Amazon.com lists more than 300,000 authors in their archives going back to the early 1950's. There are even more than that stretching back to the beginnings of the 19 th Century and beyond if you look at Socrates, The Cesar's and religious historians all the way back to the authors of the Old Testament and earlier. With competition like that, today's author's find themselves wondering if they'd keep writing despite the stiff and relentless barrage of material available.
One of our favorite mantras as writers is the saying:
"I'd keep writing even if I never made a dime, because I love it."
A brave and noble proclamation, Maybe, but also the excuse we use to drive us forward into the fray when the successes can be few and far between. The question we should be asking ourselves isn't "Would I keep writing if I never made a dime?" The question we should ask ourselves is: "Would I keep writing if I had all the money I could dream of?"
Look at J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter series.
$1 billion
J.K. Rowling Net Worth of $1 billion came from the royalties she is receiving from her books and from the Harry Potter franchise. Harry Potter brand is
said to be worth $15 billion. The film Harry Potter was the highest-grossing film series of all-time that recorded world box office sales of $7.7 billion.Dec
16, 2014
JK Rowling Net Worth: Harry Potter Author & World's Richest ...
www.foodworldnews.com/.../j-k-rowling-net-worth-harry-potter-author
Rowling doesn't need to keep writing...but she does. Her net worth is solid, she won't need to make another dime, but she keeps going. Because she loves to write? Because she's afraid she'll run out of money? Because she's famous and must keep up her public face?
Only Rowling knows the answers to those questions. She is a writer though and so she writes. "I'm just saying I'm going to be enjoying writing without having to publish or
having to think about that. And it's-- that's a privilege, you know? … I'm immensely privileged." J.K. Rowling in interview with NBC Dateline, 2007
Rowling has released an adult series as well as a mystery since her Harry Potter series. She hasn't found the same success with her other books, but she's J.K. Rowling, she automatically succeeds on her name alone. She is one of many authors who can say they'd keep writing even if they never made another dime, because they don't do it for the money.
There are days, weeks and even months in my life where I wonder if I had all the money I needed...would I keep writing?
The desire to create, build stories, characters and plots must come from a deeper place than the money. It must be a part of the writer that transcends the cash, the fame or the status which can come. It must be a love of the work and a passion for the dream of people who live only in our hearts and minds.
So...keep writing. Even if you never make a dime. Not because you hope some day you won't have to worry about money, but because it's what you do. It's who you are!
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Paper Gems with Pippa Dacosta
As I research paranormal books to help me write better, I often find surprises in odd places.
The Muse series by Pippa Dacosta was one such discovery.
Let me back up for a moment and start over.
I bought an 11 book box set of paranormal romances with few expectations. I often buy box sets with lots of different story lines in hopes of learning what other writers do. usually only about 5-20% of these books turn out to be any good. Somehow though, I can always find at least one i really enjoy. The series is actually called "Beyond The Veil Series" and follows a woman who is half-deamon and half human. As she discovers the truth about her brutal background and the half daemon assassin who is hired to kill her, a whole fascinating world opens up in the first book. Once you've read "Muse" you must read the rest of the series. I was drawn in with this first novel. Tons of action, intrigue and a fantastic, complicated set of scenery, characters and love interests. There was a little language and some sexual references, but nothing overt. By the time you read the other four books and the pre-quel in the series those things change. Sexual material and language become stronger and more blatant along with the level of violence.
This author has a wonderful ability to develop characters, plot, relationships and intrigue while making it look effortless.
Go check her out on amazon.com, on google, or on her facebook page facebook.com/pippadacosta.
The Muse series by Pippa Dacosta was one such discovery.
Let me back up for a moment and start over.
I bought an 11 book box set of paranormal romances with few expectations. I often buy box sets with lots of different story lines in hopes of learning what other writers do. usually only about 5-20% of these books turn out to be any good. Somehow though, I can always find at least one i really enjoy. The series is actually called "Beyond The Veil Series" and follows a woman who is half-deamon and half human. As she discovers the truth about her brutal background and the half daemon assassin who is hired to kill her, a whole fascinating world opens up in the first book. Once you've read "Muse" you must read the rest of the series. I was drawn in with this first novel. Tons of action, intrigue and a fantastic, complicated set of scenery, characters and love interests. There was a little language and some sexual references, but nothing overt. By the time you read the other four books and the pre-quel in the series those things change. Sexual material and language become stronger and more blatant along with the level of violence.
