HEY, WRITER TYPES.
What’s troubling you, lately? About craft, story, the industry, the culture? What difficulties are you having? Talk it up. Having trouble with a particular character? Or a genre? Or a business concern? What’s the state of your work-in-progress and what’s preventing you from getting all the way? Let’s whip out our scalpels, because it’s DISSECTIN’ TIME.
(Further, let this be a conversation amongst you — if someone offers up a question or a concern, someone else jump in and offer thoughts. Writing feels like a solitary thing but it doesn’t need to be. We’re all in this shit together if we allow ourselves the advantage, and so there’s no reason we cannot combine forces like WRITER VOLTRON and help one another out. This is a community if we want it. And what I mean by that is, I’m in your house right now. I’m watching you sleep. Also, you’re out of cereal. And industrial-grade sexual lubricant. GET SHOPPING.)
Amanda Helms says:
Currently on draft 2.something to 3.something, depending on what particular scene I’m looking at. Whole book is about 118k, which is too long for YA SF–and I tend to underwrite on description, so I’m having to add that in. The book is too long. I’m having trouble figuring out what can/should come out, or, more importantly, figuring out how I can get scenes to do more things. Maybe I’m writing the wrong ones.
And yes, I’m going to send to betas for their opinions, but it’d be great if I could take out some of the excess first.
Also, my revision-brain functions much more slowly than my drafting-brain. I was supposed to be done with the current draft in early June (another 48k to go). Not sure how to turn revision-brain into svelte, cheetah-like drafting-brain.
July 20, 2015 — 3:54 PM
wagnerel says:
If you tend to underwrite on description, a book that’s too long for its demographic could mean that you’ve simply put too much into it–too many subplots, characters, scenes etc. Some possible ways of cutting word count would include looking at it with a hard, dispassionate eye and asking yourself which elements are absolutely essential and central to the story?
Not to say you shouldn’t have any subplots, but consider which of them really tie in. It’s not uncommon for writers to end up cutting or combining support characters, deleting or combining scenes or chapters and so on. A good rule of thumb is that every scene, heck every paragraph (or even sentence) should do at least 2/3 of the following (and preferably all three)–move the plot forward, contribute to characterization, and show the reader how your world works. In my opinion, writers of SF and F are often guilty of having scenes that do just the third thing without also doing the first two.
Another suggestion is to examine some YA SF novels that are currently popular (and shorter). See how their authors squeeze a complex story into fewer words.
July 20, 2015 — 5:11 PM
JQ Davis says:
Make maps of each plot, sub-plot, story arc. I use index cards and color code each one (symbols in the corner if you’re color-blind) Lay the cards out on the floor (after removing the cat from the room-she’ll appoint herself editor and scramble the cards) and look for patterns. it’s easier to see what doesn’t belong, what can be streamlined and what can be consolidated when it’s all physically in front of you.
July 21, 2015 — 3:00 PM
JT Lawrence says:
Cut every extraneous scene. Be brutal. Then if it is still too long … congratulations! You have a trilogy.
July 22, 2015 — 2:19 PM
lizaskew says:
I have found that cutting out setting changes really helps! If things happen in fewer settings there’s a condensing effect that doesn’t necessarily lose anything in terms of meaning or atmosphere. And if you’ve got fewer setting changes you can spend more time describing settings, and then probably still end up with a lower word count! It feels good!
Also, you can use your descriptions of people or situations to simultaneously describe other things like setting. I know that sounds like obvious advice, but there’s so, so much you can do with it. William Gibson used the scratches on a beer mirror in a bar to describe the nervous energy and general personality of the neighborhood his mc hustled in, and he used the mc’s memories of his girlfriend’s face to describe the way the city looked (around her). Genius.
July 22, 2015 — 9:06 PM
jane stevens says:
for those who are interested in societal commentary, here’s some thoughtful fodder for your minds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A71A-F3nW-M
July 20, 2015 — 4:32 PM
wagnerel says:
My problems right now are extreme project monogamy or hyperfocus on a given book and set of characters. That, paired with the need for increasing levels of external validation to feel good and enthusiastic about my writing. Early on, I found an online group of writers who gave me the right mix of encouragement and constructive criticism with this novel. Later on, I got it with betas and workshop partners. The fact that they loved my book and writing and believed in it and me helped me get through the rough spots.
Querying, I got some early encouragement in the form of requests in my first small batch of queries that turned into fulls, then very encouraging rejections, but since then, nothing but crickets and form rejections from the dozens of agents I’ve queried since.
So I’m now facing the reality that I’ve known in my heart of hearts all along–selling a first novel is really, really hard, and even though I’ve (I think) managed to avoid the obvious mistakes and pitfalls that are common turn offs with a first novel and query, what I’ve written might just not be exciting enough. I need to become a quantity writer–pump out a lot of books and get them out there and hope one finds some love.
The problem is, I’m not a quantity writer. And I love these characters and their world, and I’m having trouble falling in love with any of the new ideas rattling around in my head. Getting this story just right has been my obsession for years, and I don’t know how to find a new one.
July 20, 2015 — 4:50 PM
CyborgElephantParade says:
I would write a before or after story. If you love the characters that much, you’ll know their history or future already, and it doesn’t even have to be directly linked
July 22, 2015 — 12:06 AM
Mari Adkins says:
i’ve had that same problem for 20 years now.
July 26, 2015 — 10:28 PM
deborahleighwrites says:
I worry most about my stuff sucking super-bad. If I read several pages of my galley in a row, things sound, well, not craptastical. If I land on a random page, I think, “Gah! Who wrote this crap? How did it get into my galley?” The old adage regarding writers having good taste as readers and reading our own stuff and being able to recognize when it’s not up to our “reader” tastes is what I try to remember. But sometimes I can’t tell whether I don’t mind my stuff because it’s fairly okay or whether I’m just so used to it and it came from my silly head that I like it because…I like it, or else I wouldn’t have written it. On the flip-side, I wonder whether I hate my stuff because it sucks or whether I hate it because I’ve seen it so many times, it’s lost its effect. Is it bad and I think it’s good, or is it good, and I think it’s bad?
Doubt. DOUBT. DOUBT!
July 20, 2015 — 5:02 PM
Fred G. Yost says:
There reaches a point where our own ability to appreciate our creation fails. We lose objectivity (I’ve heard that can come back with enough time and distance from the work, but I’ve yet to experience it [unless my stuff objectively sucks]) and the only way I’ve found around that is to work on building or joining a writers group that you can trust to give you honest (both good and bad) feedback.
And eventually, you’ve got to release it into the wild and trust that you’ve done the best you can*.
July 21, 2015 — 2:02 PM
Tony Scinta says:
Nothing I write is good enough. I get stuck often. I have to have someone else coax the story out of me, even when I know the story, and it’s in there. I care so much about what people think of my writing, because that’s what they think of me.
And then I sit at the gaming table, and the character just pours out of me. Confident and under control, I get the laughs that I wanted, I make the points that I want, and I get the feels from it.
Now why doesn’t it translate to the page?
July 21, 2015 — 2:26 PM
Regina says:
This exact thing happens to me. Writing is like dragging a cat out from under the couch, but gaming– man, I sit down and I am instantly my character and hitting all the right notes.
July 21, 2015 — 6:22 PM
kessara says:
Gaming…roleplay…I -know- the character, what he or she would or would not do, how they feel, smell… it took about five years before I figured out how to transfer that to the page. Now I hear “You’ve got a great feel for dialogue” which I guess means ‘gee, you must be an rp’er’
July 22, 2015 — 7:37 AM
Traci Kenworth says:
I SO understand this!!
