When someone is reading a novel, by the middle of the story they should not be asking any of the characters, "Who are you?" By this time they should know who your characters are. But at times, we writers make the mistake of not knowing enough about them ourselves. This is why I most often rely on character descriptions.
Some writers use elaborate forms that give every detail one could imagine about their character. I tried it, but found that for me, a simple page or two works best. This document can be changed or added to during the writing process, but the main points will always remain the same. Eye color, hair color and body type pretty much don't change, unless the person takes to changing hair color or eating too man dounuts, and if that is the case it should be mentioned before it is done. A surprise change will confuse your readers.
I also like to give a history for my characters and find that this rarely changes. As the character reflects on a memory or refers to the past the history is a big help. This may be added to if something is revealed while you are writing.
I like to also use a time line. One of the most difficult things I have found is trying to keep events from the past from getting mixed up. This is also helpful if you want to reflect on a memory from the past and mention how old your characters were. You certainly don't want them to be six and seven for one memory and twenty and twenty-five for another. By the way, when did that young couple separate? Three years ago, and the woman his a one year old baby from their union. This will make the reader wonder if they writer forgot to mention some hanky-panky in the intervening years.
I have also found that these character descriptions help for less important characters, too. In my novel, Into the Fire, I had some characters that started to stand out, and they grew and became the main characters in the second novel in my Everyday Heroes Series, Rescued Hearts. In fact, I have more characters I hope to use in future novels for the series. My hope is to have For the Love of Amy published by the fall of 2013.
Last, I have even gone so far as to clip a picture of someone who represents a character in my novel. This helps me keep a visible reminder of what they look like as I write.
Being a writer is no different than a teacher with a lesson plan. Having one helps serve as a guide. As the story or class progresses there are times when something might not fit, but it is easier to adjust the guide than to rewrite a novel that was written with the "I'll wing it," attitude. Trust me, if you have too many loose ends that don't tie up by the end of the novel, your readers will notice.
I hope this has helped any novice writers out there who are looking for a few tips on writing. Just remember, the most important things is you have to do it, not just think about it.
I look forward to hearing from some of you soon. Have a great start to a wonderful new year of writing.
You will find my novels at this link.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Thursday, August 9, 2012
The Truth of the Matter - Writing Non-Fiction
When I was a pre-teen I started writing short stories. I still have some of those and when I look back at them I have a good laugh. They were cute, but lacked maturity. Of course, what do you expect – I did say pre-teen.
My stories got longer as I grew older and as far as maturity was concerned my imagination matured far faster than the rest of me. I still wrote fiction – though it sounded too much like fact. I was nearly expelled when a teacher found one of my stories. When called to the principal's office he asked if I did any of the things I'd written about in my stories. When I said I did not, he insisted it sounded like I did. I did my best not to look happy about that. To me his statement told me my fiction sounded real. However, the point was it wasn't.
With that as my inspiration I practiced my art all the more, knowing there was hope for me as a writer. However, it was many years before I actually submitted a story to be published. The difference was owning a computer with word processing capabilities. I refer to my days of being unpublished as my pre-computer days, and those after as post-computer. It took the capabilities of editing on screen to make a huge difference. The old days were over where you held up the page to if there were than five spots of White-out – meaning it wasn't fit to send to an editor.
Well, I never was a good typist, so there was a long period when I didn't send anything to an editor. Still, even after I did, I had a lot of rejections. If you have been reading my blog, you might remember my mentioning my wall of rejection slips.
There was actually a more important reason I wasn't having my work accepted. I was still writing fiction. My imagination may have been working overtime, but my skills as a writer hadn't kept up with it. What I needed was to be able to say more with less.
Someone gave me a tip I never forgot. Write non-fiction first. How boring, I had thought. Telling the truth certainly couldn't be what they cracked it up to be. Until I actually did it, I didn't realize how wrong I was. Non-fiction was an exciting learning experience. During my time writing for newspapers and magazines I got an education I might never have gotten writing fiction.
You see, I was fortunate this happened prior to the Internet. I could not just Google a few keywords and get all the research I needed for an article. I actually had to go to the source sitting through hours of meetings, workshops and seminars. I would return with pages and pages of notes and lots of business cards from people whose brains I hoped to pick.
As I wrote non-fiction I learned. As I learned I grew more confident. As I grew more confident I submitted more. I was published more. My reputation grew. I was happy – except for one thing – I still wanted to write fiction.
Little did I know I was setting the ground work for years of fiction writing.
Wait, I don't want to get ahead of myself. I was also going to say that I started to set certain goals that became rules for my work. For every meeting, workshop or seminar I attended I tried to find at least one side bar, or side story, that could run with it. I tried to have at least three perspectives in a story by interviewing people from all angles of a subject. Also, I always listened to rumors, but never wrote about them until three unrelated people substantiated the story. I was always honest and did my best to keep people from looking like fools, even when at times they were. And when I did, I did it nicely. That got me a reputation as a journalist who could be trusted.
Now for the lesson I mentioned above. I learned to say more with less. In my words I say, "I learned to write short." I learned to cut the crap and keep what was important. Pardon my words, but it's the truth.
This eventually helped me when I started writing women's fiction. I was able to keep a story condensed enough that it fit into the guidelines for a specific magazine. As of last count I had around 200 short stories published in the personal experience market. This is another subject I will go into at great length in my next blog.
Last, my jump from short fiction to novels was a little like stepping back in time. I now know how to add to my shorter stories to turn them into novels. Nothing educated me more than reading the work of other novelists I enjoyed. I started to determine what details needed to be added to lengthen my stories. But again, that will be another blog I will write later.
For now, let me say, if you have been struggling trying to get published in fiction markets, you might want to give non-fiction a try. Sometimes telling the truth is exactly what it is cracked up to be.
My stories got longer as I grew older and as far as maturity was concerned my imagination matured far faster than the rest of me. I still wrote fiction – though it sounded too much like fact. I was nearly expelled when a teacher found one of my stories. When called to the principal's office he asked if I did any of the things I'd written about in my stories. When I said I did not, he insisted it sounded like I did. I did my best not to look happy about that. To me his statement told me my fiction sounded real. However, the point was it wasn't.
With that as my inspiration I practiced my art all the more, knowing there was hope for me as a writer. However, it was many years before I actually submitted a story to be published. The difference was owning a computer with word processing capabilities. I refer to my days of being unpublished as my pre-computer days, and those after as post-computer. It took the capabilities of editing on screen to make a huge difference. The old days were over where you held up the page to if there were than five spots of White-out – meaning it wasn't fit to send to an editor.
Well, I never was a good typist, so there was a long period when I didn't send anything to an editor. Still, even after I did, I had a lot of rejections. If you have been reading my blog, you might remember my mentioning my wall of rejection slips.
There was actually a more important reason I wasn't having my work accepted. I was still writing fiction. My imagination may have been working overtime, but my skills as a writer hadn't kept up with it. What I needed was to be able to say more with less.
Someone gave me a tip I never forgot. Write non-fiction first. How boring, I had thought. Telling the truth certainly couldn't be what they cracked it up to be. Until I actually did it, I didn't realize how wrong I was. Non-fiction was an exciting learning experience. During my time writing for newspapers and magazines I got an education I might never have gotten writing fiction.
You see, I was fortunate this happened prior to the Internet. I could not just Google a few keywords and get all the research I needed for an article. I actually had to go to the source sitting through hours of meetings, workshops and seminars. I would return with pages and pages of notes and lots of business cards from people whose brains I hoped to pick.
As I wrote non-fiction I learned. As I learned I grew more confident. As I grew more confident I submitted more. I was published more. My reputation grew. I was happy – except for one thing – I still wanted to write fiction.
Little did I know I was setting the ground work for years of fiction writing.
Wait, I don't want to get ahead of myself. I was also going to say that I started to set certain goals that became rules for my work. For every meeting, workshop or seminar I attended I tried to find at least one side bar, or side story, that could run with it. I tried to have at least three perspectives in a story by interviewing people from all angles of a subject. Also, I always listened to rumors, but never wrote about them until three unrelated people substantiated the story. I was always honest and did my best to keep people from looking like fools, even when at times they were. And when I did, I did it nicely. That got me a reputation as a journalist who could be trusted.
Now for the lesson I mentioned above. I learned to say more with less. In my words I say, "I learned to write short." I learned to cut the crap and keep what was important. Pardon my words, but it's the truth.
This eventually helped me when I started writing women's fiction. I was able to keep a story condensed enough that it fit into the guidelines for a specific magazine. As of last count I had around 200 short stories published in the personal experience market. This is another subject I will go into at great length in my next blog.
Last, my jump from short fiction to novels was a little like stepping back in time. I now know how to add to my shorter stories to turn them into novels. Nothing educated me more than reading the work of other novelists I enjoyed. I started to determine what details needed to be added to lengthen my stories. But again, that will be another blog I will write later.