This author has a wonderful ability to develop characters, plot, relationships and intrigue while making it look effortless.
Go check her out on amazon.com, on google, or on her facebook page facebook.com/pippadacosta.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Playing Fair
Have you ever read a really good story which begins with a cataclysmic event? The story unfolds in great character development, action scenes, revelations of plot and character until you grasp the edge of your seat to find out the resolution? All of a sudden the book ends with Character A waking from a dream, or coming out of a coma? Worse when all is lost and our heroes and heroines are about to perish...in fly the eagles?
Frustrating at the least. Reader betraying at the worst.
Consider before you write your characters into a corner that needs large winged rescuers to save them, that you're not playing fair. A story line with great development and even ending in the death or permanent disability of a main character needs to happen in order not to deflate your reader and lose your credibility as an author.
I read a wonderful story about a young woman who goes blind. A small part of me wished she'd wake up from a horrible nightmare, be a better person from the experience, and then go back to being sighted.
I realized, because I read a story with a wake-up ending, that I feel ripped off by this kind of plot turn.
Bad things happen to good people. Disaster strikes and disease steals a planned future only to replace it with another different and better one. Pretending this is not a fact of life gives a disingenuous feel to an otherwise great story.
Making a story deep, complex, dangerous and deadly only to wrap everything up with an out-of-this-world rescue gives your reader the feeling that the story never needed to happen. The author just dragged you through 300 or more pages of gut wrenching action to say..."Never mind."
When plotting or planning a story, make sure your playing fair with your reader. If a character needs to die, even a character you've developed through 7 or more books...Kill Him!
If your characters end up disabled or diseased but better for the journey...Its Not A Dream!
When the ring is thrown into the mountain and our heroes are drifting in a river of lava to their demise...Let Them Go!
It will hurt a little, but you'll be a better writer with a readership that trusts you because you always played fair.
Keep your chin up, your story's coming and keep writing.
Frustrating at the least. Reader betraying at the worst.
Consider before you write your characters into a corner that needs large winged rescuers to save them, that you're not playing fair. A story line with great development and even ending in the death or permanent disability of a main character needs to happen in order not to deflate your reader and lose your credibility as an author.
I read a wonderful story about a young woman who goes blind. A small part of me wished she'd wake up from a horrible nightmare, be a better person from the experience, and then go back to being sighted.
I realized, because I read a story with a wake-up ending, that I feel ripped off by this kind of plot turn.
Bad things happen to good people. Disaster strikes and disease steals a planned future only to replace it with another different and better one. Pretending this is not a fact of life gives a disingenuous feel to an otherwise great story.
Making a story deep, complex, dangerous and deadly only to wrap everything up with an out-of-this-world rescue gives your reader the feeling that the story never needed to happen. The author just dragged you through 300 or more pages of gut wrenching action to say..."Never mind."
When plotting or planning a story, make sure your playing fair with your reader. If a character needs to die, even a character you've developed through 7 or more books...Kill Him!
If your characters end up disabled or diseased but better for the journey...Its Not A Dream!
When the ring is thrown into the mountain and our heroes are drifting in a river of lava to their demise...Let Them Go!
It will hurt a little, but you'll be a better writer with a readership that trusts you because you always played fair.
Keep your chin up, your story's coming and keep writing.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Dashing Your Dialogue
Part of the problem I've discovered with being a blind writer is...I can't see. Not a huge secret or devastating truth to reveal. As simple as it sounds though, it complicates what I can learn about being a good writer from reading good books. Learning to write, compress, and clarify dialogue comes from reading it as well as writing it. a few months ago I took a challenge to write a story, a complete story, using only dialogue. No tags, or movement between the words. Simply the conversation and nothing else. It was difficult, but I learned a lot
Here's a few things I didn't learn and had to have my friend Michelle Hawk show me...literally!
#1-Interrupting- When one character interrupts another character, the first line of dialogue is broken with a dash.
ex. "I don't think-"
"No one asked you to think.
Often writers will break a sentence off with an ellipses... This is incorrect if an interruption is happening.
#2-Movement- When movement happens in the middle of a sentence, the sentence ends followed by a quotation. A dash is inserted followed by the movement placed in between. Another dash is inserted followed by a quotation and the dialogue with a closing quotation.
Ex. "I'm terrified"-her hand waved casually around the room-"of this whole mess."