July 21, 2015 — 7:49 PM
worldweaverweb says:
I’m writing. I have less and less hope that anyone is reading what I write. I have recently come up against a flaming wall of “I can’t cope with this” and it isn’t even something that I can talk about openly – let us just say that one of the best things I’ve ever written seems to be invisible out there – people who have read it and seen it have called it “unique”, and “I’ve never read anything quite like this before” – but that’s the people who have found it and I am at a complete loss as to how to let people know that it exists. If I could be a salesperson I would never have been a writer and I find it very hard to stand on metaphorical streetcorners with a metaphorical sandwich board screaming, new book, new book, someone read it… I have always been a writer, I have never wated to be anything other than a writer, and frankly I am not sure I know how to be anything else and still remain myself. But there are times that the black dogs are pacing me and it’s getting harder and harder to carry on carrying on…
July 20, 2015 — 5:23 PM
Kim Faulks says:
I understand exactly where you’re coming from. When I wrote my first big novel, filled with layers upon layers I thought I was going to be recognized. Release day came around and slumped like an eighty year old’s boob. Then I focused on my next big novel, everyone said this was the one–it was the best horror they’ve ever read. So, I hinged my self-worth onto those pages and the same again. A flop. It hit me pretty hard, I had the belief that all of my focus, my dedication and my effort would never be seen, that i had failed to grasp what so many others had. I looked for flaws, then tried writing something else, something was selling and slowly that fire I had inside died down until I couldn’t see the flame anymore. That’s where I am now. The fire is still there, but I have to protect that small spark. I have to nurture it and write things that I want to write, that I want to read and forget the idea of ‘making it’. Now I realize that the words, the magic it’s meant for me. I have to be selfish, to choose myself first. I have to be greedy and I don’t care, because when I do share my writing with the world, I’m expecting nothing. And when you expect nothing and you get nothing, then you’re never disappointed, are you?
I wish you luck on your writing.
July 22, 2015 — 6:04 PM
VulcansAreHeartbreakers says:
This is really good advice. Thank you for sharing! 🙂
July 25, 2015 — 7:36 PM
Di says:
I sit at my computer, stomach knotted, hands poised above the keys, with no where to turn. (Enter Chuck who saves the day with this blog!)
1. I have written draft one of a YA novel and ran it by a retired homicide detective who said it wasn’t gritty enough (he said more not so nice stuff but I’m paraphrasing) – but I don’t want my MC to succumb to the trials of the streets and homelessness to survive – I want her to dig deep and resist – Am I living in fairy-land. It’s hog-tied my editing brain.
2. Also, I heard first person only. I write in third but it kind of leaks into a first person feel. Do I need to change it? (The black hole of despair is dark and deep).
3. How much back story is too much – as in “info dump?” I jump in at the action but then a couple of chapters in I show the way the MC got to the place she is at that moment. One of my beta readers said she was on the verge of questiioning what was happening NOW just when I switched back to present day.
So, I’m looking for that dangling rope to help me climb out of this hell hole. (Please and thank you!)
July 20, 2015 — 5:26 PM
Tiggs says:
Caveat: I’m a writing newbie, with exactly zero publishing credits to my name.
1. I expect retired homicide detectives and YA audiences have different expectations of realism and the grittiness required in their novels. If none of the other Beta Readers have picked up on it, then you’re probably good, IMO.
2. As far as I’m aware – first person is considered to be the most popular viewpoint in YA, with third person limited being the second most popular. I’d personally leave it as you’ve written it.
3. My rule of thumb is that an info dump is too much if your beta readers notice that it’s an info dump. I’m not sure what the current wisdom is re: Flashbacks, but I’d personally try and avoid them. If the information is entirely necessary, having the MC summarize what happened to another character would be my first preference.
July 20, 2015 — 7:07 PM
wagnerel says:
1. I wouldn’t base decisions about grit level on the feedback of just one reader, even if he’s a retired detective. It’s up to you whether you want the story to be more upbeat and hopeful or not. Surely not every homeless teen succumbs to the darker elements of street life. And retired homicide detectives, by definition, tend to see the results of the worst case scenarios rather than the situations that worked out.
2. No way to say for sure without reading it, but a first person feel in third person sounds like textbook example of limited third with a close/deep narrative. If this is to be a YA novel, I’d think that a very close/deep feel to the narrative would be a good thing. It’s what I shoot for in third person, and I don’t even write YA.
3. How much backstory is too much is somewhat taste dependent, but if it divulges large chunks of information that don’t move the story forward in some way, then it might be excessive. Does it bore the reader or take them out of the story? This might be something critting partners or beta readers can weigh in on, but look at some contemporary YA novels to get a feel for how popular writers work their character’s history into the story without bogging it down.
July 20, 2015 — 7:52 PM
Fred G. Yost says:
The latest season of ‘Writing Excuses’ (with Mary Robinette Kowal, Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, and Howard Taylor) has a few episodes on YA (Hooking young readers) and perspective (Can you show me how to tell) that seem relevant to your interests. They’re about 15 minutes long and seem to give pretty good advice in general.
July 21, 2015 — 2:11 PM
Mari Adkins says:
Thank you!
July 26, 2015 — 10:32 PM
Di says:
Here is a big THANK YOU to Tiggs, Wagneral, Fred G Yost…I appreciate your responses — they’ve enabled me to let go of certain road blocks and move forward in the editing of my story. You guys rock!
July 26, 2015 — 11:59 PM
filmschrott says:
Okay, I just take this chance to ask a question I often asked but never got a helpful answer to anywhere. So I give it a try here:
I am planning on starting a new blog, like an author blog, but I really don’t know, what to write about. I am relatively new to all this writing-stuff and can’t blog about writing-advice and such things, since I really don’t know what the hell I’m doing – does anyone know?
So I could really use some tipps on what a unexperienced could blog about, when he just loves writing fantasy-storys, but does not know much about writing yet.
July 20, 2015 — 6:26 PM
lisaoliver79 says:
There’s your content right there – how you cope with the writing process. But it doesn’t have to be just about writing. My author blog contains stuff about my books, other posts about my day, when I get annoyed about something, anything at all. What I have found is once readers find your blog, they have an insatiable curiosity about YOU, so anything you put up there is a good idea. Your blog is not just a promotional tool for writing or your books, but also a way of showcasing who you are when you get out of bed in the morning. Go with it – it’s your space, so use it 🙂
July 20, 2015 — 6:33 PM
ebrobinson says:
Thanks for that. I was in the same frame of mind as filmschrott. It has been a whirlwind since I finally started publishing my works and the first thing someone said was start blogging. I was like a deer in headlights. Your answer makes perfect sense and I have been trying to do that.
July 20, 2015 — 7:50 PM
Melinda Davis says:
When I’m hard up for topics, I like to blog about what I’ve learned this week. Mainly, it’s about writing, but I like to throw a pointer or two about amusing life lessons. When you’re new (totally applies to me as well) there’s always something about craft or process that you’re learning, and other beginning writers may relate to the observations. I also blog about books and movies in relation to things I’m learning about plot and character development and how I can apply those lessons to my own work. Good luck!
July 20, 2015 — 10:20 PM
Kylie says:
I did a workshop at the Queensland Writers Centre recently, hosted by a writer named Peter M. Ball. And when we got onto this topic, his advice was to write about what interests you. Don’t try and write for some imaginary audience, based on what you think they’d like. In the more woo-woo life-coachy terms, write as you and you’ll find people who like you. Write as someone else, and you’ll spend your life wondering if they’d ever actually like the real you, and drinking your way through writer conventions.
Don’t get me wrong, I am way at the starting line here. I’m not a pro by any means, but I treat my blog (apart from now, when I’ve been an ill little pen monkey) as a place to talk about what I’m learning. And when I screw up, which is basically constantly.
In terms of tips for writing- ask yourself questions, then try to answer them. What’s screwing you up in your writing (or your life) this week? What do you need to learn to be able to make it work? If you’ve just found a giant plot hole, how do you fix it? What in your life is making you want to beat your head against a table until you finally, mercifully, pass out? Or leaves you wanting to throw your poop like a howler monkey?
Those are the best posts. People intelligently passionate or angry about something is a thing of beauty.
I hope that helps.
July 21, 2015 — 12:26 AM
AM Gray says:
*post reviews of books you love and try to work out why they work for you or what you love/adore about them
*read and blog about reading those books or all the works of your fave author
*pop up some short fics or fantasy writing prompts – like the ones chuck posts here on a friday – you never know – one of them might be the germ of an idea for a full length novel!
if it’s your blog you can post whatever the heck you want to!
