included.
But there is something to be said about taking real places, places that the author knows well or researches thoroughly, that can have even more personal impact for readers.
My series, The Incubus Saga, has many real life locations mentioned, particularly one of the main settings, my home of Minneapolis, MN, and its surrounding suburbs.
When I describe the apartment complex in St. Louis Park where the brothers in the story first meet Sasha Kelly, that’s a real location I passed on the bus many times.
When I describe what’s around Loring Park, those are real details.
Schuester’s high-rise apartment by Lake Calhoun? You better believe I salivate over those awesome lofts, and that I even looked up the apartment layouts to give an accurate description of that building’s accommodations.
Obviously, there is some liberty taken with specifics, interior design, and the view a certain Irish Pub might have of the city it overlooks, but I always strive to capture a real location and give details someone who lives there might recognize. If someone happens to live in Chicago, Pittsburgh, or even Rushville, MO, it may not be as detailed as I can make my own hometown, but it will be as close as I can get it.
How do you use real locations in your fiction? Do you prefer to always make locations up instead? If you do use real places, feel free to share pictures or details of the town/city/location that inspired the setting of your story and why it was included.
How Fanfiction Made Me a Writer
Not many people know this, but back in high school I had three potential career choices I debated between.
One was vocal music performance, and while I love to sing, I knew I didn’t want to pursue that.
The second was acting. I had done theater since 7th grade, and had been a lead all throughout high school, and honestly…it was my top choice for a long time. For some reason the anxiety I got from singing in front of people never reared its head when acting.
The last choice, of course, was writing. And I probably wouldn’t have published novels today if not for events in high school that pushed me toward that path over acting…all because of fanfiction.
I’m a video game geek, so my first fanfiction was written around that, particularly Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII. In this case, FFVIII was the culprit. I had been enjoying another author’s epically long fanfic centered around the character Zell, but when it finally reached its end, I was disappointed.
I reviewed the story telling the author I honestly felt it could have and should have ended differently. She agreed, and we began conversing back and forth on how I might write an alternate ending, sanctioned by the original author herself. It was an amazing collaborative experience for me.
Not to go into too much detail, the story revolved around topics of teenage depression and suicide. I wrote an ending with more hope than the original, and had a great response from readers. One review in particular caught my attention and has stuck with me to this day.
It was an anonymous review, so there was no way for me to contact this person or know who they were, but in it they confessed that they had felt similarly depressed as the character and had been considering suicide, but felt a renewed sense to continue fighting after reading my alternate ending to the fic.
I don’t know what became of this person afterward, but the thought that my writing could do something so profound for someone made my decision for me then and there.
I never doubted my decision to pursue writing after that, and every time I reach a fan even in the smallest way, it reminds me of the time I reached someone significantly, and that is more than enough motivation to keep on.
You’ll find me touting the importance and good of fanfiction all the time, and this was one of the reasons why. Reading can change people’s perspectives, change their lives, and fanfiction is no different from the most praised novel. Never downplay the importance of any form of writing. Every time we can communicate and reach others with new and important ideas, that’s something truly special.
What about all you other writers out there? What was the final catalyst that made you a writer?
One was vocal music performance, and while I love to sing, I knew I didn’t want to pursue that.
The second was acting. I had done theater since 7th grade, and had been a lead all throughout high school, and honestly…it was my top choice for a long time. For some reason the anxiety I got from singing in front of people never reared its head when acting.
The last choice, of course, was writing. And I probably wouldn’t have published novels today if not for events in high school that pushed me toward that path over acting…all because of fanfiction.
I’m a video game geek, so my first fanfiction was written around that, particularly Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII. In this case, FFVIII was the culprit. I had been enjoying another author’s epically long fanfic centered around the character Zell, but when it finally reached its end, I was disappointed.
I reviewed the story telling the author I honestly felt it could have and should have ended differently. She agreed, and we began conversing back and forth on how I might write an alternate ending, sanctioned by the original author herself. It was an amazing collaborative experience for me.