For now, let me say, if you have been struggling trying to get published in fiction markets, you might want to give non-fiction a try. Sometimes telling the truth is exactly what it is cracked up to be.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
THE THREE "P’s" OF GETTING PUBLISHED (Part Three)
Perseverance:
By definition perseverance is:
Steady persistence in adhering to a course of action, a belief, or a purpose: steadfastness
No matter how good a relationship you may think you have with an editor, you are bound to face rejection. All writers do. I haven’t heard of one who hasn’t. At least one who has been published more than once.
Konrad Adenauer, Father of Post WWII German said, "A thick skin is a gift from God". Writers need a thick skin!
Journalist Kathy Seligman once said "You can’t hit a home run unless you step up to the plate. You can’t catch a fish unless you put your line in the water. You can’t reach your goals if you don’t try."
I might ad, you will never achieve success if you don’t keep trying. So, if you receive a rejection think of it as a learning experience. Don’t take it personally.
Most editors aren’t rude. They are only over-worked. So, consider yourself blessed if you have an editor who offers reasons for their rejection. Look at it as an opportunity to grow and get better. If they liked your work, but say it isn’t right for their publication, send them something that is.
If they offer suggestions and say they want to see it again, consider their suggestions. You have a choice to either rewrite it and resubmit it, or if you don’t want to make the changes, sit the manuscript aside for awhile; then if you still don’t agree with their suggestions send it somewhere else.
Let your manuscript and the rejection letter you received age like wine. It could be wonderful, or it could go sour. Look at both again with an objective eye. An objective eye is without bias. There’s no room for a closed mind. Editors aren’t always right, but then, neither are writers.
Whether you rewrite it or decide not to, keep submitting it. After several rejections seriously consider what to do next. It may need a total rewrite or you may need to file it away for future reference.
There’s a verse, I don’t know who wrote it, but it’s been published in so many forms I feel safe sharing it:
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.
talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
More than once I’ve had the same story rejected six times before it was published. If I’d have quit after my first rejection I’d have never been able to say I’m a professional writer. And this year I am celebrating having over 200 stories published by the Dorchester Media Group and their predecessors. I’ve also had hundreds of articles in newspapers and other magazines.
Why?
Because I didn’t quit. And I’ll tell you something. I know writers who are as good or better than me who still aren’t published because they did.
When I started writing I hung rejections on the wall surrounding a sign "God Answers Prayer". My best friend suggested I try being more specific. She was right I not only needed to be more specific in my prayers, I also needed to study my markets and be more specific and target where I sent my stories.
However, I’ll share a secret, though it won’t be a secret long, I have also resubmitted the same story to a publication more than once and only changed the title. The difference was, they had a new editor, but if I hadn’t stayed on top of the market I wouldn’t have known that.
Don’t quit. Stick with it. Introduce yourself and your work to as many editors as you can. Send them your manuscripts when they ask for it. Go to writers conferences and meet as many editors as you can. Listen more than you speak, except when you’re asked to pitch your story. Above all, respect their time. I’ve been at more than one conference where an overzealous, presumptuous writer has met up with an editor and stuck to that editor as though they were Velcroed together. In the end, the only reputation those writers got were bad ones.
Some might ask, when do you know a story is so bad you should throw it away? My reply would be , "Never". You never know when that story might be just right for a new publication.
As technology observer Robert Gelber put it, "Never forget that the greatest idea at the wrong time is a loser. If you look at the ‘firsts’ that were really seconds, they had timing in their favor. As with real estate, it’s location, location, location, with ideas it’s timing, timing, timing."
I keep everything I wrote except a few things that disappeared because of a computer glitch. Though I may not send those stories out ever again, I may reuse a character I particularly liked in another story, or use the research I did for one story in a different story.
You will know when to stop sending the manuscript.
As with patience, they key to perseverance is keeping busy. Always have another story on the back burner that could just be the one that helps you break into a market.
In Summary:
Having the three "P’s" isn’t going to guarantee you’ll get published. Everyone knows it also takes a few words that start with other letters. However, I have seen some very good writers not get published because they lacked one of the "P’s". Unfortunately, they replaced one "P" with another. Instead of practice, they procrastinated; instead of being patient, they pestered the editor; instead of persevering after receiving a rejection they pitied themselves and let fear of receiving another keep them from trying again.
Arthur Rock, Venture Capitalist said: "You can walk up to people on the street and ask them if they want to be rich and 99% will tell you, ‘Sure I want to be rich.’ But are they willing to do what’s necessary to be successful? Not many are.
Are you willing to do what’s necessary to be published? Are you willing to Practice? Have Patience? And to Persevere through the rough stuff like rejection?
By definition perseverance is:
No matter how good a relationship you may think you have with an editor, you are bound to face rejection. All writers do. I haven’t heard of one who hasn’t. At least one who has been published more than once.
Konrad Adenauer, Father of Post WWII German said, "A thick skin is a gift from God". Writers need a thick skin!
Journalist Kathy Seligman once said "You can’t hit a home run unless you step up to the plate. You can’t catch a fish unless you put your line in the water. You can’t reach your goals if you don’t try."
I might ad, you will never achieve success if you don’t keep trying. So, if you receive a rejection think of it as a learning experience. Don’t take it personally.
Most editors aren’t rude. They are only over-worked. So, consider yourself blessed if you have an editor who offers reasons for their rejection. Look at it as an opportunity to grow and get better. If they liked your work, but say it isn’t right for their publication, send them something that is.
If they offer suggestions and say they want to see it again, consider their suggestions. You have a choice to either rewrite it and resubmit it, or if you don’t want to make the changes, sit the manuscript aside for awhile; then if you still don’t agree with their suggestions send it somewhere else.
Let your manuscript and the rejection letter you received age like wine. It could be wonderful, or it could go sour. Look at both again with an objective eye. An objective eye is without bias. There’s no room for a closed mind. Editors aren’t always right, but then, neither are writers.
Whether you rewrite it or decide not to, keep submitting it. After several rejections seriously consider what to do next. It may need a total rewrite or you may need to file it away for future reference.
There’s a verse, I don’t know who wrote it, but it’s been published in so many forms I feel safe sharing it:
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with
talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
More than once I’ve had the same story rejected six times before it was published. If I’d have quit after my first rejection I’d have never been able to say I’m a professional writer. And this year I am celebrating having over 200 stories published by the Dorchester Media Group and their predecessors. I’ve also had hundreds of articles in newspapers and other magazines.
Why?
Because I didn’t quit. And I’ll tell you something. I know writers who are as good or better than me who still aren’t published because they did.
When I started writing I hung rejections on the wall surrounding a sign "God Answers Prayer". My best friend suggested I try being more specific. She was right I not only needed to be more specific in my prayers, I also needed to study my markets and be more specific and target where I sent my stories.
However, I’ll share a secret, though it won’t be a secret long, I have also resubmitted the same story to a publication more than once and only changed the title. The difference was, they had a new editor, but if I hadn’t stayed on top of the market I wouldn’t have known that.
Don’t quit. Stick with it. Introduce yourself and your work to as many editors as you can. Send them your manuscripts when they ask for it. Go to writers conferences and meet as many editors as you can. Listen more than you speak, except when you’re asked to pitch your story. Above all, respect their time. I’ve been at more than one conference where an overzealous, presumptuous writer has met up with an editor and stuck to that editor as though they were Velcroed together. In the end, the only reputation those writers got were bad ones.
Some might ask, when do you know a story is so bad you should throw it away? My reply would be , "Never". You never know when that story might be just right for a new publication.
As technology observer Robert Gelber put it, "Never forget that the greatest idea at the wrong time is a loser. If you look at the ‘firsts’ that were really seconds, they had timing in their favor. As with real estate, it’s location, location, location, with ideas it’s timing, timing, timing."
I keep everything I wrote except a few things that disappeared because of a computer glitch. Though I may not send those stories out ever again, I may reuse a character I particularly liked in another story, or use the research I did for one story in a different story.
You will know when to stop sending the manuscript.
As with patience, they key to perseverance is keeping busy. Always have another story on the back burner that could just be the one that helps you break into a market.
In Summary:
Having the three "P’s" isn’t going to guarantee you’ll get published. Everyone knows it also takes a few words that start with other letters. However, I have seen some very good writers not get published because they lacked one of the "P’s". Unfortunately, they replaced one "P" with another. Instead of practice, they procrastinated; instead of being patient, they pestered the editor; instead of persevering after receiving a rejection they pitied themselves and let fear of receiving another keep them from trying again.
Arthur Rock, Venture Capitalist said: "You can walk up to people on the street and ask them if they want to be rich and 99% will tell you, ‘Sure I want to be rich.’ But are they willing to do what’s necessary to be successful? Not many are.
Are you willing to do what’s necessary to be published? Are you willing to Practice? Have Patience? And to Persevere through the rough stuff like rejection?