July 21, 2015 — 1:16 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
You can so blog about writing advice! You’ve started publishing your works, which is further than about 90% of wannabe authors get for a start. The trick is not to think of it as saying “this is me, telling you how to do it” but more as “in my crazy-ass journey to publishing my work, this is what I learned; this thing worked for me but this thing definitely DIDN’T…” And as Lisa says, you don’t always have to blog about writing and your books – you can blog about the other stuff going on in your life too. In the past I’ve written posts about my allotment and making Minecraft birthday cakes for my son, among other things.
Above all, just be you. That’s what readers really want to see – the person behind the fiction, and what makes them tick.
July 21, 2015 — 7:23 AM
Tom Martin says:
Hello, folks. I write historic mystery. I’m about two thirds of the way through the first draft but find myself slowing down now and then for either health reasons or the amount of research needed just to describe a chair. I’ve asked other novelists how do they know when to stop gathering info and started just writing, but I’ve been told by many that it never stops. The past never actually remains back there, it is also part of today, and just waiting to be found so it can screw up something something somewhere, and I can expect feedback from “authorities” and actual helpful folks. So all that is how much to you research and how much do you just let fly?
And Chuck, looking forward to Aftermath. For me, it was normally gym class.
July 20, 2015 — 6:32 PM
Kylie says:
When I’m on the first draft, I’ll just write down my idea as it currently festers in my brain. Then I’ll research. That way I get the overall story down before I forget it, but I can then start researching. I think I’m lucky in that I’m writing crime- there’s the overall forensics and scientific stuff, but because it’s an unspecified modern time frame, I don’t need to have furniture or minor details be historically accurate.
July 21, 2015 — 12:37 AM
Traci Kenworth says:
I’ve been struggling with just the day-to-day of writing. I worry it’s not good enough, but then there are passages I read that I think, “Wow. I wrote that?” How do you handle the insecurity, the never-knowing if you’re just fooling yourself? Another problem I struggle with is taking crits to heart and thinking I shouldn’t be a writer at all. I know my work has to have other eyes on it but it’s hard not to take it personal. Even when I get good feedback my mind is drawn back to what’s wrong and I sort of condemn myself for writing such schlock when it comes to what’s wrong. I know I have to develop thick skin but damn, it hurts. I really enjoyed your blog the other day where other writers and you discussed how long it took to write your books or how many books were written. It gives me hope. I used to be a faster writer but I got my confidence shook by crits and now I second-guess everything. I wonder if anyone else has these problems?
July 20, 2015 — 7:21 PM
Janna says:
I’ve had a similar experience in that things outside of my control have shot my confidence full of more holes than swiss cheese. Unfortunately I don’t have any magic advise for you!
July 21, 2015 — 2:26 PM
Traci Kenworth says:
Thanks, Janna!! It’s nice to know I’m not alone. I do get good, amazing feedback sometimes but I tend to concentrate on the bad or what I’ve done wrong more than what I’ve done right. I know I need to get myself over that and just do the work. One thing is, I’m determined not to give up, so that’s a plus!!
July 21, 2015 — 6:33 PM
lizaskew says:
When something is really bothering you inside, like negative criticism, you’ve got to learn how to resolve it within yourself. You shouldn’t just let it run like a broken toilet in your brain. Resolving feelings of doubt doesn’t make the memory or external situation that caused them go away, it makes the less helpful feelings that go with the memory kind of go into storage in the attic. Try to recognize the value you attach to the criticism in an analytical way. Analytical thinking has a way of simultaneously making room for honesty and psychologically separating the individual from the work they’ve done. It’s a good tool when used altruisticly (though I wouldn’t recommend trying to write a draft while in that mindset–you might bore yourself to tears).
Address how the criticism makes you feel and why, then be realistic about what you can or can’t do about it all at the moment. Face it all openly and honestly, be understanding of your own human condition, then determine if there’s anything you can do about those feelings in the here and now. If there isn’t anything you can immediately do about the situation or if those feelings are impeding you, you’ll now know so consciously, and that knowing kind of tricks your brain into letting those feelings go. I used to have to do that to get to sleep at night as a teen. Being a teenager is hard. 🙂
July 22, 2015 — 10:10 PM
Traci Kenworth says:
Thanks for the advice, Liza!! You’re right, I have to find a way to let go and move on.
July 23, 2015 — 6:53 PM
kessara says:
So, I posted this morning…and came back to read…and wow! There is some fantastic information here and more than a few great ideas. One I see continually popping up is ‘get a critique group’ or some variant of that. Nice…but I live in the middle of bumf&ck nowhere and as such, would need to do everything online.
Do any of you have an online writer’s group? Maybe a skype group to chat and get to know each other a bit? Does anyone want to set one up? I’m in.
July 20, 2015 — 7:31 PM
definitelynotapoet says:
I started by finding other writerly types on twitter, and then once we had tweeted back and forth for awhile we decided to start a group. We just use Google Docs to share our stuff, then leave comments on each others pieces. Find people using the #amwriting tag perhaps, follow then invite to your own group if they seem like someone you might actually want to read?
July 21, 2015 — 1:00 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
Try websites like Scribophile and TheNextBigWriter. They’re online writing communities who offer beta reading services (you read and critique some of their stuff, they’ll return the favour – that kind of thing.) It all works on a karma system and the advice is generally of a good standard and non-asshatty.They also have specialist fiction areas and Groups you can join.
http://www.scribophile.com/
http://www.thenextbigwriter.com/
July 21, 2015 — 7:30 AM
Seth says:
Thank you for posting those links. Those are the kind of sites I’ve been looking for.
July 22, 2015 — 1:35 PM
lizaskew says:
Yay! Thank you!
July 22, 2015 — 10:32 PM
mattblackattack says:
I’m in if you want. Matthewblack916@gmail.com
July 21, 2015 — 10:52 AM
Mari Adkins says:
i have a group on facebook. i’d love to have one in meatlife!
July 26, 2015 — 10:32 PM
ebrobinson says:
I just released my full trilogy but there a chink in the armor. Namely, formatting. I ended up with book 1 and two in left indention and book 3 justified with those awful spaces in the paragraphs.There are so many sites out there boasting professional formatting at what seems to be outrageous prices. So I’m thinking of trying to do it myself and then RE-release a more aesthetically pleasing trilogy. It can’t be this hard, right? Is formatting a new form of writer’s rocket science I have stumbled upon? As a newbie with limited funds, should I just suck it up, sling some kilos (insert narcotic of choice) and pay out the ass? Oops, sorry. That was three questions, huh?
July 20, 2015 — 7:47 PM
AM Gray says:
do you use scrivener? It can generate all the kinds of publishing formats. Steep learning curve but a cheap option and there are a lot of help/how to vids on YouTube.
I know Word carries over a lot of base formatting that can’t be removed unless you strip it out in notepad. I had to do it for a Smashwords edition of a short story once… gah And then I found out the error was in the epub file checker not my document at all. Almost cried.
July 20, 2015 — 8:41 PM
Fred G. Yost says:
+ 1 for Scrivener. The amount of options are overwhelming but it is super powerful for the price.
July 21, 2015 — 2:12 PM
Wendy Christopher says:
Consider another +1 added for Scrivener. 🙂 There are tutorials on the web for using it, plus a few how-to ebooks that you can get for peanuts.
July 22, 2015 — 8:24 AM
Rebecca McCurdy says:
I used Word and published via KDP, so my advice only applies if you are using the same. However, I suspect other programs have similar capabilities. It was time-consuming but not pull-your-hair-out hard. Once you convert your book you should use the viewer on the KDP site to find spacing problems. Then go back to your original document and “show” the hidden symbols. By comparing sections that look right and those that don’t you can find where you inserted an incorrect symbol (I had a bunch of paragraphs where I had spacing at the beginning of a paragraph rather than indented). This is also time consuming. Then, of course, you have to read it all one more time to make sure you didn’t screw up something else. If you have more time than money – you might consider doing it yourself. I figure I’ll know better as I begin work on my second novel and won’t make so many mistakes. Good Luck!
July 21, 2015 — 8:52 PM
JT Lawrence says:
Another Scrivener-fan here. My favourite tool is the PROJECT TARGETS which tells you how many words you need to write every day to reach your goal. Love seeing that red bar turn orange.