This only occurs if the sentence is broken up. If its two sentences broken by movement a dash isn't needed.
Ex. "I'm terrified." Her hand waved around the room. "I'm afraid of this whole mess."
#3- Compounds- The only other place dashes are used in dialogue is to connect two or more words together.
Ex. "He's only a 10-year-old."
"She's my great-great-grandmother."
ect. ect. or anywhere else a dash would be employed.
It's not something you can listen to and 'hear' the difference, or at least the correct way. It must 'look' the right way in order to be grammatically correct.
Go check what ever your working on and see if you've dashed your dialogue correctly and in the meantime...Keep writing!" .
Here's a few things I didn't learn and had to have my friend Michelle Hawk show me...literally!
#1-Interrupting- When one character interrupts another character, the first line of dialogue is broken with a dash.
ex. "I don't think-"
"No one asked you to think.
Often writers will break a sentence off with an ellipses... This is incorrect if an interruption is happening.
#2-Movement- When movement happens in the middle of a sentence, the sentence ends followed by a quotation. A dash is inserted followed by the movement placed in between. Another dash is inserted followed by a quotation and the dialogue with a closing quotation.
Ex. "I'm terrified"-her hand waved casually around the room-"of this whole mess."
This only occurs if the sentence is broken up. If its two sentences broken by movement a dash isn't needed.
Ex. "I'm terrified." Her hand waved around the room. "I'm afraid of this whole mess."
#3- Compounds- The only other place dashes are used in dialogue is to connect two or more words together.
Ex. "He's only a 10-year-old."
"She's my great-great-grandmother."
ect. ect. or anywhere else a dash would be employed.
It's not something you can listen to and 'hear' the difference, or at least the correct way. It must 'look' the right way in order to be grammatically correct.
Go check what ever your working on and see if you've dashed your dialogue correctly and in the meantime...Keep writing!" .
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Un-named Characters?
A few months ago I participated in an on-line critique with 10 other authors. One of the comments I got, repeatedly, was to name my character. The piece was a narrative from an unknown pov in a prologue type of setting. I recieved fabulous feedback on the details of the sceen, the spark of interest the piece generated and the interesting storyline.However, everybody wanted the character to have a name.
I didn't want the reader to know who the pov was. I wanted him to remain anonymous until later in the story. Here's what I learned.
What do you do if your character isn't known or named at the beginning of their appearance in the story?
What if their name is known, but you don't want to have to use it repeatedly?
This is where a deep understanding of your character, his/her appearance and or personality can help.
Instead of using the name, use a prominent feature, a quirk, a comparison, or a descriptor unique to the character. Mix them up within the body of the work along with pronouns, a name if you have one and the structure of the sentence to make it flow.
Here's an example-
1- His blond hair drifted over silver gray eyes as he stared through darkened windows. He shifted away from the glass, keeping his distance from the frosty pane. He didn't shiver, although drifting flakes of white dampened his coat and jeans.
1 a. The blond man peered through frosty panes of glass. Darkened windows didn't dissuade his prying silver gray eyes. He stepped back from the glass, shaking drifts of white from his damp coat and jeans.
From now on this character can be; the blond, the blond man, silver eyes, he, his and he has a distinct name.
2. The taller man shuffled his feet, while running his hand through scraggly hair. The shorter one stepped back, wiping his dirty hands over his bulbous nose.
2 a- His long, skinny limbs as if he were a scarecrow, shifted in a nervous tangle. As if he tossed back tufts of straw instead of his scraggly hair. His pudgy friend wiped grubby hands over a clownish nose. The movement should have sent the swollen thing honking.
Two characters who are now; Scarecrow, clown face, scraggly hair, tall man, short friend, etc.
3. Brandon's muscled bicep closed around Oscar's tatooed neck. Brandon squeezed. Oscar stiffened. Brandon tightened his hold while oscar's face turned purple.
3 a- Brandon's arm clamped down over a tattooed neck. His muscled bicep choked the breath from the shorter man. "Oscar" he hissed. "Back away from the lady." His muscles choked the other man's response from purple lips as he tightened his grip.
The scene moves between the two male characters without having to name every step to keep the movement in the scene straight.
Check your manuscript for too much use of a characters name. I never notice it until it becomes so obvious it can't be ignored. If you can use other names, types and descriptions to name your characters, your writing will be cleaner, prettier and more fun to read.
