Monday, January 21, 2013
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Falling in love
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Not only do you have to nail the first line, you also have
to have some staying power to keep them reading.
Cheryl Klein likens it to falling in love. You see a person
across the way and are intrigued – that’s the cover. You inquire about them and
learn a little more, or read the flap copy. You invest a little time in them to
see if a relationship is possible. With a book, you read the first chapter and
either fall in love or disengage.
In Second Sight: An
Editor’s Talks on Writing, Revising, and Publishing Books fro Children and
Young Adults, Klein discusses rules of engagement. There first must be
voice, the soul of the book, the foundation upon which the whole novel is
built. The narrative voice must be that of a person the reader is interested
in. Readers don’t have to like the person, just be fascinated by them. She
offers tactics to build that intrigue through voice.
She says your character must be real, their behavior
anchored in real human psychology and behavior. This applies even to fantasy or
books with animal narrators. They must take action. The story should start with
the MC driving the action or responding to circumstances they find themselves
in. The opening should be surprising or strive for mystery. Try to pique the
reader with questions that can only be answered by reading further. The
ultimate goal of the first chapter is to hook the reader with intrigue about a
character they are interested in.
It just so happens that Writer’s Digest posted an article
with tips for starting a novel at the same time I’m seriously trying to rewrite
my NaNo piece. I read the article, followed the links then purchased the
download.
James Scott Bell had an article in the January issue. He
says you need to create a doorway of no return for you MC by the first fifth of
the book. Local author Ann Dee Ellis, at a WIFYR workshop a few years back,
first introduced me to this idea. Ann Dee says there must be a change that
prompts the novel. Something must happen, either to your protagonist or by
them, so that their world is different. Bell calls it a disturbance you create
for your character that will force him into the conflict/confrontation central
to the plot.
So to have your reader fall in love at first sight, provide
them with intrigue and a reason to care about your main character. For a
lasting relationship, send the MC through a door of no return.
Friday, January 18, 2013
It's So Simple, Really
When researching agents online, I often come across variations on the following:
"I'm looking for select clients who have written a book that grabs me by the--let's say, 'throat'--and won't let go."
What does that mean? From what I can gather, a big part of that is hard to define and has to do with some special connection between the agent and the manuscript, something that can't always be quantified but has something to do with the agent's tastes combined with the author's ability to tell a story that exactly matches that taste. Telling a great story that is impeccably written doesn't necessarily mean you'll grab that agent by the throat (or whatever) and not let go.
But there are some things that are quantifiable:
"I'm looking for select clients who have written a book that grabs me by the--let's say, 'throat'--and won't let go."
What does that mean? From what I can gather, a big part of that is hard to define and has to do with some special connection between the agent and the manuscript, something that can't always be quantified but has something to do with the agent's tastes combined with the author's ability to tell a story that exactly matches that taste. Telling a great story that is impeccably written doesn't necessarily mean you'll grab that agent by the throat (or whatever) and not let go.
But there are some things that are quantifiable:
- A strong voice.
Agents say they are looking for a unique and powerful voice. This seems to be important for all genres and for all ages, but is especially critical in Middle Grade, where voice is often listed as one of the most important elements that the agent wants to see, if not the most important. - An intriguing story
This seems self-evident, but a good story means something different to each reader. A lover of mystery might not necessarily be enthralled by your beautifully written high fantasy story. Story is more than plot. Some writers claim that story and plot are separate. Plot is the series of things your character does to achieve the goal, they say, while story is the internal, emotional reaction of the character to the things that happen in the plot. Whetheryou think of story and plot as separate, two sides of the same coin, or the same thing, story is essential. This is true even for literary fiction, where plot is often less important than the writing or the characters. - Strong characters
I think this is tricky for writers. We fall in love with our characters early on and think everybody else will too, but the emotions and inner struggles we feel in our characters does not always make it onto the page. We think it does, because we feel what our characters feel as we write and revise, but one of the hardest things about is writing is making our readers feel the same things we do. - A fascinating setting
Readers want to be taken out of their ordinary lives. That's what the setting does. Setting is much more than the fabulous world you build for your characters to quest around in. That's certainly a part of it, but it also includes mood, sensory input, and that all-important voice I mentioned above. Setting can become a trap for world builders, and that includes not only speculative fiction and fantasy, but also historical fiction and any other setting that must be created and defined, which means pretty much everybody. Whether you are writing an epic sci-fi fantasy or a cozy mystery, you have to build the world around your characters. The problem is, we often fall so in love with our world that we overdo our setting, putting in every bit of research or spending vast number of pages describing the world we created. You have to find the right balance, a setting that helps to create conflict for your characters and becomes an interesting place for the reader to spend time, but that does not overshadow your characters or their story. - Perfect mechanics
Gone are the days when a Max Perkins was willing to take a messy, massive manuscript from Thomas Wolfe and shape it into a classic. We are expected to submit work that is virtually ready for publication. Our work has to be error free, gorgeously written, and with as few problems as possible. Certainly, most good agents and editors will still work with us to make our work even better, but it has to be great before they'll even touch it.