July 22, 2015 — 2:23 PM
lizaskew says:
Scrivener gives you a free trial period of 30 NON CONSECUTIVE days!! That means that days in which you don’t use the software don’t count against your trial period. Download it and read through the tutorial on project types and templates.
July 22, 2015 — 10:35 PM
Rachel Robinson says:
I started using Scrivener and found it complicated. Went back to Word but now using InDesign. Sooo much better. Thanks perps, I mean peeps. Stupid auto text. Anywho, I should get crackin since it has to be done before Worlcon next month. Wish me luck!
July 25, 2015 — 4:04 AM
Mel says:
How would one go about forming a mini-cluster of Super Friends writers, a la “Sense8 (netflix series)”. Some of us are really really good first draft writers, some of us are much stronger editors, some of us are really good with plot structure and can be ruthless and cutting away bullshit that doesn’t advance the story on pace. Folks skill strengths, divided by basic genres: horror, sci-fi, romance … I think what I’m missing is a kick ass team. I don’t want to be Michael Crichton. I want to be like Trey Parker and Matt Stone — I want a small team. I think it’d be way more fun and way more productive. I have no idea how to go about finding these super friends.
July 20, 2015 — 8:04 PM
Morticia says:
Super Friends!! The writers team of Super Friends is the writing group. There are writers groups everywhere. You can go to Meetup.com and search “writing” or “writers” and many options will come up. I started going to a local writers group hosted by a professor at the local state college. There were many different types of writers and about ten to twenty people regularly. After going a few times, there were three of us that realized we were all writing fantasy novels and we started meeting on our own. This group lasted for two years and it really helped me hone my beginning writing skills. We wanted more people, so I tried recruiting from Craig’s List – internet weirdness ensued but I did find one more good writer to join us.
Then I realized I need something more formal, so I signed up at my local community college and got the best novel writing teacher ever! If it weren’t for him, I never would have completed my first draft. It was a repeatable class many of us took it several times, forming a great group of supportive writers. Now I’m on my third draft and I don’t really need a group because I’m busy getting in solid re-writes start to finish. Once I’m ready to beta test, I will probably be soliciting help from the people I’ve met along the way and worked with over the years. Also, my old teacher agreed to edit my book when I’m ready, which was also a great bonus. Your Super Friends are out there…waiting for you!! 🙂
July 23, 2015 — 4:00 PM
Mozette says:
I’ve been looking at publishing houses – where I can do my own publishing through. However, when it comes to price, I’m not sure what to do. I mean, how do first-time writers get published when they don’t have the dosh?
I’ve tried getting a grant – and it’s a no-go.
I have no money… so how does somebody without money get themselves out there without going on the freebies trail?
July 20, 2015 — 8:29 PM
AM Gray says:
When the world of ebook publishing exists, I would not be dealing with a publishing house.
There are a heap of people who self publish and share their info.
You can post an ebook on Amazon or wherever for no cost but if it is badly edited or has an awful cover, it won’t sell.
You will probably need to pay for an editor and a good cover unless you know people and they owe you a favour. There are sites that make covers, sites that offer designs for projects (like 99designs or fiverr or http://www.selfpubbookcovers.com/ – they do NOT reuse images – nothing worse than seeing the same guy on ten different romance covers!)
Listen to a few podcasts (simon whistler on selfpublishing podcast) read a few websites from authors who are doing the kindle thing now. Most indie authors share info and that is neat!
Remember, it’s an ebook and everything can be changed. If you see a horrible error – fix it and reload it. If you sell enough to pay for a better cover – change it and reload it.
How do you get discovered? I know Chuck would say write another book. But you can give away ebooks to people and ask them to post a review. You can change the price later or offer it free for a limited time. It’s up to you. Once you get past 50 or so reviews, amazon will notice you in the search engines and you may show up in the ‘also bought’ part of the page. And that’s the key to more people reading your book!
Good luck!
July 21, 2015 — 12:50 AM
Kylie says:
Every country is different. In Australia (which is where I am) because the industry itself is so small, there are often competitions or awards, or ‘big name’ publishing houses requesting pitches and manuscripts. We also have the opportunity to interact with agents and publishing types more easily than in other places, from what I can gather.
A friend of mine has used crowd funding to publish his first novel, and that’s worked well for him. It’s let him test the waters about potential readership, as well as generate excitement around the work before it was published. It’s also a way that you can get family and friends to share the link and encourage their circle of friends to support you, which can be helpful.
July 21, 2015 — 2:22 AM
Tiggs says:
IMO – If you have no money, then the best way of getting published is to send a query to a literary agent and make them fall in love with what you’ve written. From there, they’ll take your book and (hopefully) sell it to a publishing house, who will take care of the editing and the layout and the cover for you.
Your literary agent should take their money out of the sale to the publishing house, so you shouldn’t be hit with any up-front costs (and if your agent does try charging you up-front – for example, a reading fee or a signing fee – then run for the hills.)
There are zero-cost options for self-publishing eBooks – but it’s rare to find a writer who’s able to edit their own work to an acceptable standard, plus professionally layout the text and also design a compelling cover. For a basic overview of the options available, take a look at the following link – http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/pw-select/article/59367-diy-how-to-self-publish-an-e-book.html
(or just google “self-publishing an ebook for free”)
July 21, 2015 — 2:36 AM
AM Gray says:
my problem is me… I write fanfiction and I finish all my stories and I have 8m+ hits on fanfic alone… BUT when it comes to my own stories, I self censor, I second guess, I imagine the negative reviews for a story I haven’t even written yet… so I have a dozen half written (or almost-finished and unpublished works) and I am making myself NUTS!
July 20, 2015 — 8:35 PM
Kylie says:
Would it help to treat it like no one will ever read it? I get really intimidated when I think of it in terms of writing to be published, but when I treat it as writing for myself, I’m far more creative and less likely to self censor.
Feel free to take it with a grain of salt, but the way I see it, you’ve got hella good traffic to your stories, and probably a dedicated group who see your name attached to a story and treat it as a must-read. You’ve probably also had negative reviews, because I’ve yet to see fanfic not get them, even when they’re absolutely wonderfully written. But if you’re writing fanfic, and coping with trolls and poor reviews already, you’re already learning how to deal with negative reviews. If you’ve had even one shitty review, then you’ve got proof that you can survive people not liking your work, and experience in moving past it. So I’m wondering, what is it about writing fanfic that you see as less scary than writing ‘original’ fiction?
July 21, 2015 — 2:38 AM
AM Gray says:
yes, it’s kind of like that. I do see them as different and they really aren’t. But fan works feel safer to me – and less risky; people already love the characters (and me) – that’s why they are reading them. I guess it is a little like someone who has released a first work and then is panicking about the second one.
But fanfiction also allows me to write different (even taboo) subjects. And yes, learn to deal with negative reviews. So when my head goes to more taboo places in original works, I panic that they won’t be accepted.
I find it easier to write – you can skip the introductions for characters and descriptions of places – the readers know it all. The sand is already in the sandbox – if that makes sense.
I would either do what you say – argue nobody will read it it’s for me, OR I was thinking after posting this, that I can probably treat my own stuff like fanfic. Post a chapter every day on my blog or wattpad or wherever – that way I will get the ‘people are waiting for it’ thing that impels me to finish a complete work. It won’t matter if it is technically pre-published if I intend to post an ebook myself. My pre reader group will just be a little big larger – *grins*
I have to do SOMETHING to get past this logjam.
Thanks, Kylie!
July 21, 2015 — 3:32 AM
Regina says:
As someone who’s also a fanfic author, this is what I try to do: I write my original stuff as if it’s fanfiction of an existing work, letting myself fall into the same evocative but not so informative style I have for fic (since everyone already knows what’s what, or they wouldn’t be reading the fic). Then, I go back and rewrite to add and edit and clarify. It’s always hardest to get the first draft out, imho.
July 21, 2015 — 6:31 PM
AM Gray says:
exactly! They are called shitty first drafts for a reason. And when I have my editing hat on I can see where it needs scene description or background. But I just need to get that first draft out… before I kill it off myself.