In the meantime keep writing and finding whatever tricks make your work even better.
I didn't want the reader to know who the pov was. I wanted him to remain anonymous until later in the story. Here's what I learned.
What do you do if your character isn't known or named at the beginning of their appearance in the story?
What if their name is known, but you don't want to have to use it repeatedly?
This is where a deep understanding of your character, his/her appearance and or personality can help.
Instead of using the name, use a prominent feature, a quirk, a comparison, or a descriptor unique to the character. Mix them up within the body of the work along with pronouns, a name if you have one and the structure of the sentence to make it flow.
Here's an example-
1- His blond hair drifted over silver gray eyes as he stared through darkened windows. He shifted away from the glass, keeping his distance from the frosty pane. He didn't shiver, although drifting flakes of white dampened his coat and jeans.
1 a. The blond man peered through frosty panes of glass. Darkened windows didn't dissuade his prying silver gray eyes. He stepped back from the glass, shaking drifts of white from his damp coat and jeans.
From now on this character can be; the blond, the blond man, silver eyes, he, his and he has a distinct name.
2. The taller man shuffled his feet, while running his hand through scraggly hair. The shorter one stepped back, wiping his dirty hands over his bulbous nose.
2 a- His long, skinny limbs as if he were a scarecrow, shifted in a nervous tangle. As if he tossed back tufts of straw instead of his scraggly hair. His pudgy friend wiped grubby hands over a clownish nose. The movement should have sent the swollen thing honking.
Two characters who are now; Scarecrow, clown face, scraggly hair, tall man, short friend, etc.
3. Brandon's muscled bicep closed around Oscar's tatooed neck. Brandon squeezed. Oscar stiffened. Brandon tightened his hold while oscar's face turned purple.
3 a- Brandon's arm clamped down over a tattooed neck. His muscled bicep choked the breath from the shorter man. "Oscar" he hissed. "Back away from the lady." His muscles choked the other man's response from purple lips as he tightened his grip.
The scene moves between the two male characters without having to name every step to keep the movement in the scene straight.
Check your manuscript for too much use of a characters name. I never notice it until it becomes so obvious it can't be ignored. If you can use other names, types and descriptions to name your characters, your writing will be cleaner, prettier and more fun to read.
In the meantime keep writing and finding whatever tricks make your work even better.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Paper Gems with Marcy Kennedy
I read for a myriad of reasons: entertainment, information, training, skill...No matter what I read, I love to research interesting topics and symbolism to find the basic truths behind the fiction. I love history, theology, romance and mystery. I'm also a reader of what are called 'craft books'.
These are not to teach me to make cute wall hangings or decorations. These books are to hone the 'craft' of writing. Some of my favorites include: Painting With Words, Deeper POV, Scene, Setting, and character and The Busy Writers Guides.
Marcy Kennedy is a writer, reviewer and writing coach. She publishes a string of short, cheap, e-books that you can perches at www.marcykennedy.com that cover anything from marketing, promotion, twitter, facebook, developing deeper Point of View, and other basic, well-explained tools writers need. My favorite is called; The Busy Writers Guide For Showing Not Telling.
We're taught to write by 'showing the reader what's happening in the story. Writers do that with words. The concept of 'show not tell' is almost an oxymoron and often difficult to figure out. Marcy Kennedy's book clearly gives explanations, samples and practice sections to teach the concept in a way that makes sense and doesn't require you to have Henningways talent to learn.
You can find Marcy's writing at Writers Digest as the 2013 winner of their short short story competition as well as at her website listed above. Go check out her Busy Writers Guides and see if she's got just what you're looking for to improve your writing.
In the meantime keep writing!
These are not to teach me to make cute wall hangings or decorations. These books are to hone the 'craft' of writing. Some of my favorites include: Painting With Words, Deeper POV, Scene, Setting, and character and The Busy Writers Guides.
Marcy Kennedy is a writer, reviewer and writing coach. She publishes a string of short, cheap, e-books that you can perches at www.marcykennedy.com that cover anything from marketing, promotion, twitter, facebook, developing deeper Point of View, and other basic, well-explained tools writers need. My favorite is called; The Busy Writers Guide For Showing Not Telling.
We're taught to write by 'showing the reader what's happening in the story. Writers do that with words. The concept of 'show not tell' is almost an oxymoron and often difficult to figure out. Marcy Kennedy's book clearly gives explanations, samples and practice sections to teach the concept in a way that makes sense and doesn't require you to have Henningways talent to learn.