Friday, July 27, 2012
THE THREE "P’s" OF GETTING PUBLISHED (Part Two)
Patience:
The definition of patience is: The capacity, quality, or fact of being patient
Sounds simple enough. Well, I can tell you there is nothing simple about it. Patience is not my strong suite. It is something I have to work very hard to do. But, please trust me, a writer needs to be patient.
Do you think you are ready to send your story to an editor? This is not a swift change of subject. It’s a legitimate question. For if you have not done your homework, all the patience in the world won’t achieve your objective of getting published.
For example, have you studied the market? Thank goodness the Internet makes this far easier than it used to be. I depend on www.Writersmarket.com and because I’m a member of Pennwriters, I often go to their site, www.Pennwriters.org
Next, have you queried the editor? You need to sell not only your story or article, but also yourself before you send your story. Yes, a few markets let you send the manuscript right to them, but many will return it unread if you haven’t approached them first with a query letter, and received a reply from them asking to see your story.
Assuming that has been done don’t wait on pins and needles to hear the fate of your masterpiece. Start multi-tasking. Yes, you heard right. Here’s some ways you can multi-task:
Work on your next story or stories.
Start research
Writer Franklin Adams once said, "I find a great part of the information I have was acquired by looking up something and finding something else on the way.
Write an outline
Interview people
Write, write, write
Study markets
I particularly like to spend time reading. I don’t know of any writer who doesn’t also read. However, I know some of the books I read may seem strange, but they do have a way of stimulating my brain cells. Unusual books like: A Kick in the Seat of the Pants By Roger von Oech or Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun by Wess Roberts.
My husband and I have to spend a fair amount of time traveling since most of our children don’t live close to home. Often while we are away we purposely take side trips to find new and interesting places. Not just to see them. I’m also looking for places for my next plots.
Once my husband and I found there was no room for us to stay with our family at a special gathering. Instead of feeling negative about it, we decided to stay at a local B&B and the setting inspired an idea for a novel.
Visit family and friends, but while you are with them listen to their stories. You may be surprised what you find out once you get them talking. More than once I’ve had to change the name to protect the not so innocent, and the writer who told their story.
My friend once told me about a strange dream she had and by the next day I turned it into a story and promised to take her to lunch if it’s ever published. You’ll find it on Gather.com under my story Ultimate Survivor.
Observe people whenever you have a chance. At the mall, a restaurant or church. Watch people at work or play.
After all I’ve just written, did you forget the reason for all of it? If you did, that’s good. The purpose for all of it is to keep you from pacing a rut in your carpet waiting to hear whether your manuscript is accepted or not. At the same time, you’ve used your time wisely.
While you’re doing all those things, it wouldn’t hurt to pitch your next story idea. Write some query letters. If it’s fiction, the usual rule is have it written before you query an editor. For non-fiction, you can query them and give them an estimated time table for completion of the work.
At this point I want to add a few words of advice about building relationships with editors. Don’t suggest something you aren’t ready to write or might not be able to follow through to completion.
Follow guidelines on mailing or e-mailing your query letter and your manuscript. Don’t ever phone an editor unless you know them and they have told you it’s okay. It took me many years before an editor called and left their number on my answering machine. Relationships like that are not built over night. So don’t be presumptuous. Yes, you may know your novel is the greatest thing written since Gone With the Wind and will sell more copies than the Bible and the Farmers Almanac combined, but the editor will never know that if you become a mosquito in his or her ear. Your relationship will be just as dead as that insect and probably just as fast.
As I said, I have worked many years to develop a relationship with some of my editors. In almost twenty years I have only phoned one of them once without being asked. I try my best to respect their busy schedules. After all, part of that schedule is reading my work.
However, there is a point of unreasonable patience. The markets I write for most often do tend to keep stories quite a long time. The fact that I’ve been told I have my own slush pile, that is the pile of stories that have yet to be read, does not change the fact that a story needs to stay in circulation. If it’s lost in a slush pile it isn’t getting published.
My usual policy was to wait two years then resubmit my store elsewhere, but unfortunately that policy had to be revived when the same story was wanted by both editors. I now have stared e-mailing editors after they have had a story for a prolonged period of time. Especially when I hear of a market looking for something that might be a good fit for my story. This seems to be working, and on more than one occasion has caused the first editor to purchase the story rather than give it up.
Just know your editors before you get too bold. And that brings me to the next, and final P in my three P’s.
The definition of patience is: The capacity, quality, or fact of being patient
Sounds simple enough. Well, I can tell you there is nothing simple about it. Patience is not my strong suite. It is something I have to work very hard to do. But, please trust me, a writer needs to be patient.
Do you think you are ready to send your story to an editor? This is not a swift change of subject. It’s a legitimate question. For if you have not done your homework, all the patience in the world won’t achieve your objective of getting published.
For example, have you studied the market? Thank goodness the Internet makes this far easier than it used to be. I depend on www.Writersmarket.com and because I’m a member of Pennwriters, I often go to their site, www.Pennwriters.org
Next, have you queried the editor? You need to sell not only your story or article, but also yourself before you send your story. Yes, a few markets let you send the manuscript right to them, but many will return it unread if you haven’t approached them first with a query letter, and received a reply from them asking to see your story.
Assuming that has been done don’t wait on pins and needles to hear the fate of your masterpiece. Start multi-tasking. Yes, you heard right. Here’s some ways you can multi-task:
Start research
Writer Franklin Adams once said, "I find a great part of the information I have was acquired by looking up something and finding something else on the way.
Interview people
Write, write, write
Study markets
I particularly like to spend time reading. I don’t know of any writer who doesn’t also read. However, I know some of the books I read may seem strange, but they do have a way of stimulating my brain cells. Unusual books like: A Kick in the Seat of the Pants By Roger von Oech or Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun by Wess Roberts.
My husband and I have to spend a fair amount of time traveling since most of our children don’t live close to home. Often while we are away we purposely take side trips to find new and interesting places. Not just to see them. I’m also looking for places for my next plots.
Once my husband and I found there was no room for us to stay with our family at a special gathering. Instead of feeling negative about it, we decided to stay at a local B&B and the setting inspired an idea for a novel.
Visit family and friends, but while you are with them listen to their stories. You may be surprised what you find out once you get them talking. More than once I’ve had to change the name to protect the not so innocent, and the writer who told their story.
My friend once told me about a strange dream she had and by the next day I turned it into a story and promised to take her to lunch if it’s ever published. You’ll find it on Gather.com under my story Ultimate Survivor.
Observe people whenever you have a chance. At the mall, a restaurant or church. Watch people at work or play.
After all I’ve just written, did you forget the reason for all of it? If you did, that’s good. The purpose for all of it is to keep you from pacing a rut in your carpet waiting to hear whether your manuscript is accepted or not. At the same time, you’ve used your time wisely.
While you’re doing all those things, it wouldn’t hurt to pitch your next story idea. Write some query letters. If it’s fiction, the usual rule is have it written before you query an editor. For non-fiction, you can query them and give them an estimated time table for completion of the work.
At this point I want to add a few words of advice about building relationships with editors. Don’t suggest something you aren’t ready to write or might not be able to follow through to completion.
Follow guidelines on mailing or e-mailing your query letter and your manuscript. Don’t ever phone an editor unless you know them and they have told you it’s okay. It took me many years before an editor called and left their number on my answering machine. Relationships like that are not built over night. So don’t be presumptuous. Yes, you may know your novel is the greatest thing written since Gone With the Wind and will sell more copies than the Bible and the Farmers Almanac combined, but the editor will never know that if you become a mosquito in his or her ear. Your relationship will be just as dead as that insect and probably just as fast.
As I said, I have worked many years to develop a relationship with some of my editors. In almost twenty years I have only phoned one of them once without being asked. I try my best to respect their busy schedules. After all, part of that schedule is reading my work.
However, there is a point of unreasonable patience. The markets I write for most often do tend to keep stories quite a long time. The fact that I’ve been told I have my own slush pile, that is the pile of stories that have yet to be read, does not change the fact that a story needs to stay in circulation. If it’s lost in a slush pile it isn’t getting published.
My usual policy was to wait two years then resubmit my store elsewhere, but unfortunately that policy had to be revived when the same story was wanted by both editors. I now have stared e-mailing editors after they have had a story for a prolonged period of time. Especially when I hear of a market looking for something that might be a good fit for my story. This seems to be working, and on more than one occasion has caused the first editor to purchase the story rather than give it up.
Just know your editors before you get too bold. And that brings me to the next, and final P in my three P’s.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
THE THREE “P’s” OF GETTING PUBLISHED With Writing Exercises (Part One)
What do the following have in common?
Tiger Woods - Golfer
Michelangelo - Artist
Samuel Clemens - Writer
Pittsburgh Steelers - Super Bowl Winners
If you answered: they all had/have to practice to achieve greatness, you were correct.
So, what so the next four things have in common?
1. A mother/father
2. A teacher
3. A winemaker
4. A corrections officer
I hope you answered: they all need patience to do what they do.