July 22, 2015 — 12:12 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
First of all, if your fanfic is getting 8m+ hits and you finish all of those stories, you’re doing pretty damn good – better than 90% of wannabe authors out there 🙂
So there’s not much reason to suppose that your non-fanfic work is going to be hugely lower in standard or popularity just because it’s ‘original’ stuff (because really, NOTHING is truly original in fiction anyway – EVERYTHING is a derivation of something else if you go back far and pick it apart enough.)
I think you’re right in feeling that’s it’s insecurity about your ability to create ‘new’ stuff. But y’know, fanfic isn’t ‘the easy option’ it’s made out to be. Even if you’re using characters created by someone else, you’re still having to create new scenarios and plots for them, whilst all the time staying true to the core of the characters and their world. That requires just as much writing skill as any other kind of fiction writing.
You’ve obviously already got an online space for posting your fanfic. Perhaps you could create a separate little ‘branch’ there (where your existing fans would be sure to see it) for putting a few of your non-fanfic pieces, just to test the waters. After all, what’s the worst that could happen? If people don’t like them… well, the more you write the better you’ll get, you can remove them and rework/recycle them if you want and nobody’s lost anything. But I think you’ll be okay. 8m+ hits? I reckon you’re better at this lark than you think. 🙂
July 21, 2015 — 7:50 AM
AM Gray says:
Thanks, Wendy. I know it is in my head. I’m hypercritical of my own work and I read a lot so I write a big chunk of a story and then I go ‘omg I’ve rewritten (insert book name here)’ and I stop. And then I start another project with a shiny new idea and it happens again. ‘dammit – I’ve written a standard portal fantasy’ or whatever… and it shouldn’t matter – so many books are retellings or rewrites or even updates. Most fantasy stories are the hero’s journey retold. All romances have a standard recipe and it is hard to get them to sell if you deviate from that.
And maybe my stories aren’t even the same but I tell myself this and kill them before they are finished.
The worst that could happen? Has probably already happened to some author out there. Mary Robinette Kowal had a book printed that lost the first line somehow. The one she spent ages making sure drew people in. People get past these things so I get so annoyed with myself for stressing about it, and then go round the cycle again. *Kermit flails*
So, if I post it on my blog then I can get responses from readers, and if they don’t like it I can always delete it. I think if I can get one longer work out there, then I can get past this. I’m trying bribery now. *laughs* I have literally bought myself something I want, gift-wrapped it and I can’t open it until I am published.
July 21, 2015 — 11:01 PM
Mark says:
I’ve got a period mystery set in Hollywood written, and it’s Noir-Light, with an interesting premise and a unique and original character. It’s the most commercial idea I’ve penned in a long time–there’s clearly a track record for this kind of thing. But none of the major mystery publishers are currently accepting “unagented manuscripts.” So, for the last 9 months, I’ve been shopping for an agent. Godamighty, this is worse than cattle call submissions for comp copies. Lots of positive, encouraging rejection letters. Very frustrating. I’m going to a regional conference this weekend, one of the writer-shows with editors and agents in attendance. I’ve got a ten minute pitch meeting set up with a person–I hope she likes me. Because I’m sick of trying to sell myself and my work. I’d rather use the other side of my brain and write. That’s what I like doing. That’s what I’m good at. But selling yourself, marketing your “brand,” “massaging your platform,” etc. uses a different part of my brain, and it drains my batteries.
I want to sell this mystery series. I hate that I have to do these additional steps to get it done.
July 20, 2015 — 8:56 PM
Cody Enos says:
I have two problems I’ve been noticing lately.
The first is that I’m not that good at character/character development. I always feel like they’re closer to paper cutouts than flesh and blood. Or, I do try really hard and it’s just too subtle for people to notice.
Then my second problem is length. I’m trying to write my first book now, still in my planning stages. I’ve mostly just done short stories and I’ve always accomplished a satisfying length to those stories, but with a book length story there seems to be a lot of information I need to have to put it to that length. Whenever I outline my story I feel like it’s too little and if I wrote it all out and it becomes much shorter than I thought, but I’m not sure how I could extend it, that would feel almost like wasted effort to me. But then when I think of more stuff I could expand on I fear I’m putting too much into the story. So I guess right now I’m just in pre-production purgatory.
July 20, 2015 — 9:40 PM
morticia1313 says:
Give more credit to the actual writing process. Jump in, bang out content, write 2-4 pages six days a week for the first draft. Don’t be attached to perfection – let the primordial goo ooze onto the page. It will become life later.
When this subject came up in my novel writing class, the consensus was to only plan a week or two at most before getting started, if even that is needed. Too much planning is avoidance and fear of writing a crappy novel. A first draft is always crappy but after re-writes is can become sublime. New content for me is like laying down bricks and HARD but once the skeleton is there I’m great at fleshing it out – and I love rewriting, tweaking everything to make it just right. I knew others with the opposite problem where they would write 500 pages and then have to figure out what to cut – their least favorite part was re-writing.
My first draft was 175 pages long and I knew I would need to hit 300 to 350. After I was done with the first draft, the holes magically appeared and I knew exactly what content was missing. I would never have known that until I reached the end. I read a great saying by E.L. Doctorow, “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”
Going back the second and third time, I added all the subplots and more characterization and description (where needed, not just to fill space) which added another 150. When people read it, they let me know where they wanted to know more and what seemed superfluous. Once you get to the second, third, fourth drafts – that’s when you slow down, research more and think about things like theme, pacing, continuity and progression. That’s when you add the flesh to the bones. Unless your like my friends who wrote 500 pages, then you have to trim the fat and zero in on the important parts. Either way, the magic happens in later drafts.
I highly recommend Noal Lukeman’s The First Five Pages and A Dash of Style. Also check out Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art (not to be confused with The Art of War by Sun Tzu). If you must have something before you start, several of my classmates suggested Victoria’s Schmidt’s Book in a Month to jump start them. And of course, all of Chuck’s Writing Books. 😉
July 23, 2015 — 11:06 PM
illianacole says:
Long time follower of this blog, LOVE it!
so here is my rub. i am writing my first novel, still in the outlining phase, and devouring every guide/advice book i can. In almost all of them i have found that a lot of them focus on the structure of the novel, which is great, but really only gets a newbie so far. Things like where to break a chapter and scene construction/consideration get skimmed over. (excepting the book “Make a Scene”). These are things that are confusing to newer writers.
July 20, 2015 — 11:22 PM
lizaskew says:
I can recommend two books for you that, to me, preclude the need for any other writing craft books:
Writing Fiction: a guide to narrative craft, by Janet Burroway
On Writing Well, by Howard Zinsser
These are really, really helpful.
July 22, 2015 — 10:51 PM
morticia1313 says:
Scene Sequel is helpful for understanding chapter breaks and pacing. If you Google Scene Sequel, many sites will pop up with helpful articles and explanations. Dwight Swain’s Techniques of the Selling Writer goes over this in depth plus a lot more a writer needs to know. The gist is this:
A Scene has the following three-part pattern:
1.Goal
2.Conflict
3.Disaster
A Sequel has the following three-part pattern:
1.Reaction
2.Dilemma
3.Decision
Also, if your a beginning writer Noah Lukeman’s The First Five Pages and A Dash of Style and Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art are my personal go-to’s.
Good luck!
July 23, 2015 — 11:25 PM
D.R.Sylvester says:
How to put the emotional backbone into a scene? This is THE big one for me, as I want to make the story and characters as hard-hitting as possible, but I’m such a mellow person I wonder if I’m creating a “Terminator 2” or a mere “Rise of the Machines.”
I’m not worried about the plot or characters, but rather the actual delivery and techniques?
Much thanks in advance!
July 21, 2015 — 12:03 AM
addy says:
i think it will need story leading up to the emotional moment. For me i wanted to create a vengeful, griefing character however i wanted to do it at the start.I soon found out that it isnt emotional since i didnt know the guy, so i did a day or two in his happy life before i break his heart and ruin him.