You can find Marcy's writing at Writers Digest as the 2013 winner of their short short story competition as well as at her website listed above. Go check out her Busy Writers Guides and see if she's got just what you're looking for to improve your writing.
In the meantime keep writing!
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Sculpting The Best Flawed Character
A writer will give her/himself away in the attributes of their character. Often you see or understand the author's own inner-being through one of their characters. We must be careful not to make all of our characters reflections or interpretations of ourselves, or every story will sound as if the author is living in each individual story. If you have loyal readers this can work against you. Your reader will begin to hear you in every story and stop reading your work.
Worse than that...if you're making your character a reflection of you, only an ideal you. Your character becomes a 'Mary Sue'. Too perfect, too one dimensional and too unrealistic.
Here's a short list of things to watch for if you think your character may be a 'Mary Sue or 'Tommy Too Good'
1. This character is uncommonly beautiful/handsome.
2. This character is very smart.
3. Other characters often feel compassion towards this character.
4. The majority of the other characters like this character.
5. This character has some/many physical or psychological characteristics that can also be found on the writer or on the person the writer aspires to be.
6. This character learns new skills rapidly, often being labeled as “a natural”.
7. This characters’ physical or psychological characteristics allow them to be labeled as perfect.
Even if your character is imperfect and shares your own flaws and weaknesses but overcomes them in seemingly inhuman ways, you've got a 'Mary Sue'.
Ask yourself these questions-
Does your character share physical attributes with you?
Does your character share a background with you?
Does your character have insurmountable odds that are solved quickly?
Does he/she possess other-worldly powers that make him/her safe from everyone else?
Does everyone like him/her? Even the bad guys?
Does your character have a physical trait that makes them unattractive? mental or emotional trait? both?
Is he/she intelligent and/or witty? both?
Take the answers to these questions and flaw your character. give then a speech impediment or disease that makes them weak. Let the other characters be frustrated, impatient, disgusted and/or disappointed in your characters choices. Do Not have someone else in the story convince the character its not their fault. Give them something that is their fault and make them live with the knowledge they're not perfect.
These have helped me in crafting both male and female protagonists as well as a test you can give your character I found on-line. Google search-Mary Sue test and run your characters through the gauntlet. One of my favorite characters is a Wizard who is always a mess, too tall and awkward and gets himself into trouble in which he gets the crap beat out of him and/or blows something up. He's fun, funny, real and relateable because he works so hard to be special. Give it a try and keep writing!
Worse than that...if you're making your character a reflection of you, only an ideal you. Your character becomes a 'Mary Sue'. Too perfect, too one dimensional and too unrealistic.
Here's a short list of things to watch for if you think your character may be a 'Mary Sue or 'Tommy Too Good'
1. This character is uncommonly beautiful/handsome.
2. This character is very smart.
3. Other characters often feel compassion towards this character.
4. The majority of the other characters like this character.
5. This character has some/many physical or psychological characteristics that can also be found on the writer or on the person the writer aspires to be.
6. This character learns new skills rapidly, often being labeled as “a natural”.
7. This characters’ physical or psychological characteristics allow them to be labeled as perfect.
Even if your character is imperfect and shares your own flaws and weaknesses but overcomes them in seemingly inhuman ways, you've got a 'Mary Sue'.
Ask yourself these questions-
Does your character share physical attributes with you?
Does your character share a background with you?
Does your character have insurmountable odds that are solved quickly?
Does he/she possess other-worldly powers that make him/her safe from everyone else?
Does everyone like him/her? Even the bad guys?
Does your character have a physical trait that makes them unattractive? mental or emotional trait? both?
Is he/she intelligent and/or witty? both?
Take the answers to these questions and flaw your character. give then a speech impediment or disease that makes them weak. Let the other characters be frustrated, impatient, disgusted and/or disappointed in your characters choices. Do Not have someone else in the story convince the character its not their fault. Give them something that is their fault and make them live with the knowledge they're not perfect.
These have helped me in crafting both male and female protagonists as well as a test you can give your character I found on-line. Google search-Mary Sue test and run your characters through the gauntlet. One of my favorite characters is a Wizard who is always a mess, too tall and awkward and gets himself into trouble in which he gets the crap beat out of him and/or blows something up. He's fun, funny, real and relateable because he works so hard to be special. Give it a try and keep writing!
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