Now, one more time, what do the following have in common?
1. Mark Inglis - Climbed Mt. Everest
2. Red Sox - World Series Winners
3. Dave Hallum - Champion Sprint Kart Racer
4. Audie Murphy - WWII Hero & Actor
They answer I’m looking for is that they all had to persevere to achieve. If you wonder who some of these are, or why I chose them, just do a search on the Internet. You’ll find out why I choose them.
These are the basis for the class I teach, and the article I’m writing, on The Three P’s of Getting Published.
Practice:
By definition practice means:
1. To do or perform habitually or customarily; make a habit of
2. To do or perform something repeatedly in order to acquire a polish or skill.
Whoever said "Practice makes perfect", may not have been a writer, but their words fit the life of a writer. Sure we write because we love it. But we need to practice our craft all the more if we are to improve enough to get published. So, if that is your goal, I hope what I write here will help you achieve that goal.
I have many exercises one can use to practice writing. You might want to try some of them. They are not only good exercises, but they give you a variety of writing experience.
Of course, one way is the obvious one: you can write the same story or article over and over. It can get tiresome, but it’s what a writer often has to do. Especially if they face rejection in one market and need to rewrite the story for a different market that might want it from a different slant.
Another interesting way to experiment with the same story is to write it from different perspectives. You may write a story about a woman who is married to an alcoholic husband. Then, write it again from the husband’s perspective. Perhaps he wants desperately to save his marriage, but his demons are just too difficult to fight. Now, what about writing the story from the perspective of one of their children. Of course, this is just one example.
Writing exercise: Imagine a traffic jam on a major highway.
Write:
A fictional piece in first person
A fictional piece in third person
As though writing for a newspaper or magazine
With humor
With frustration
Another way to practice is to write about things that touch your emotions. In fact, I have no doubt to the fact that there are certain emotions that drive a writer to start writing faster than others. I personally find that when I am upset, I am driven to express myself on paper. Often no one ever sees what I write, but I find it therapeutic.
Of course, we’re not talking about therapeutic writing, we are talking about getting published. And once you are published, you want to continue to be published. To do that you have to make your readers feel. You must touch their emotions. Emotions like anger, fear, sadness and joy.
A person can be sobbing or laughing as they read a story. What you don’t want is for a story to leave them stone cold and emotionless.
I’d be plagiarizing if I used the excerpts I read when I teach this as a class. Of course, I shouldn’t have to. Most writers are also readers. However, next time you read, make a conscious effort to think about the parts that touch you in some special way.
Another form of practice is stretching yourself when you write. I mean to go beyond your comfort zone. It helps if you enjoy observing people, seeing those little things that make them stand out, or make them different.
Of course, it’s easy to write about a character modeled after someone you like. Now, try it with someone who irritates you in mind. Try getting into their shoes and write as though you are that person, doing whatever it is that irritates you most about them. I’m not talking only writing a humor piece where you exploit that person. I’m talking about a story that gives them heart, and perhaps explains their peculiar idiosyncracies.
Take time to do research so that you know as much about the person you hope to write about as you can. This is true even if the person is fictional. There still may be some things you need to know or understand about that person. Perhaps they grew up working in their family restaurant. Find out what that is like before you write about it.
Sometimes it also helps if you interview the person you are going to write about in your story. Yes, even when that person is inside your head. The best way to bring a figment of your imagination to life is to talk to them. Though, I suggest you do in when you are alone. This is especially helpful when writing a novel, because there are so many pages to fill with little tidbits about that person.
As I said, challenge yourself. There are so many ways, I won’t even try to list them all here.
Michelangelo - Artist
Samuel Clemens - Writer
Pittsburgh Steelers - Super Bowl Winners
If you answered: they all had/have to practice to achieve greatness, you were correct.
So, what so the next four things have in common?
2. A teacher
3. A winemaker
4. A corrections officer
I hope you answered: they all need patience to do what they do.
Now, one more time, what do the following have in common?
2. Red Sox - World Series Winners
3. Dave Hallum - Champion Sprint Kart Racer
4. Audie Murphy - WWII Hero & Actor
They answer I’m looking for is that they all had to persevere to achieve. If you wonder who some of these are, or why I chose them, just do a search on the Internet. You’ll find out why I choose them.
These are the basis for the class I teach, and the article I’m writing, on The Three P’s of Getting Published.
Practice:
By definition practice means:
2. To do or perform something repeatedly in order to acquire a polish or skill.
Whoever said "Practice makes perfect", may not have been a writer, but their words fit the life of a writer. Sure we write because we love it. But we need to practice our craft all the more if we are to improve enough to get published. So, if that is your goal, I hope what I write here will help you achieve that goal.
I have many exercises one can use to practice writing. You might want to try some of them. They are not only good exercises, but they give you a variety of writing experience.
Of course, one way is the obvious one: you can write the same story or article over and over. It can get tiresome, but it’s what a writer often has to do. Especially if they face rejection in one market and need to rewrite the story for a different market that might want it from a different slant.
Another interesting way to experiment with the same story is to write it from different perspectives. You may write a story about a woman who is married to an alcoholic husband. Then, write it again from the husband’s perspective. Perhaps he wants desperately to save his marriage, but his demons are just too difficult to fight. Now, what about writing the story from the perspective of one of their children. Of course, this is just one example.
Writing exercise: Imagine a traffic jam on a major highway.
Write:
A fictional piece in third person
As though writing for a newspaper or magazine
With humor
With frustration
Another way to practice is to write about things that touch your emotions. In fact, I have no doubt to the fact that there are certain emotions that drive a writer to start writing faster than others. I personally find that when I am upset, I am driven to express myself on paper. Often no one ever sees what I write, but I find it therapeutic.
Of course, we’re not talking about therapeutic writing, we are talking about getting published. And once you are published, you want to continue to be published. To do that you have to make your readers feel. You must touch their emotions. Emotions like anger, fear, sadness and joy.
A person can be sobbing or laughing as they read a story. What you don’t want is for a story to leave them stone cold and emotionless.
I’d be plagiarizing if I used the excerpts I read when I teach this as a class. Of course, I shouldn’t have to. Most writers are also readers. However, next time you read, make a conscious effort to think about the parts that touch you in some special way.
Another form of practice is stretching yourself when you write. I mean to go beyond your comfort zone. It helps if you enjoy observing people, seeing those little things that make them stand out, or make them different.
Of course, it’s easy to write about a character modeled after someone you like. Now, try it with someone who irritates you in mind. Try getting into their shoes and write as though you are that person, doing whatever it is that irritates you most about them. I’m not talking only writing a humor piece where you exploit that person. I’m talking about a story that gives them heart, and perhaps explains their peculiar idiosyncracies.
Take time to do research so that you know as much about the person you hope to write about as you can. This is true even if the person is fictional. There still may be some things you need to know or understand about that person. Perhaps they grew up working in their family restaurant. Find out what that is like before you write about it.
Sometimes it also helps if you interview the person you are going to write about in your story. Yes, even when that person is inside your head. The best way to bring a figment of your imagination to life is to talk to them. Though, I suggest you do in when you are alone. This is especially helpful when writing a novel, because there are so many pages to fill with little tidbits about that person.
As I said, challenge yourself. There are so many ways, I won’t even try to list them all here.
Monday, July 2, 2012
When Life Gets in the Way
It seems appropriate that I should write about what a writer should do when life gets in the way of their current writing project. I'm away from home, spending time with family. Unfortunately, we are not on vacation, nor even just planning a July 4th picnic. Instead we are watching my husband's beloved mother slip away from us.
Not only is life in limbo; but also writing. This has happened on other occasions; after September 11, 2011, Hurricane Katrina, and more personally following the death of my father, and several surgeries. Some of those didn't surprise me. The one that did was the last. After all, I had planned on getting done while recuperating.
I beat myself up a bit when I found myself unable to concentrate. Words just didn't find their way to the page. Fortunately I spoke to several other writers who have experienced the same thing. It seems one just can't plan how the brain will react to certain things, among them trauma, grief, and even anaesthesia.
Since my title implies that I know what to do when life gets in the way, I guess I should tell you. The answer may surprise you. – Do nothing. At least nothing that you feel you have to force yourself to do. So, put that project aside for a little while.
My advice – which is just what works for me – is to begin keeping a journal, expressing your feelings about what is happening around you. Express your thoughts, feelings, doubts, anything that comes to mind.
After 9-1-1 many publishers flat out said they were not going to accept anything that had to do with the events that happened that tragic day. Later after I was back to writing, I took my notes from my journal and was able to write several stories. By waiting the emotions of the day had lessened ever so slightly. The result was that the stories were published.
Some of the stories were specifically about that day. Others were tweaked and turned into other stories about something entirely different. However, the emotions were real and touched the lives of my editors, and hopefully, my readers.