Or my new method (for the same character) is showing what he is in the present and then flash back to what made him the man he is now. either way I think we need to know and relate to the person before emotional scenes
July 21, 2015 — 4:29 AM
D.R.Sylvester says:
Thanks heaps, that’s a really good point. Tackling the emotional content right at the start sounds like it’s adding another level of difficulty! I’m lucky in that my WIP is novel length, so I have the time to establish the stakes like you say.
I did some research after asking my question, and turned up a bit about “emotional beats.” Also something about “deep POV.” So much to learn…
July 21, 2015 — 6:11 AM
dianadomino says:
Will I EVER be done editing?
July 21, 2015 — 12:10 AM
Mick says:
Yes! 🙂
July 21, 2015 — 1:45 AM
JT Lawrence says:
YES!
July 21, 2015 — 6:08 AM
Doc Coleman says:
You will eventually stop editing, but you will eternally be finding things you wish you could edit. Most people stop editing at publication, but some folks (like George Lucas) never stop.
Doc
July 21, 2015 — 10:49 AM
Janna says:
I feel like my health problems have removed my creativity. I love the act of writing but because of my MS (and other things including depression) I haven’t been able to regularly write. Focus and attention are hard for me. Fatigue and pain cause problems too. I don’t know where in the process I’m hung up by fear. I assume it’s fear.
Recently someone suggested I get back to what inspires me to write and I remembered that I wanted to be a grant writer so I could use my writing to help people. Fiction is more fun though. Blog posts are easier even.
July 21, 2015 — 12:21 AM
AM Gray says:
If you find blogging easy, is it possible to bind together a few blog posts (that are all related to the same subject matter) into a book? I don’t know what your blog subject is, but what if you were the expert on cold coffee making OR the aesthetics of cactus shaped like dogs or whatever – You might be the world expert on such things… OR on being creative and productive with MS. *And THAT could help a whole heap of people!*
Even if it is pre-published (on the blog) you can still produce a finished product – maybe with a little bit extra and a nifty cover. Kind of like chuck does with his writing books. A blog audience might sway a publisher or grant provider and if not you could self-publish!
And you go. girl!
July 21, 2015 — 12:28 AM
Kylie says:
I second this so hard it’s an act of will not to yell ‘preach it’ at my screen.
Writing is hard enough without health issues making it harder. I wish I could point you in the direction of a solution for writing through depression, but I’ve yet to find one. The best I’ve been able to do so far is try and learn to stop adding guilt to those days I get no writing done.
July 21, 2015 — 2:53 AM
Janna says:
Guilt. I think you’ve touched on something here. I have to let the mental background processes work on that one and see if I can catch myself feeling guilty because I haven’t opened Scrivener or posted on my blog recently. Thanks.
July 21, 2015 — 2:22 PM
Janna says:
Thank you. My blog is a crazy bit of all over the place. It’s kinda random? I keep meaning to post on it more often but, lately doctor appointments are getting in the way. You know I should maybe just talk about what I know best right now (going to the doctor) … that’s a good idea.
July 21, 2015 — 2:21 PM
kenneycalliesview says:
Hi Janna,
I have some similar chronic pain problems and have been thinking the same thing. Where as I used to have so many ideas for writing, it has definitely trickled down and made it almost impossible to write daily any longer. The one thing that has seemed to help me (maybe it can work for you), is writing at my least painful time of day. I have insomnia as well so sometimes that can mean two or three in the morning for twenty minutes and then after laying down again, maybe around seven or eight a.m. for another hour. It messes with the creative flow and takes a little longer to finish an entire book, but at least I still feel like I’ve accomplished something. I know how important that is to people with chronic illnesses.
You are so lucky to find blogging easy though- it’s like going to the dentist for me, a complete and scary nightmare every time.
Good luck!
July 24, 2015 — 11:29 AM
fatherbruce02 says:
I know I want to write. I know I have a talent for it. I know it needs to be honed and directed. It needs focus and manipulation. I need the drive to sit here every single day. What drives you to the desk, hammock, bus stop bench, subway seat? I’m struggling to just write. I think too much about wanting to be read, when I don’t think about what do I have that they can read? How do you focus your attention to where it needs to be?
SIde note: I can’t wait to see you at Central Coast Writer’s Conference on September 18-20 at Cuesta College. It begins a day after my birthday.
July 21, 2015 — 12:51 AM
Mick says:
Dear Abby,
I won a lot of (Australian) national short story competitions in high school. I wrote a handful of novels straight after high school, and snagged a well-regarded (Australian) agent when I was 23. (Her first name’s Selwa, if anyone’s interested.) She shopped around 2 of the novels, which nobody bought. I wrote a new novel and she said she couldn’t market it.
I took this can’t-market-it news badly. I was young. I was green. I was frustrated. For a while I’d been feeling like I had plateaued as a writer. Now, with an agent, I also probably had a little stage fright. This was in the late 1990s, when the internet was young and self-publishing was some guy who prints 100 copies of his book and sneaks them onto bookstore shelves within driving distance of his home.
I took a break from writing. The break went on and on and on. My agent has not heard from me in many years. (When the time comes that I need an agent again, I’ll have to go shopping for another one.)
I returned to writing–short stories. It was hard and unfamiliar, but eventually I got back into the swing and I had a couple things published; many of my rejections are the positive variety.
I’m 10,000 words into a new novel. The industry has changed in big ways. Any traction I had is now mostly gone. And now I have the internet, which provides me with 1000 bits of conflicting advice, several varieties of gloom and doom, and many many amusing Youtube videos and Facebook posts and how-to-write blogs with which to a) kill time, and b) clutter my head. I worry that the novel will disintegrate and die on me at 25000 words, 60000 words short of a true ending; I worry that it will be pretty decent but reach its true ending at a difficult-to-market 35,000 words; I worry that it will be dull; I worry that I’ll have to write fifty novels before I’m back in the novel-writing swing of things; I kick myself that I took so much time off from writing. There’s a lot of negativity in the ol’ brain box these days.
Now the question. I use Scrivener and a gorgeous Ducky G2 Pro mechanical keyboard. Does anybody know of a Scrivener setting or a Ducky tweak that will allow me to write magical prose without putting in any effort and without any bothersome Inner Critic / self loathey voices? I’ve read the Scrivener manual, and it doesn’t seem to mention a “write entire novel for me while I sleep” command.
Regards,
Inner Critic’s Bitch in Australia.
July 21, 2015 — 1:44 AM
Carolyn says:
Dear Mick, I think that awful feeling of having wasted time is something only those of us with more days in back of us than in front can truly appreciate. I have a similar story – I sold my first, and only, mystery novel in my 30’s, then the publisher went belly-up (sigh) and though I got my rights back, I realize these many years later I am no longer that writer. I am better. I imagine you are finding the same.
So, all those wasted years – were they, really? I bet you accomplished a heck of a lot during that time, which you could, and probably should, view as information-gathering-time, maturing time, life-experience time. I imagine during all this wasted time you read, and read a lot. Every day truly has given you a wealth of experience that may yet become useful to you.
And so here you are, many years later, starting over. But in a huge way you are not. You have a heck of a lot of valuable experience. You no doubt have an understanding of things that were once a mystery to you. You have a new idea, and time – yes, time! – to explore it, now. And so you will. Put that evil “you time waster you” attitude on the back shelf where it belongs. You did not waste time – you were Becoming.
Do you want to be a published writer, again? I think you do. Sounds like it. And of course it is scary to start over, but this is life, it happens over and over again. You have been through it before, and can use that knowledge to forge ahead, and tame all this new-fangled stuff authors have to deal with.
Figure out what steps you need to take to make that quest of publication a reality – especially now that you know every single day is precious, we only have so much time on this earth, and taking that for granted would be a true sadness. We have things to accomplish, and now is the time!!
July 21, 2015 — 12:43 PM
jamilhamach says:
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July 21, 2015 — 5:00 AM
JT Lawrence says:
Chuck, so much gold in this thread. How about next time asking what everyone’s best writing tip is?
July 21, 2015 — 6:09 AM
addy says:
I can imagine a number of Shia Labeouf’s “just do it” meme’s…
July 21, 2015 — 11:06 AM
JuliusArna says:
I’ve got two things that tend to nag me when I’m writing.