So that's it. Pretty simple, isn't it? All we have to be is perfect.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Self Editing for Fiction Writers, Chapter Three
Here is the next chapter of "Self-Editing for Fiction
Writers". IF you haven't by now (what is wrong with you?), and you are
or want to be a writer, you really should get this book. I AM SERIOUS
ABOUT THIS!
Chapter 3 Point of View
The first person point of view has a number of advantages, the main one being that it gives your readers a great deal of intimacy with your viewpoint character.
What you gain in intimacy with the first person, you lose in perspective.
On the other end of the spectrum from the first person is the omniscient point of view. Instead of being written from inside the head of one of your characters, a scene in the omniscient point of view is not written from inside anyone's head.
Note that with the omniscient voice what you gain in perspective you lose in intimacy.
If the first person invites intimacy and the omniscient narrator allows for perspective, the third person strikes balance between the two. (There is quite a bit of additional information on this topic in the book.)
Another factor that controls your narrative distance is how much you allow your viewpoint character's emotion to color your description. (I am still trying to get my Pooh sized brain wrapped around 'narrative distance'.)
So how much narrative distance is right for you? Broadly speaking the more intimate the point of view, the better.
The emotions have to go someplace and the language of your descriptions is a good place for them.
You want to engage your readers, not drive them to distraction.
Readers need time to settle into a given emotional state, so when you move quickly from one passion-charged head to another, you're likely leave them behind. They'll know what our various characters are feeling, but the won't have time to feel like any of the characters.
When you make the point of view clear at the beginning of a scene, you get your readers involved right away and let them get used to inhabiting your viewpoint character's head.
Linespaces prepare readers for a shift (in time, place or point of view), so the change in point of view won't catch them by surprise. (I recently attempted to read a book where this skill was totally missing. It was a struggle to follow the story. The story seemed disconnected and halted almost on every page. I gave up and did not finish it.)
Point of view is a powerful tool. Master it.
(Amen)
Chapter 3 Point of View
The first person point of view has a number of advantages, the main one being that it gives your readers a great deal of intimacy with your viewpoint character.
What you gain in intimacy with the first person, you lose in perspective.
On the other end of the spectrum from the first person is the omniscient point of view. Instead of being written from inside the head of one of your characters, a scene in the omniscient point of view is not written from inside anyone's head.
Note that with the omniscient voice what you gain in perspective you lose in intimacy.
If the first person invites intimacy and the omniscient narrator allows for perspective, the third person strikes balance between the two. (There is quite a bit of additional information on this topic in the book.)
Another factor that controls your narrative distance is how much you allow your viewpoint character's emotion to color your description. (I am still trying to get my Pooh sized brain wrapped around 'narrative distance'.)
So how much narrative distance is right for you? Broadly speaking the more intimate the point of view, the better.
The emotions have to go someplace and the language of your descriptions is a good place for them.
You want to engage your readers, not drive them to distraction.
Readers need time to settle into a given emotional state, so when you move quickly from one passion-charged head to another, you're likely leave them behind. They'll know what our various characters are feeling, but the won't have time to feel like any of the characters.
When you make the point of view clear at the beginning of a scene, you get your readers involved right away and let them get used to inhabiting your viewpoint character's head.
Linespaces prepare readers for a shift (in time, place or point of view), so the change in point of view won't catch them by surprise. (I recently attempted to read a book where this skill was totally missing. It was a struggle to follow the story. The story seemed disconnected and halted almost on every page. I gave up and did not finish it.)
Point of view is a powerful tool. Master it.
(Amen)
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Narrative Complexity
by Deren Hansen
Complexity in fiction is … well, a complex topic.
Clearly you don’t want to write something so complex that it leaves readers perplexed and frustrated. At the other extreme, readers are quickly bored by a story that’s too simple.