Sometimes you just can't fight it. Whether you call it "Writer's Block," or just life getting in the way, write; only write about it. Life is, after all, a huge part of everything story you tell.
Not only is life in limbo; but also writing. This has happened on other occasions; after September 11, 2011, Hurricane Katrina, and more personally following the death of my father, and several surgeries. Some of those didn't surprise me. The one that did was the last. After all, I had planned on getting done while recuperating.
I beat myself up a bit when I found myself unable to concentrate. Words just didn't find their way to the page. Fortunately I spoke to several other writers who have experienced the same thing. It seems one just can't plan how the brain will react to certain things, among them trauma, grief, and even anaesthesia.
Since my title implies that I know what to do when life gets in the way, I guess I should tell you. The answer may surprise you. – Do nothing. At least nothing that you feel you have to force yourself to do. So, put that project aside for a little while.
My advice – which is just what works for me – is to begin keeping a journal, expressing your feelings about what is happening around you. Express your thoughts, feelings, doubts, anything that comes to mind.
After 9-1-1 many publishers flat out said they were not going to accept anything that had to do with the events that happened that tragic day. Later after I was back to writing, I took my notes from my journal and was able to write several stories. By waiting the emotions of the day had lessened ever so slightly. The result was that the stories were published.
Some of the stories were specifically about that day. Others were tweaked and turned into other stories about something entirely different. However, the emotions were real and touched the lives of my editors, and hopefully, my readers.
Sometimes you just can't fight it. Whether you call it "Writer's Block," or just life getting in the way, write; only write about it. Life is, after all, a huge part of everything story you tell.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Starting in the Middle
It took me a little while to grasp the concept of starting my story in the middle. I mean the middle is in the middle, isn't it? However, the speaker of the workshop I was attending was a long time published writer, with hundreds of novels under her belt, so, I supposed I had better pay attention.
After that workshop I took a look at several novels I had written and the light bulb went on. I understood exactly what the speaker had meant. My stories were bogged down in the beginning with historical information about my plot and characters that would be better presented in another way. I was going to disclose the information as the story progressed.
In my novel Mogul, my story was bogged down in the beginning as I took my main character, Amanda, through a long journey from Pennsylvania to Tennessee. My readers were to travel with her every step of the way. Although I at first thought it was an exciting journey, I took a look at it from a different perspective and realized the trip itself was trivial, it was what happened on the journey and Amanda's feelings about it that mattered most. I decided to eliminate the trip south on paper and tell the facts that were important about the trip through Amanda's reflections later in the story.
I have had other stories where I have done much the same thing by cutting out lengthy sections of text and adding a bit of intrigue to the story as the historical facts are uncovered during the novel. This works well when no one really needs to know the facts in order for the story to move forward.
However, sometimes there is something that has happened in a character's life that has influenced them or been a huge part of why they are the person they have become. Again, there are times a little bit of information goes a long way.
In Eye of the Hurricane I reveal the main character's love not only for her children, but for the siblings they were named after. Other things happen that cause her to reflect on the loss of those siblings, and the guilt she felt because of that loss. As she deals with the guilt more of the past story is revealed.
I must add a few words of caution. Not every tidbit of historical information needs to be removed from the beginning of the story. Only you, the writer, can decide what you want to keep.
When you do decide to use other methods to make those revelations that are pertinent to the story, you should be careful not to bog your story down with flashbacks. I prefer to call them reflections, because to me a reflection is shorter than a flashback. Other methods may be through dialogue: a secret told in confidence or some sort of an interrogation. Other characters who know the history can also reveal parts of it.
There are also the tried and true dream/nightmare sequences. Again use them sparingly as they can come across as the ploy that they are. Recently I read a novel that used nightmares in a very effective way, by having each nightmare reveal just a little bit more information until the main character finally remembered the dark incident that had been causing the nightmares to begin with.
Whatever you decide, you are the writer, you are in control of your story. However, if you want the story published, you may need to take another objective look at it to decide how and where you want your story to begin. Remember, the beginning is where you grab your reader. If you bog them down with too much information and not enough plot, they just might not read past the first few pages.
As always, I wish you success and hope your writing brings you the joy mine has brought me.
After that workshop I took a look at several novels I had written and the light bulb went on. I understood exactly what the speaker had meant. My stories were bogged down in the beginning with historical information about my plot and characters that would be better presented in another way. I was going to disclose the information as the story progressed.
In my novel Mogul, my story was bogged down in the beginning as I took my main character, Amanda, through a long journey from Pennsylvania to Tennessee. My readers were to travel with her every step of the way. Although I at first thought it was an exciting journey, I took a look at it from a different perspective and realized the trip itself was trivial, it was what happened on the journey and Amanda's feelings about it that mattered most. I decided to eliminate the trip south on paper and tell the facts that were important about the trip through Amanda's reflections later in the story.
I have had other stories where I have done much the same thing by cutting out lengthy sections of text and adding a bit of intrigue to the story as the historical facts are uncovered during the novel. This works well when no one really needs to know the facts in order for the story to move forward.
However, sometimes there is something that has happened in a character's life that has influenced them or been a huge part of why they are the person they have become. Again, there are times a little bit of information goes a long way.
In Eye of the Hurricane I reveal the main character's love not only for her children, but for the siblings they were named after. Other things happen that cause her to reflect on the loss of those siblings, and the guilt she felt because of that loss. As she deals with the guilt more of the past story is revealed.
I must add a few words of caution. Not every tidbit of historical information needs to be removed from the beginning of the story. Only you, the writer, can decide what you want to keep.
When you do decide to use other methods to make those revelations that are pertinent to the story, you should be careful not to bog your story down with flashbacks. I prefer to call them reflections, because to me a reflection is shorter than a flashback. Other methods may be through dialogue: a secret told in confidence or some sort of an interrogation. Other characters who know the history can also reveal parts of it.
There are also the tried and true dream/nightmare sequences. Again use them sparingly as they can come across as the ploy that they are. Recently I read a novel that used nightmares in a very effective way, by having each nightmare reveal just a little bit more information until the main character finally remembered the dark incident that had been causing the nightmares to begin with.
Whatever you decide, you are the writer, you are in control of your story. However, if you want the story published, you may need to take another objective look at it to decide how and where you want your story to begin. Remember, the beginning is where you grab your reader. If you bog them down with too much information and not enough plot, they just might not read past the first few pages.
As always, I wish you success and hope your writing brings you the joy mine has brought me.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Where to Ideas Come From?
My first instinct when responding to this question is to say that if you have run out of ideas, you may not be cut out to write fiction. Since I asked the question, that is hardly a fair response. In my case, as a writer, I have to focus on lassoing in my ideas. I have so many it is almost like being in a corral full of cattle hoping to pick out the best from the herd.
When I first started writing at around the age of 12, I wrote about nearly anything that came to mind. I still have some of those treasured stories. I keep them so I can have a good laugh now and then. That's not to say there are no accomplished 12 year old writers, it is just to say that my work needed work.
At the same time my ideas had yet to mature, and research had yet to be added to my repertoire of author's skills. My ideas had to grow as I grew, expand as I expanded . . . Wait! That's not how I wanted to say that. – Editing on the spot: I needed to explore new horizons so that my ideas could move on to new horizons. – Sounds much better, right?
In a nutshell, as I matured so did my ideas. For a while I allowed well intentioned, often "professionals," too much control of my work. Example: At a romance writers meeting I was once told if I couldn't write an eleven page love scene, I couldn't write romance. My friend, Wanda, who had joined me that day, and I both sat stunned, stuck on that comment. I remember nothing else from the session.
As we left that meeting it was a matter of which of us was going to be first to burst forth with some kind of comment on the subject. I recall only that Wanda, a SF writer, said something about trying to figure out how her characters with tentacles, claws, and whatnot were going to manage a love scene at all, much less for eleven pages. I think she also ran a human version by me where a man and woman both wearing braces were stuck in an elevator. They kiss, the braces get stuck; and quite possibly it would take eleven pages for them to get apart again.
Oh yes, Wanda has a great sense of humor. While I, on the other hand, was still in awe of an eleven page love scene. My only comment was something like, "I haven't heard of any man who can . . . " Perhaps it's best I leave the rest to your imagination and just say I began counting pages of love published love scenes after that and realized there was a reason they were called romance.
I quickly realized writing explicit love scenes was not for me. While I loved romance, I saw romance and sex as two different things. Sex might be the culmination of romance done properly, but that is not necessarily the case in every story.
I learned I had to write what was comfortable for me. So, while the chemistry between two people may produce heat, it does not always have to produce fire, if the two components are separated before that happens. Thus, in my case, I had discovered sexual tension, and I use it often.
Sorry, I digressed on that subject. Back on track, my ideas come from a variety of places, perhaps the most is life. However, since I live a fairly uninteresting life, the most exciting aspects of my plots come from other sources. I used to watch Oprah to get ideas for plots and characters. Even the news held an abundance of possibilities. I would even sit in a public place and just watch people, often conceiving a character on the spot. Warning: never follow the people you are watching. Today that is called stalking.