Not to go into too much detail, the story revolved around topics of teenage depression and suicide. I wrote an ending with more hope than the original, and had a great response from readers. One review in particular caught my attention and has stuck with me to this day.
It was an anonymous review, so there was no way for me to contact this person or know who they were, but in it they confessed that they had felt similarly depressed as the character and had been considering suicide, but felt a renewed sense to continue fighting after reading my alternate ending to the fic.
I don’t know what became of this person afterward, but the thought that my writing could do something so profound for someone made my decision for me then and there.
I never doubted my decision to pursue writing after that, and every time I reach a fan even in the smallest way, it reminds me of the time I reached someone significantly, and that is more than enough motivation to keep on.
You’ll find me touting the importance and good of fanfiction all the time, and this was one of the reasons why. Reading can change people’s perspectives, change their lives, and fanfiction is no different from the most praised novel. Never downplay the importance of any form of writing. Every time we can communicate and reach others with new and important ideas, that’s something truly special.
What about all you other writers out there? What was the final catalyst that made you a writer?
How Non-Fiction Inspires Fiction
Everyone deals with writer’s block. Sometimes the answer is to take a break. But since we all know that writing a little every day is best to facilitate a healthy writing relationship, how do you take a break, or step back from your fiction writing, while still keeping your juices flowing? Non-fiction.
Non-fiction doesn’t mean you suddenly change the genre you write in. It can mean blogging, like I am now, keeping a journal, writing articles for other publications (or your day job), or simple commentary on sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr to get your ideas, even if non-fictional, out of you.
Personally, I find that spending some time getting my everyday thoughts on paper (or in a Word doc) makes me itch to get back to my fiction, especially if I had otherwise recently burnt out on fiction writing.
Write every day. Yes. But don’t feel you need to only work on you current big fiction project just because you are or want to be a fiction writer. Take a break, writer something else, write something in a genre or style unlike your big project, and you might be surprised how quickly you’re inspired to return to the writing you really want to delve into.
Non-fiction doesn’t mean you suddenly change the genre you write in. It can mean blogging, like I am now, keeping a journal, writing articles for other publications (or your day job), or simple commentary on sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr to get your ideas, even if non-fictional, out of you.
Personally, I find that spending some time getting my everyday thoughts on paper (or in a Word doc) makes me itch to get back to my fiction, especially if I had otherwise recently burnt out on fiction writing.
Write every day. Yes. But don’t feel you need to only work on you current big fiction project just because you are or want to be a fiction writer. Take a break, writer something else, write something in a genre or style unlike your big project, and you might be surprised how quickly you’re inspired to return to the writing you really want to delve into.
Critical thinking is needed for all forms of writing
Every spring I participate as a judge for local Speech competitions in Minnesota. Sometimes I forget how seriously Minnesota takes its Speech season, as we have an entirely different organization than the National Forensics League, doing our own thing on the side with some of our own categories, while also having kids participate in the NFL version when we compete at Regional, State, and National competitions.
Minnesota High School Speech is composed of thirteen categories across interpretive and public speaking styles, some of which have the students write the content themselves. The categories offered include things like Creative Expression, Discussion, Extemporaneous Speaking, Informative Speaking, and Original Oratory.
While I’d love to go into detail on all of these categories, I’m going to stick with one today, which despite not being one I participated in during my high school career, is my favorite.
In Original Oratory, or OO, the speaker presents an originally written speech with the purpose of persuading the audience. As a writer, I am most critical when judging categories like this that involve writing because I think there is a distinct lack of good writers in today’s youth. This belief stems from real life examples of people constantly telling me how ‘good writers’ are hard to find in the work force, and experiences I’ve had as an editor.
I had the pleasure of hearing a speech in the OO category this past weekend about critical thinking and how we need to work toward building up this ability in people now more than ever. Considering how important this skill is for writing a persuasive argument as much as an informative speech or essay, the topic resonated particularly strong with me. Too many times I see people picking sides on an argument without presenting facts, or being willing to listen to rebuttals.