Complexity, which is best understood as the degree to which there is variation in the results each time you sample something, is important in fiction only because the world in which we live is complex. Romance is a simple example of the complexities with which we deal: each time we interact with that certain someone we come away with a collection of indirect evidence that we’re rising or falling in his or her esteem but rarely anything definitive. Compared to the simplicity of species that go into heat or spawn at the same time each year, it’s a wonder we ever managed to reproduce.
In terms of plot, complexity is what makes books necessary: you don’t have a novel if you don’t need several hundred pages to fully understand what’s going on.
The art of the storyteller is to take what looks like a complex mess of unrelated threads and weave them into a tapestry that, when fully revealed, shows the reader how to make sense of it all.
It’s a topic to which I’ve devoted enough thought that I’m giving a presentation tomorrow (7:00 pm on Thursday, January 17, 2013) at the Pleasant Grove Public Library (Pleasant Grove, Utah) as part of their Professional Writers Series, titled, “Weaving a Complex Narrative: How to Write Like J.R.R. Tolkien in Three Easy Steps.” I’ve also made the presentation available online at http://prezi.com/gzcbq80jptly for those of you who may be interested but unable to attend.
Deren Hansen is the author of the Dunlith Hill Writers Guides. Learn more at dunlithhill.com.
Clearly you don’t want to write something so complex that it leaves readers perplexed and frustrated. At the other extreme, readers are quickly bored by a story that’s too simple.
Complexity, which is best understood as the degree to which there is variation in the results each time you sample something, is important in fiction only because the world in which we live is complex. Romance is a simple example of the complexities with which we deal: each time we interact with that certain someone we come away with a collection of indirect evidence that we’re rising or falling in his or her esteem but rarely anything definitive. Compared to the simplicity of species that go into heat or spawn at the same time each year, it’s a wonder we ever managed to reproduce.
In terms of plot, complexity is what makes books necessary: you don’t have a novel if you don’t need several hundred pages to fully understand what’s going on.
The art of the storyteller is to take what looks like a complex mess of unrelated threads and weave them into a tapestry that, when fully revealed, shows the reader how to make sense of it all.
It’s a topic to which I’ve devoted enough thought that I’m giving a presentation tomorrow (7:00 pm on Thursday, January 17, 2013) at the Pleasant Grove Public Library (Pleasant Grove, Utah) as part of their Professional Writers Series, titled, “Weaving a Complex Narrative: How to Write Like J.R.R. Tolkien in Three Easy Steps.” I’ve also made the presentation available online at http://prezi.com/gzcbq80jptly for those of you who may be interested but unable to attend.
Deren Hansen is the author of the Dunlith Hill Writers Guides. Learn more at dunlithhill.com.
Monday, January 14, 2013
What Is Your Character's Shire?
By Julie Daines
I've been reading several stories lately with struggling characters. And by struggling, I mean characters that are inconsistent and hard to believe.
If you are struggling to make your characters come across as real, believable, and engaging to readers, here is a little piece of advice that might help.
Establish what each character's motives are. What is the one thing that that character wants, and why? Once you figure that out, everything a character does should be to achieve that goal. Even if the choices they make aren't always the smartest, in the character's mind they should be to achieve that one, all important goal. This will keep your character consistent and believable.
Your main character's objective should be obvious to the reader in the first chapter.
Example: The Hunger Games
What one goal of Katniss's drives the story forward and is at the root of nearly everything she does? Her desire to protect her sister, Prim. She volunteers to go to the games in place of Prim, and she wants to win not just to survive, but so she can be there for Prim.
Example: The Forest of Hands and Teeth
What is it that Mary longs for? To see the ocean, and thus have a connection with her mother. This is what drives Mary out when the walls are breached and keeps her going. In my opinion, this comes across as a selfish motive, but at least it is consistent. And let's face it, teens often have selfish motives.
Example: The Lord of the Rings
What objective does Frodo have in his heart that keeps him going on his impossible quest? The Shire. He wants to get back home to the Shire, and he wants the Shire to be safe and uncorrupted by Sauron.
You have to find your character's Shire.
I've been reading several stories lately with struggling characters. And by struggling, I mean characters that are inconsistent and hard to believe.
If you are struggling to make your characters come across as real, believable, and engaging to readers, here is a little piece of advice that might help.