The first one is the actual nitty gritty of scene/paragraph transitions. They always feel so damn artificial to me. I tend to ramble on in a scene because I feel like I don’t know how to transition into the next one, for fear of it being too abrupt or mechanical.
The second comes down to the sentence level which comes down to insecurities I suppose. I’m not a native English speaker/writer but I find that I express myself much better in English when writing. The problem though is that the micro level writing (at sentence level that is) never feels as crisp as what I read from other authors.
July 21, 2015 — 6:42 AM
blackdragon80 says:
Excellent post! And some great comments! I’m just starting out in the whole self-publishing thing and have a novella being professionally edited at the moment, which I’m pretty thrilled about and also pertrified…! It’s a whole new world, and I’m learning as I go, which can be a bit scary, what with all the stuff you need to pick up on before pressing that ‘publish’ button. A mistake I made with my first attempt, a short story, which has a naff cover and a host of other issues. Readers liked it, but I’m not happy with my first attempt, and so that’s the reason this novella is being treated to the professional touch. I’m splashing the cash in the hopes it will all pan out. *fingers crossed*
July 21, 2015 — 7:11 AM
JT Lawrence says:
PERTRIFIED is an excellent word.
Pertrified: (adj) As scared/excited/turned on as an erect nipple.
July 22, 2015 — 11:05 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
My problem, I’m starting to think, is that I read too much writing advice from too many how-to books.
Some of them are very good, and have given me the boot up the arse I needed to get my current w-i-p to Draft 2-and-a-half stage (cheers Mr Chuck Wendig, and a few others!) Others have left me feeling I am not intelligent enough or good enough at maths to write a novel of any kind, ever. I’m talking about the ones that go on about Outlines and Story Structure and stuff.
Yes yes yes, I KNOW I HAVE TO DO OUTLINES FOR MY NOVELS NOW. Wish I’d learned that before I did Draft One, this is why my Draft Two’s taking so freakin’ long, beat myself with the beating stick and learned my lesson, thanks.
But HOW is crafting the perfect outline supposed to HELP my writing process when it just leads me to thinking things like “Oh for the love of… is him doing this thing the Drive For External Goal or the Antagonist Revealed? My Fear Made Real moment appears at the 30% stage of my story – that’s 5% TOO EARLY! How can I drag my Mirror Moment 15% into the past so that it happens where it’s supposed to instead of where it does?”
For the love of GOD, is there an Outlining process out there that DOESN’T turn the whole thing into a convoluted maths lesson involving decimal fractions? I just wanna tell my chuffin’ story without having to pull out my calculator, count up the pages in my w-i-p and then refer to some bloody bulletpoint list to tell me what page 103 is supposed to be covering!
**Breathes deeply. Eats chocolate.**
July 21, 2015 — 8:12 AM
Carolyn says:
LOL Wendy, I hear you on this – I own so many how-to-write books it is ridiculous. What I finally decided was okay, yeah yeah, I really need to outline this book, new genre for me, I need to know where the heck I am going. So I took two books, more recent ones actually, that I truly enjoyed reading that seemed to each have a how-to that made sense, and also complimented each other a lot. Most importantly, both are based on the good ol standard 3 act structure, but both went deeper, explaining why each new bit needed to be there – one is on screenwriting, the other applicable to any format, but both worked for me so well that I will never look at another how-to. One book has been mentioned here already – Take Off Your Pants! Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing by Libbie Hawker, and the other is My Story Can Beat Up Your Story by Jeffrey Alan Schecter. By combining their methods, I came up with my own – and I think that is the secret. Find what works for YOU. And stick with it! Don’t be enticed by the new shiny guaranteed method! Yes, these and hundreds other how-to’s all have valid ways to outline (or not, there are true pantsers out there and my hats off to them) but I needed to do SOMETHING, and decide on SOMETHING, and this has worked well for me.
July 21, 2015 — 2:02 PM
Ed says:
Wendy, I remember looking at how to plan a novel and (by far) the most complicated one i ever saw was something referred to as “the snowflake method”. I will not bore you with the details, but it involves planning EVERYTHING out before you put pen to paper. The person advocating this meathod stated “the book writes very quickly once completed”. If you plan the whole thing to the Nth deegree then yes it will, but its so dam time consuming and somethings only come to you on the hoof. What i have found that is if i write sort of framework or key events first in the story i want to write i find the backfilling to be easier as you already have a framework to go off.
July 21, 2015 — 10:08 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
I read The Snowflake Method too! I know what you mean – my head exploded.
I think you’re right – some stories really can’t have every move pre-booked to occur at specific times like arranging your dental appointments or something. I suppose I should have spotted the warning signs when one author wrote pretty much the following:
‘It doesn’t matter if your prose is terrible or your characters are wooden – if you follow this plot structure template your readers will not be able to put your book down.’ (That’s probably not a 100%-accurate word-for-word quote, but it’s pretty damn close.)
REALLY? With terrible prose and wooden characters? I’m not sure I like the implication that readers are mindless sheep, enduring badly-written stories because ooh, look at the pretty happenings patterns! But the one that really made me cry was where the author actually provided a mathematical formula for devising the percentage points for plot events in books, involving the total number of pages and dividing by this figure if it didn’t have a prologue, but doing some other compensatory subtraction if it did, and then working out the percentage of story time passed for each stage of the ‘template’ with more divisions and stuff…. urrghh….
I’ve got a ‘summary of the key plot points’ thing, which is basically a list of all the bits of Draft One I need to keep (but still edit and polish) and all extra new bits that need to go in to make them work… but I think I may give up on the idea of trying to shoehorn them into fitting some pre-planned ‘structure template.’ They work in the order I’ve put them because logic and all that, and maybe pondering any deeper into the process than that is just over-thinking.
Thanks for being a reassuring voice 🙂
July 21, 2015 — 12:51 PM
zklimczak says:
My problem is as follows: I write well at night. I can churn out 1000 words easily. I want to keep this going – six days a week, ad infinitum. Each week, a new story is born – 6000 words or more. I need feedback from people. I want to start a blog to showcase these short stories. Should I? Is this a good idea? Does this reek of potential failure and public shaming? All the more reason to follow through if so.
July 21, 2015 — 11:21 AM
Anthony Elmore says:
Find a writer’s critique group that meets in person. Online critique groups are great, but a writer needs the physical company of people with similar goals. Try to find one with pro writers. Avoid ones that are mostly fan fiction and dabblers.
I don’t know if this is still true, but I’ve been warned not to blog my short stories. You lose your first publication rights or something.
July 21, 2015 — 8:52 PM
Wendy Christopher says:
It’s absolutely a good idea! And this is where this very blog can help out with that, because Chuck does his weekly Flash Fiction challenge on Fridays, and to enter you need an online space (i.e. a blog) to post your entry and then link to it in the Comments section of the original challenge post on Chuck’s site.
In fact, Chuck’s Friday Challenge is partly why I started my Prawn Crackers blog (most of the flash fiction I’ve posted on there are past entries.) It’s good because you can potentially get feedback from two sources; people reading this blog and those who discover your blog independently. Does it reek of potential failure and public shaming? Dunno… without reading any of your stuff it’s hard to know 😉 But if you really wanna be a writer, potential failure and public shaming are part of the training course… you’ll survive and emerge stronger to fight another day. Like Rocky, but with better diction 😉
July 22, 2015 — 8:44 AM
Todd says:
What’s an effective way to market an honorable mention in a writing contest, especially when submitting the story that earned the mention to other publications?
July 21, 2015 — 12:09 PM
Janna says:
I was crazy and actually subscribed to comments on this post so I’d read at least some of them. (Gmail let about 70-80 through and probably sent the rest to spam.)
There’s been so much down to earth comments and advice. It’s awesome because it’s a reminder that we’ve all got something to work through.
July 21, 2015 — 2:23 PM
Janna says:
Reading through these comments… I realize one of my writing problems is a lack of blog topics. Where do people turn for ideas?
I’ve blogged about personal life/health, random current events, recipes, and uh… mental diarrhea.
I need a plan of action so I don’t get stuck in the mud of WHATDOIDONEXT or the swamp of BUTIDONTHAVEAROUTINE.