In an earlier article I mentioned researching locations for plots in my stories. That is not to say I have never traveled and gotten a plot. Some of my most interesting plots have come at the most surprising times. Like the time my husband and I traveled to a lovely B&B in Lewistown, PA, to attend our granddaughter's christening. That night as my husband and I explored our lovely accommodations The Pineapple Inn, was conceived. The novel is now available at Amazon in soft cover and e-book.
Also, I have many stories that have come from dreams. I have regretted the nights I have not had a pad and paper handy by my bed so I could jot down a great dream, only to have forgotten it before morning. In fact, if I remember correctly, Eye of the Hurricane came to me in a dream. That short story is included in my first This and That collection.
Last, ideas can come from nearly any source. Friends have told me things, and I have told them while I may change names, I keep no secrets. Not totally true, but it sounds good.
In answer to my original question, ideas can come from nearly any place. Harvesting them and turning them into great stories is what makes us writers. I hope your ideas are many, and your harvest is fruitful.
When I first started writing at around the age of 12, I wrote about nearly anything that came to mind. I still have some of those treasured stories. I keep them so I can have a good laugh now and then. That's not to say there are no accomplished 12 year old writers, it is just to say that my work needed work.
At the same time my ideas had yet to mature, and research had yet to be added to my repertoire of author's skills. My ideas had to grow as I grew, expand as I expanded . . . Wait! That's not how I wanted to say that. – Editing on the spot: I needed to explore new horizons so that my ideas could move on to new horizons. – Sounds much better, right?
In a nutshell, as I matured so did my ideas. For a while I allowed well intentioned, often "professionals," too much control of my work. Example: At a romance writers meeting I was once told if I couldn't write an eleven page love scene, I couldn't write romance. My friend, Wanda, who had joined me that day, and I both sat stunned, stuck on that comment. I remember nothing else from the session.
As we left that meeting it was a matter of which of us was going to be first to burst forth with some kind of comment on the subject. I recall only that Wanda, a SF writer, said something about trying to figure out how her characters with tentacles, claws, and whatnot were going to manage a love scene at all, much less for eleven pages. I think she also ran a human version by me where a man and woman both wearing braces were stuck in an elevator. They kiss, the braces get stuck; and quite possibly it would take eleven pages for them to get apart again.
Oh yes, Wanda has a great sense of humor. While I, on the other hand, was still in awe of an eleven page love scene. My only comment was something like, "I haven't heard of any man who can . . . " Perhaps it's best I leave the rest to your imagination and just say I began counting pages of love published love scenes after that and realized there was a reason they were called romance.
I quickly realized writing explicit love scenes was not for me. While I loved romance, I saw romance and sex as two different things. Sex might be the culmination of romance done properly, but that is not necessarily the case in every story.
I learned I had to write what was comfortable for me. So, while the chemistry between two people may produce heat, it does not always have to produce fire, if the two components are separated before that happens. Thus, in my case, I had discovered sexual tension, and I use it often.
Sorry, I digressed on that subject. Back on track, my ideas come from a variety of places, perhaps the most is life. However, since I live a fairly uninteresting life, the most exciting aspects of my plots come from other sources. I used to watch Oprah to get ideas for plots and characters. Even the news held an abundance of possibilities. I would even sit in a public place and just watch people, often conceiving a character on the spot. Warning: never follow the people you are watching. Today that is called stalking.
In an earlier article I mentioned researching locations for plots in my stories. That is not to say I have never traveled and gotten a plot. Some of my most interesting plots have come at the most surprising times. Like the time my husband and I traveled to a lovely B&B in Lewistown, PA, to attend our granddaughter's christening. That night as my husband and I explored our lovely accommodations The Pineapple Inn, was conceived. The novel is now available at Amazon in soft cover and e-book.
Also, I have many stories that have come from dreams. I have regretted the nights I have not had a pad and paper handy by my bed so I could jot down a great dream, only to have forgotten it before morning. In fact, if I remember correctly, Eye of the Hurricane came to me in a dream. That short story is included in my first This and That collection.
Last, ideas can come from nearly any source. Friends have told me things, and I have told them while I may change names, I keep no secrets. Not totally true, but it sounds good.
In answer to my original question, ideas can come from nearly any place. Harvesting them and turning them into great stories is what makes us writers. I hope your ideas are many, and your harvest is fruitful.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Reading, Riting and Rejection
Most writers were first readers. We allowed other writers to take us places we had never gone. They introduced us to characters that we loved, or loved to hate. Before long there were new characters, only these were forming inside our own heads.
There was only a choice of letting them die there, or helping them to grow and develop on paper, along with the plots that seemed to be part of their journey.
This is the journey of a story's life, from conception to happy ending. And although the ending in a story is not always happy, it is for the writer who has birthed their masterpiece and seen it through it growth and development.
Now it is time for that masterpiece to go out into the world. It is not an easy process, just as a parent knows, letting go of their child is not always easy. In fact, many writers before me have likened writing to parenthood.
And just like with parenthood, your babies sometimes return home again. It is our job, as parents and writers, to help our children, or manuscripts, to make the journey out of the nest once again. It is up to us to help prepare them.
Unfortunately, sometimes they keep returning. There was a movie about this I think was titled, "Failure to Launch", where the adult child refused to leave home. However, as writers we know we can't blame our manuscript for returning again and again.
A long time ago I was given an inspirational message I taped to the wall of my office. It said, "God answers prayer." The next few years, around it I taped up the rejection slips I had received until the wall was nearly filled with rejections. One day a writer friend came to visit and I allowed her the honor of entering my disaster zone – er, I mean my office. She didn't notice my mess. In fact, the only thing she noticed was my wall. She simply turned to me saying, "Maybe you are asking Him for the wrong thing."
Maybe I was. While my rejections were creating in me a determination to overcome, what I failed to remember that just sending, tweeking, and resending my manuscripts over and over again was not all that was needed. For my stories to grow into adults ready to leave the nest forever, I had to have the tools to prepare them for that journey.
I had to get off the cycle of riting and rejection. I needed to concentrate on reading and riting. I needed to eliminate the rejection. That meant reading the work of others published in the markets I had chosen as homes for my stories, just as a parent might help their child research the field they have chosen for their life work.
I also needed to read my own work as objectively as possible, and seek out others who would give me honest opinions about my stories. Preferably people who read similar work by other authors. I needed people who would not just put on a smile and tell me what they thought would make me feel good. I needed people who would give me their honest appraisal of my work, even if it hurt.
With this accomplished I was able to see what needed to be changed in my stories before they left home again. This time, hopefully for good. With the knowledge I'd gained and applied to my stories, there was a far better chance they would find a new home.
This worked for me. I am happy to say I took down the old rejection slips from my wall. They no longer inspired me. Yes, there were more, but I used them as tools not decorations. I'm happy to say that soon there were less and less of them.
I suggest beginning writers not allow rejections of their stories to be signs of failure. Yes, they can serve as items that strengthen your desire to never give up. But they must also serve as something deeper. They should inspire you to learn and grow, as they did me.
After all, I've grown since the beginning of this piece. I now can spell as well as advise. I'm ending with this, may you all know one good thing leads to another, especially with Reading, Writing and Acceptance.
There was only a choice of letting them die there, or helping them to grow and develop on paper, along with the plots that seemed to be part of their journey.
This is the journey of a story's life, from conception to happy ending. And although the ending in a story is not always happy, it is for the writer who has birthed their masterpiece and seen it through it growth and development.
Now it is time for that masterpiece to go out into the world. It is not an easy process, just as a parent knows, letting go of their child is not always easy. In fact, many writers before me have likened writing to parenthood.
And just like with parenthood, your babies sometimes return home again. It is our job, as parents and writers, to help our children, or manuscripts, to make the journey out of the nest once again. It is up to us to help prepare them.
Unfortunately, sometimes they keep returning. There was a movie about this I think was titled, "Failure to Launch", where the adult child refused to leave home. However, as writers we know we can't blame our manuscript for returning again and again.
A long time ago I was given an inspirational message I taped to the wall of my office. It said, "God answers prayer." The next few years, around it I taped up the rejection slips I had received until the wall was nearly filled with rejections. One day a writer friend came to visit and I allowed her the honor of entering my disaster zone – er, I mean my office. She didn't notice my mess. In fact, the only thing she noticed was my wall. She simply turned to me saying, "Maybe you are asking Him for the wrong thing."
Maybe I was. While my rejections were creating in me a determination to overcome, what I failed to remember that just sending, tweeking, and resending my manuscripts over and over again was not all that was needed. For my stories to grow into adults ready to leave the nest forever, I had to have the tools to prepare them for that journey.
I had to get off the cycle of riting and rejection. I needed to concentrate on reading and riting. I needed to eliminate the rejection. That meant reading the work of others published in the markets I had chosen as homes for my stories, just as a parent might help their child research the field they have chosen for their life work.