Establish what each character's motives are. What is the one thing that that character wants, and why? Once you figure that out, everything a character does should be to achieve that goal. Even if the choices they make aren't always the smartest, in the character's mind they should be to achieve that one, all important goal. This will keep your character consistent and believable.
Your main character's objective should be obvious to the reader in the first chapter.
Example: The Hunger Games
What one goal of Katniss's drives the story forward and is at the root of nearly everything she does? Her desire to protect her sister, Prim. She volunteers to go to the games in place of Prim, and she wants to win not just to survive, but so she can be there for Prim.
Example: The Forest of Hands and Teeth
What is it that Mary longs for? To see the ocean, and thus have a connection with her mother. This is what drives Mary out when the walls are breached and keeps her going. In my opinion, this comes across as a selfish motive, but at least it is consistent. And let's face it, teens often have selfish motives.
Example: The Lord of the Rings
What objective does Frodo have in his heart that keeps him going on his impossible quest? The Shire. He wants to get back home to the Shire, and he wants the Shire to be safe and uncorrupted by Sauron.
You have to find your character's Shire.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
The Joys of Writing for Middle Grade/Teen Readers
Guest Post: 5 Reasons I like Writing for Middle Grade/Teen
Readers
By Cheryl Carpinello
1. Being able
to write the types of stories I loved to read as a kid.
As a kid, I devoured
books: adventures, mysteries, fantasies, animal stories. As an adult, I still
enjoy the same types of reading, but I don’t find myself getting ‘lost’ in the
adult reads. And so I write the stories of my youth. ex. The Harry Potter
series
2. Knowing that kids
lend themselves to imagination easier than adults.
Young readers, like
adults, can be a difficult audience to write for. What I’ve found, though, is
that they eagerly enter into the world of a book easier than adults. The
innocence and imagination of young readers knows no limits at this age.
ex. The Hunger Games, The Twilight series
3. Helping young
readers to see their world in a different way or from a different viewpoint.
Frequently, young
readers only see their world from their own point of view. Try visiting a
middle school or high school and seeing all the drama that goes on with the
boys as well as the girls. Creating the types of characters that these readers
can identify and empathize with, helps them to see their real-life situations
differently. ex. A Child Called It.
4. Understanding
that while young readers enjoy stories, they are also looking for truths about
themselves and life.
Being a hero isn’t
easy. Sometimes heroes doubt themselves as well as those around them.
Sometimes, heroes even fail, but they don’t give up. Young readers tend to
think that they have to be perfect all the time, succeed all the time. As
adults, we know that isn’t true or even possible. ex. The Lord of the
Rings
5. Getting
letters/emails from young readers.
Young readers are not
shy. One of the exciting reasons I enjoy writing for these ages is that they
have no qualms about saying what they think. Kids may not always be tactful
when expressing their feelings, but they are truthful. It is the truth about
your writing that will make you a better writer. As a high school writing
teacher, I always tried to couch my criticisms in a positive, but instructive
manner. In a way, this is what young readers do also if we as writers listen.
About the Author:
Although a retired teacher, Cheryl Carpinello still has a
passion for working with kids. She regularly conducts Medieval Writing
Workshops for local elementary/middle schools and the Colorado Girl Scouts. She
is not the only one who loves Medieval Times and the King Arthur Legend. The
kids thoroughly enjoy writing their own medieval stories complete with dragons,
wizards, unicorns and knights!
She loves to travel and her other job is with a major airline. Her favorite trip was a two week visit to Egypt with her husband that included traveling by local train from one end of Egypt to the other.
Some of her favorite books include The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Once and Future King, and any by the duo Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.
She loves to travel and her other job is with a major airline. Her favorite trip was a two week visit to Egypt with her husband that included traveling by local train from one end of Egypt to the other.
Some of her favorite books include The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Once and Future King, and any by the duo Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.
The World of Ink Network will be
touring both of author Cheryl Carpinello’s Middle Grade Arthurian Legend
books, The King’s Ransom (Young Knights
of the Round Table) published by MuseItUp Publishing and Guinevere: On the Eve of Legend published
by Outskirts Press throughout January 2013.
Some stories become legend while some legends become
stories!
You can find out more about Cheryl Carpinello, her books and
World of Ink Author/Book Tour at http://tinyurl.com/ajka7zv
Follow Cheryl Carpinello at
Beyond today Educator http://www.beyondtodayeducator.com
Carpinello’s Writing Pages http://carpinelloswritingpages.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ccarpinello
Publisher Website: https://museituppublishing.com
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