Critical thinking is described as “the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.” Being objective may be one of the more difficult things for us humans, especially when an issue is important to us, or something we feel very strongly about. But all the more reason that we need to step back, weigh both sides, consider facts, and try to think objectively before forming opinions—or maybe even changing our opinions.
It was a relief to hear a maybe not even sixteen year old young man present a speech on this argument, and do so with critical thinking applied to how he wrote his speech and attempted to persuade me. The kids who ranked lower in that round failed to apply what this boy’s speech was about—the need for evidence and objective reasoning.
Human beings are emotional creatures. As a fiction writer I embrace and accept that emotion is often what drives whether or not someone enjoys my stories, but critical thinking has a place in fiction too. Whether we’re writing to inform or persuade someone, we still always present a thesis, back it up, and then form a conclusion.
In fiction, your readers will ask themselves, maybe subconsciously, maybe directly, whether or not they care about your thesis (what the story is about), whether or not you gave adequate reasons for them to agree (enjoyed the plot and building climax), and whether or not your conclusion (the story’s ending) was satisfying. It’s only if they can answer ‘yes’ that they will leave your work having truly enjoyed it.
Consider critical thinking when writing anything, when commenting on others’ work, when engaging in conversation, no matter the topic. We might be emotional beings, but we’re also intelligent, so the next time you present writing to the world, hand-written or typed, to any audience, ask yourself whether or not you did so objectively and applied critical thinking to what you said. Chances are you’ll be more persuasive, more informative, and more engaging if you did.
Minnesota High School Speech is composed of thirteen categories across interpretive and public speaking styles, some of which have the students write the content themselves. The categories offered include things like Creative Expression, Discussion, Extemporaneous Speaking, Informative Speaking, and Original Oratory.
While I’d love to go into detail on all of these categories, I’m going to stick with one today, which despite not being one I participated in during my high school career, is my favorite.
In Original Oratory, or OO, the speaker presents an originally written speech with the purpose of persuading the audience. As a writer, I am most critical when judging categories like this that involve writing because I think there is a distinct lack of good writers in today’s youth. This belief stems from real life examples of people constantly telling me how ‘good writers’ are hard to find in the work force, and experiences I’ve had as an editor.
I had the pleasure of hearing a speech in the OO category this past weekend about critical thinking and how we need to work toward building up this ability in people now more than ever. Considering how important this skill is for writing a persuasive argument as much as an informative speech or essay, the topic resonated particularly strong with me. Too many times I see people picking sides on an argument without presenting facts, or being willing to listen to rebuttals.
Critical thinking is described as “the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.” Being objective may be one of the more difficult things for us humans, especially when an issue is important to us, or something we feel very strongly about. But all the more reason that we need to step back, weigh both sides, consider facts, and try to think objectively before forming opinions—or maybe even changing our opinions.
It was a relief to hear a maybe not even sixteen year old young man present a speech on this argument, and do so with critical thinking applied to how he wrote his speech and attempted to persuade me. The kids who ranked lower in that round failed to apply what this boy’s speech was about—the need for evidence and objective reasoning.
Human beings are emotional creatures. As a fiction writer I embrace and accept that emotion is often what drives whether or not someone enjoys my stories, but critical thinking has a place in fiction too. Whether we’re writing to inform or persuade someone, we still always present a thesis, back it up, and then form a conclusion.
In fiction, your readers will ask themselves, maybe subconsciously, maybe directly, whether or not they care about your thesis (what the story is about), whether or not you gave adequate reasons for them to agree (enjoyed the plot and building climax), and whether or not your conclusion (the story’s ending) was satisfying. It’s only if they can answer ‘yes’ that they will leave your work having truly enjoyed it.
Consider critical thinking when writing anything, when commenting on others’ work, when engaging in conversation, no matter the topic. We might be emotional beings, but we’re also intelligent, so the next time you present writing to the world, hand-written or typed, to any audience, ask yourself whether or not you did so objectively and applied critical thinking to what you said. Chances are you’ll be more persuasive, more informative, and more engaging if you did.