I also needed to read my own work as objectively as possible, and seek out others who would give me honest opinions about my stories. Preferably people who read similar work by other authors. I needed people who would not just put on a smile and tell me what they thought would make me feel good. I needed people who would give me their honest appraisal of my work, even if it hurt.
With this accomplished I was able to see what needed to be changed in my stories before they left home again. This time, hopefully for good. With the knowledge I'd gained and applied to my stories, there was a far better chance they would find a new home.
This worked for me. I am happy to say I took down the old rejection slips from my wall. They no longer inspired me. Yes, there were more, but I used them as tools not decorations. I'm happy to say that soon there were less and less of them.
I suggest beginning writers not allow rejections of their stories to be signs of failure. Yes, they can serve as items that strengthen your desire to never give up. But they must also serve as something deeper. They should inspire you to learn and grow, as they did me.
After all, I've grown since the beginning of this piece. I now can spell as well as advise. I'm ending with this, may you all know one good thing leads to another, especially with Reading, Writing and Acceptance.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
He Said, She Said
He may not have been a he, and she may not have been a she; but the title seemed appropriate for my next segment on contradictory advice.
If you are a seasoned writer you already know what I'm talking about. If you are a novice, I hope this article will give you a little helpful advice, when other helpful advice seems confusing. If that sentence didn't confuse you, you may not have a problem trudging through the well-meaning suggestions you receive when you submit your story.
I wrote a novel once about an up and coming model who returned home and runs into the man she once loved. She was attracted to him, but when he makes advances she puts the kibbutz to it. And why might that be? Because she had less experience at lust than I had writing scenes with lustful behavior.
But it was not my lack of writing experience one agent took exception with. What he found unrealistic was the fact that a model could be acting that way. In his view models were not examples of women with high morals. In fact, though he said he liked my story, he felt the only place my novel might get published was a Christian romance market.
At that time those markets were limited, and I was never one to shy away from taking a challenge. So I queried an editor of a Christian market (note I was a good girl and queried first). That editor was intrigued enough to ask to see the novel.
In her return rejection she noted that like the agent, she liked my story. Drum roll please. . . However, my story's love scenes were too explicit for their market.
Thus, he said, she said.
One might wonder in a case like this what they should do. Neither agent or editor had asked to see a revised version of my novel, so that told me something. In my case, I looked at the situation with an unbiased eyes – something I might add the agent did not do.
I realized the agent had stereotyped the model into a roll that said professional models could not be virgins, much less want to hang onto their virginity until the right man came alone. In fact, even though in my story the woman had found the right man, she still was dealing with first time jitters and a serious case of doubts.
On the other hand, even if the editor had asked to see my novel rewritten, I wasn't certain I wanted to remove the scenes I had taken such care to write. As far as I was concerned the scenes were hot and anticlimactic. I looked at each love scene as a cliff-hanger followed with the dreaded, "To be continued."
I wanted my readers hearts to be pounding as they awaited – or in this case hurriedly read to – the next love scene. I was careful not to use this tactic too often lest I anger my readers, which was more difficult to do when writing a novel. Would my readers be saying, "Oh here we got again," every time they read another lustful scene? Or would they eventually begin feel like a jury who found the hero of my story not guilty of date rape because he got impatient with the virtuous model.
Undecided what to do, I did what all writers must do from time to time, table a project. I stuck the manuscript in a drawer and forgot about it for a little while. Giving myself that distance also gave me objectivity.
When I pulled the story from the drawer again, I was already well versed in writing short love stories for women's magazines. With new eyes I saw that this novel plot was good, but it lacked what it would take to keep a reader reading from beginning to end. More than the characters would be frustrated, the readers would be too.
I cut the story down into a shorter form. That meant removing some love scenes, but keeping my main character's morals in tact. That, after all, was a large part of what motivated her, made her who she was.
The new version was snatched up by the first editor who read it. My model was still a virgin when she finally married the love her life, and the semi-explicit scenes were left in tact. I had the best of both words. I had what I felt was a true-to-life story. My character's story.
Sometimes you need to step back to gain objectivity when the first version of your story is rejected. Sometimes you need to take advice from professionals. But, because professionals are human's too, sometimes you need to take what they suggest with a grain of salt. If you feel strongly about something, don't change it.
Realistically your story may never be published, but you will not have compromised your beliefs in the process. And although you may at some point do as I did and change the structure of the story, you will still maintain the foundation of your plot and your integrity as a writer.
If you are a seasoned writer you already know what I'm talking about. If you are a novice, I hope this article will give you a little helpful advice, when other helpful advice seems confusing. If that sentence didn't confuse you, you may not have a problem trudging through the well-meaning suggestions you receive when you submit your story.
I wrote a novel once about an up and coming model who returned home and runs into the man she once loved. She was attracted to him, but when he makes advances she puts the kibbutz to it. And why might that be? Because she had less experience at lust than I had writing scenes with lustful behavior.
But it was not my lack of writing experience one agent took exception with. What he found unrealistic was the fact that a model could be acting that way. In his view models were not examples of women with high morals. In fact, though he said he liked my story, he felt the only place my novel might get published was a Christian romance market.
At that time those markets were limited, and I was never one to shy away from taking a challenge. So I queried an editor of a Christian market (note I was a good girl and queried first). That editor was intrigued enough to ask to see the novel.
In her return rejection she noted that like the agent, she liked my story. Drum roll please. . . However, my story's love scenes were too explicit for their market.
Thus, he said, she said.
One might wonder in a case like this what they should do. Neither agent or editor had asked to see a revised version of my novel, so that told me something. In my case, I looked at the situation with an unbiased eyes – something I might add the agent did not do.
I realized the agent had stereotyped the model into a roll that said professional models could not be virgins, much less want to hang onto their virginity until the right man came alone. In fact, even though in my story the woman had found the right man, she still was dealing with first time jitters and a serious case of doubts.
On the other hand, even if the editor had asked to see my novel rewritten, I wasn't certain I wanted to remove the scenes I had taken such care to write. As far as I was concerned the scenes were hot and anticlimactic. I looked at each love scene as a cliff-hanger followed with the dreaded, "To be continued."
I wanted my readers hearts to be pounding as they awaited – or in this case hurriedly read to – the next love scene. I was careful not to use this tactic too often lest I anger my readers, which was more difficult to do when writing a novel. Would my readers be saying, "Oh here we got again," every time they read another lustful scene? Or would they eventually begin feel like a jury who found the hero of my story not guilty of date rape because he got impatient with the virtuous model.
Undecided what to do, I did what all writers must do from time to time, table a project. I stuck the manuscript in a drawer and forgot about it for a little while. Giving myself that distance also gave me objectivity.
When I pulled the story from the drawer again, I was already well versed in writing short love stories for women's magazines. With new eyes I saw that this novel plot was good, but it lacked what it would take to keep a reader reading from beginning to end. More than the characters would be frustrated, the readers would be too.
I cut the story down into a shorter form. That meant removing some love scenes, but keeping my main character's morals in tact. That, after all, was a large part of what motivated her, made her who she was.
The new version was snatched up by the first editor who read it. My model was still a virgin when she finally married the love her life, and the semi-explicit scenes were left in tact. I had the best of both words. I had what I felt was a true-to-life story. My character's story.
Sometimes you need to step back to gain objectivity when the first version of your story is rejected. Sometimes you need to take advice from professionals. But, because professionals are human's too, sometimes you need to take what they suggest with a grain of salt. If you feel strongly about something, don't change it.
Realistically your story may never be published, but you will not have compromised your beliefs in the process. And although you may at some point do as I did and change the structure of the story, you will still maintain the foundation of your plot and your integrity as a writer.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Write What You Know
I remember someone telling me that a writer should write what they know. I wondered if that meant I should throw away all the notes for manuscripts that didn't take place in my hometown. Or, scrub any characters who had successful professional careers. I mean, I was just a small town Mom.
Just! Saying that fires up rebellion within me. It still bothers me that I ever felt that way. I'm not "just" anything. To steal a phrase, "I'm all I can be." My writing allows that. I can go to foreign lands, I can be a cop or a nun. . .
Okay, maybe not me exactly, but I have had characters that were. And since every character is a part of me, for a short time I was a cop, a nun, even a prostitute. Get your mind out of the gutter! We are talking fiction.
I'd also had some good advice given to me, that said my characters needed to be sympathetic. Did that mean my readers had to feel sorry for them? I thought about it more, looking at the characters in the books I was reading, and realized I often felt like a kindred spirit with the heroine in the story. It was because I was able to relate to her on some level.
That did not mean I could be a doctor – I certainly lacked the training for that. But when the doctor was feeling drawn to a child, it didn't matter what her profession, I could relate to that. When the doctor found herself falling in love against all her carefully made plans, I could relate to that, too.
As for the doctor part: that brings me back to writing what one knows. Since I didn't have medical training, I had to do research. I even spoke to doctors. And after my story was written, I had a pro look at any questionable parts that might give away the fact that I didn't have a clue how to conduct brain surgery.
Ooops, I nearly gave away part of the plot for my next novel.
Back to the nun. I'm not even Catholic, but I do have friends who are. And they were able to give me insight, and interviews regarding certain aspects of my story. I learned that though you don't often see them anymore, there are still orders that wear full habits – remember The Singing Nun? You might be too young for that, but we'll just say, she wore the full, long black habit.
When a Priest read that I had a nun jumping from a plane, his words, as I recall, were, "It will probably take her a very long time to come down."
Sadly I'm giving away too many scenes from future novels. However, my hope is that by relating to my work, you will see that you can't be an expert in everything. But you can conduct research and know a little, and then interview an expert for the rest. The same research can be done for locations for your stories. Today the Internet can take you anywhere you want to go, or anywhere you want your plot take place.
Last, you give your characters the same heart and emotions, the dreams and hopes, the concerns and worries that any one of us might have. Why? Because we are also readers, and when we do read your work, we will see something in your characters that makes us empathize with them, and make us sympathetic to them.
Just! Saying that fires up rebellion within me. It still bothers me that I ever felt that way. I'm not "just" anything. To steal a phrase, "I'm all I can be." My writing allows that. I can go to foreign lands, I can be a cop or a nun. . .
Okay, maybe not me exactly, but I have had characters that were. And since every character is a part of me, for a short time I was a cop, a nun, even a prostitute. Get your mind out of the gutter! We are talking fiction.
I'd also had some good advice given to me, that said my characters needed to be sympathetic. Did that mean my readers had to feel sorry for them? I thought about it more, looking at the characters in the books I was reading, and realized I often felt like a kindred spirit with the heroine in the story. It was because I was able to relate to her on some level.
That did not mean I could be a doctor – I certainly lacked the training for that. But when the doctor was feeling drawn to a child, it didn't matter what her profession, I could relate to that. When the doctor found herself falling in love against all her carefully made plans, I could relate to that, too.
As for the doctor part: that brings me back to writing what one knows. Since I didn't have medical training, I had to do research. I even spoke to doctors. And after my story was written, I had a pro look at any questionable parts that might give away the fact that I didn't have a clue how to conduct brain surgery.
Ooops, I nearly gave away part of the plot for my next novel.
Back to the nun. I'm not even Catholic, but I do have friends who are. And they were able to give me insight, and interviews regarding certain aspects of my story. I learned that though you don't often see them anymore, there are still orders that wear full habits – remember The Singing Nun? You might be too young for that, but we'll just say, she wore the full, long black habit.
When a Priest read that I had a nun jumping from a plane, his words, as I recall, were, "It will probably take her a very long time to come down."
Sadly I'm giving away too many scenes from future novels. However, my hope is that by relating to my work, you will see that you can't be an expert in everything. But you can conduct research and know a little, and then interview an expert for the rest. The same research can be done for locations for your stories. Today the Internet can take you anywhere you want to go, or anywhere you want your plot take place.
Last, you give your characters the same heart and emotions, the dreams and hopes, the concerns and worries that any one of us might have. Why? Because we are also readers, and when we do read your work, we will see something in your characters that makes us empathize with them, and make us sympathetic to them.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Loving the Red Pencil
In high school I hated when homework assignments were given back to me with red pencil marks on them. At the time that meant only one thing to me – my work was not that of a budding genius. Rather it was filled with mistakes. I was no good. I was a failure.
The person who said, "Perception is reality," was right. Instead of loving the red pencil marks I looked them as negative signs. I took them very personally. When I kept getting them, I gave up.
Maturity came many years later, along with it came a more positive attitude. It was when taking a night class in writing I got a paper back with a lot of red pencil marks on it. I appreciated that, because it finally showed me what I was doing wrong. Even better were the notes that explained my problem areas and even made suggestions.
The teacher of that class became a good friend. I think it had something to do with my openness to having my work criticized. It was constructive criticism that I had finally learned to embrace. Without it I would have kept writing things that were destined for rejection. By accepting the criticism and learning from it I was able to truly begin my career in writing.
A writer also learns to go with their gut on some things. It's a fine line knowing what criticism received is worth making a change, and what things are best left alone. I find that very often it is a compromise. An example: the red pencil notes tell me that my sentence is grammatically incorrect. If the sentence happens to be a quotation, I may decide the character speaking that sentence is not supposed to speak in proper English. If that character is say a lawyer versus a young child, I may decide to clean up the grammar.
Only the person writing knows for certain what should be changed and what should not. A writer must learn to determine which suggestions to take and which to ignore. As I said above, it is often a compromise. Just remember, never compromise what you feel strongly about. On the other hand, if the same story is rejected over and over, it may be time to take that advice.
The person who said, "Perception is reality," was right. Instead of loving the red pencil marks I looked them as negative signs. I took them very personally. When I kept getting them, I gave up.
Maturity came many years later, along with it came a more positive attitude. It was when taking a night class in writing I got a paper back with a lot of red pencil marks on it. I appreciated that, because it finally showed me what I was doing wrong. Even better were the notes that explained my problem areas and even made suggestions.
The teacher of that class became a good friend. I think it had something to do with my openness to having my work criticized. It was constructive criticism that I had finally learned to embrace. Without it I would have kept writing things that were destined for rejection. By accepting the criticism and learning from it I was able to truly begin my career in writing.
A writer also learns to go with their gut on some things. It's a fine line knowing what criticism received is worth making a change, and what things are best left alone. I find that very often it is a compromise. An example: the red pencil notes tell me that my sentence is grammatically incorrect. If the sentence happens to be a quotation, I may decide the character speaking that sentence is not supposed to speak in proper English. If that character is say a lawyer versus a young child, I may decide to clean up the grammar.
Only the person writing knows for certain what should be changed and what should not. A writer must learn to determine which suggestions to take and which to ignore. As I said above, it is often a compromise. Just remember, never compromise what you feel strongly about. On the other hand, if the same story is rejected over and over, it may be time to take that advice.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Getting Started as a Writer
It is easy to say, a long walk starts with one step. Or, in the case of writing, it starts with one word. Ah, but it isn't as simple as that. Getting started is having something to say that people will want to read.
I was a writer for many years, a reader for many more. My biggest problem was that I thought I could write something just as interesting as the novels I was reading. I hoped and prayed each time I mailed the piece of myself I'd just written to an editor that it would be loved as much as I loved the things I was reading.
I was in for a long line of rejection letters and disappointments. Fortunately, I got a few that actually had notes. Albiet the notes weren't often very positive, but they were lessons learned.
I grew more and more confused as I would take those suggestions and make changes to my stories, only to have new suggestions made by the next editor. At one point I realized the one thing these editors didn't do was ask to see my manuscript again after I'd made those suggested changes.
The realization that I was acting like a fish out of water, just flopping around on the ground, uncertain which way to go. People could shout at me, telling me which way back to the stream, but hey, I was grounded --clueless how to get there. Besides that, how could I get there without help?
Ahha! I finally learned a valuable lesson. I needed help. I had to throw my ego out the window and get ready to see red. yes, red pencil on my manuscripts.
I'd heard one who went to college to learn to write should forget everything they learned if they wanted to get published. That was no problem for me, I hadn't gone to college. With my new realization that I needed to learn, I started taking classes: night school, votec, college, any class I could find that had anything to do with writing.
I embraced the concept of red corrections and notes written all over my carefully prepared assignments. And I learned.
Watch for my next article "Seeing Red".
I was a writer for many years, a reader for many more. My biggest problem was that I thought I could write something just as interesting as the novels I was reading. I hoped and prayed each time I mailed the piece of myself I'd just written to an editor that it would be loved as much as I loved the things I was reading.
I was in for a long line of rejection letters and disappointments. Fortunately, I got a few that actually had notes. Albiet the notes weren't often very positive, but they were lessons learned.
I grew more and more confused as I would take those suggestions and make changes to my stories, only to have new suggestions made by the next editor. At one point I realized the one thing these editors didn't do was ask to see my manuscript again after I'd made those suggested changes.
The realization that I was acting like a fish out of water, just flopping around on the ground, uncertain which way to go. People could shout at me, telling me which way back to the stream, but hey, I was grounded --clueless how to get there. Besides that, how could I get there without help?
Ahha! I finally learned a valuable lesson. I needed help. I had to throw my ego out the window and get ready to see red. yes, red pencil on my manuscripts.
I'd heard one who went to college to learn to write should forget everything they learned if they wanted to get published. That was no problem for me, I hadn't gone to college. With my new realization that I needed to learn, I started taking classes: night school, votec, college, any class I could find that had anything to do with writing.
I embraced the concept of red corrections and notes written all over my carefully prepared assignments. And I learned.
Watch for my next article "Seeing Red".
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