(Does just coming here make you want to write in metaphors or something? Weird.)
July 21, 2015 — 2:30 PM
JQ Davis says:
Back from shopping; never mind which items I bought.
The easy problem: I’m awkward with physical descriptions, especially people. I can’t seem to throw a comprehensive description into the first few pages after a character is introduced. The descriptions appear, little by little, over the course of the story. My beta readers haven’t complained, yet I know it’s a weak spot.
The hard problem: I write horror, supernatural, thriller stuff. Long on suspense, no more gore than necessary. Goosebumpers. I also write comic fantasy (I blame Terry Pratchett and Monty Python.) More often than you’d think, when I’m developing and idea I have to struggle to keep it in the genre for which I intended it. Usually the tense ones want to lighten, which is really my subconscious trying to deflect, and it can be a problem to keep the mood as tight as I want it. I know a little humor can be useful, but this is beyond that.
July 21, 2015 — 2:47 PM
the introvert says:
I have no idea what to write about. I over analyze every kernel of idea until it all turns to mush. How do I just pick something and go?
July 21, 2015 — 4:15 PM
Anthony Elmore says:
I’m just so damn tired. I have a day job and have committed to 1000 words a day/6 days a week with Wednesdays off. I don’t know if its age, depression, not enough fruits and veggies or just being sick of the whole gig. I’ve improved so much as a writer, but it’s gotten where licking a stamp is too much effort.
Spite and caffeine is my only fuel nowadays.
July 21, 2015 — 10:30 PM
lizaskew says:
That sounds awful! Maybe you’re not giving yourself enough TLC after you get home. I know the concepts of rest and self love seem ridiculous when it feels like all you have time to do is work and get a pathetic amount of sleep each night. And getting into patterns of work can make you forget to take care of yourself and shut your brain off. It was recently proven that human minds do not provide an inexhaustible source of motivation. We have our limits of mental energy, no matter how much we yank at our bootstraps.
Taking 2 mile walks at dusk when it’s all pretty outside and watching movies helps me. The exercise pumps up my endorphins and lets me pat myself on the back a little for getting any exercise at all, and it settles my mind. I usually listen to comedy podcasts when I do it, or just listen to the sounds of evening. The movies allow my thoughts to wander.
Maybe you need to allow yourself to ease off the rigidity of your schedule a little? Spend some time each week just doing whatever the hell you feel like? You could consider it an investment in your personal well being (and thus, everything else in your life). Also, there are time management tips online that can help you expand your time, if that’s a problem for you. They’ve got it down to a science.
July 22, 2015 — 11:35 PM
Atlas says:
Whenever I try to write something that will take longer than one sitting (I’m a binge writer), I often times feel like I have lost something. Not quite voice, but the intrinsic feeling of that particular story may or may not be right and it distracts me. Often times, if the air doesn’t taste right or my words seem to be making the wrong sounds, I feel like an impostor trespassing on the page. It takes the feeling of the story and gives it the wrong taste, and then I feel like I cannot write it. Does any of that make sense? If so, how do I stop whatever it is that is making the story-stuff the wrong hue? Or, alternatively, have I completely lost my hat and should reorient my life goals to something more befitting a madman?
July 21, 2015 — 11:54 PM
CyborgElephantParade says:
I love writing. I have just finished writing my first full length novel after about 200k unpublished, unfinished, unedited words. Now I’m looking around on how to edit and there is so much conflicting advice, its got my head spinning on my neck.
How do people tell the good advice from the bad? I know there is no magic formula, but everyone is asking for my hard earned money to tell me how to be a writer, but as far as I’m concerned I’m already a writer (in the same respect that a polished turd is still a turd…). I have self-edited without any training, but now I’m being told that it’s all wrong (by readers). Is there a write way and a wrong way, or are there just industry standards?
I know, I know, lots of questions… How do you tell good advice from bad advice when you’re new to writing?
July 22, 2015 — 12:48 AM
Atlas says:
There really isn’t good or bad writing advice. Well, that’s not true. There is a SHIT-TON of bad writing advice out there. As a rule of thumb, anyone who claims their advice is either the only good writing advice OR the best writing advice in existence (not including the ever present mantra of “writers write”) is full of bullshit. Just like there isn’t only a singular way to do a pull-up, there is a plethora of ways to write. Sure, there are a lot of bad ways to write. As a ‘binge’ writer, I am queen of horrible writing habits. But it’s still writing. Just the same as doing a pull-up with only your wrists is still a pull-up. It’s terrible for you and hurts like a bitch, but you still pulled up. Try out and see what works for you. Sometimes you find it works great, sometimes not, and if it hurts to do it; STOP.
But if ever someone plays the “I’ll give you the Holy Grail of writing advice if you pay me $$$$” card, examine the shit out of that fucker. Go Nancy Drew on that bitch. Are they a published author? Do they also keep a blog/website with writing advice and are just publishing help-books to feed their monstrous soul-sucking children? Are they a front for a Lithuanian cartel? Is their quality guaranteed through various reviews from accounts that can be traced back to actual people unaffiliated with the publishing company or author? Do you believe they have advice that you have never heard before? Are they aliens?
Make sure you are satisfied with their authenticity before you decide to pay. Sometimes authors publish books that have the same advice, word-for-word, on their blogs. Finding that out after you already paid for their book SUCKS. *cough*Rachel Aaron*cough* But not all writing books are bad. I enjoy the books I bought by Holly Lisle, Gotham Writers, and good-old-creepy Chuck Wendig. I ADORE my copy of Wonderbook by Jeff Vandermeer. You don’t need to pay for writing advice, but sometimes it feels good to have it. It’s like having several holy texts to see you through a midnight IhaveNOideaWHATiAMdoingAAAHHHH freakout.
I know your question was more about editing, but I’m not in that world yet. When I have hands-on experience, I’ll gladly report back to you about my findings. All in all though, I think what I have given you can be appropriated into editing advice. Take everything given to you with a grain of salt, try out and see what you like, and whenever money is in question; investigate the sonofabitch. I hope this helps.
July 22, 2015 — 5:24 PM
Meredith says:
I have (what I think is) a weird question I’d really appreciate your collective advice on. Not strictly writing woes but writing-related.
I’m finally in a situation where I’m able to get out there and start querying, and do more writing. Hurrah!
I’d also like to set up my own website/twitter/creative presence/blah/etc.
But I’ve run into a small difficulty over what to call myself: my name’s not only very common/popular, but basically all variations of first, middle, and surname are taken by other writers, some of them fairly well-known, some not-so.
I know I can just pick literally any name I want as an alternative, but I guess the questions I’m asking are:
Does it actually matter?
Should I just use my real name and get on with my life?
Am I making a problem where there isn’t one as REALLY elaborate form of writer’s block?
I know what matters is words-on-page. I have those. I’m making more of them! This seems like the dumbest hurdle to fall at, and yet I’m stumbling.
July 22, 2015 — 5:21 AM
L.C.Beast says:
I found myself in a similar situation but on the opposite side of the stream–my name, particularly my last name, is not common at all and most people find it rather intimidating to both pronounce and spell.
So I wrestled with the idea of a pseudonym–I can choose whatever name I like, be it completely different, or even a simplified version of my own name. It seemed like a decent enough idea, especially as I have a cousin who also writes, with the same problem of “our last name is huge and scary-looking”, and I even found myself worrying people wouldn’t believe TWO different authors had the exact same ridiculous last name. (I also discussed this with said cousin quite a bit, lamenting our lot with one another.)
But, the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to use my own name, at least in part. You know, it’s YOUR name on your work; there can be no denying it. Pseudonyms have their place, certainly, and if you decide to go with one, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. My own solution was to use initials coupled with my last name. Perhaps that can work for you? First and Middle initial, to set yourself apart from others with similar or the same full name(s)?
July 23, 2015 — 11:33 AM
Meredith says:
Thanks for understanding 🙂
I really want it to be my name on the work but even the combinations of initials and surname have been established by someone else. (Seriously, I’m like one step up from ‘Jane Smith’ in terms of ‘so many people with the same name’). It’s not that the name is well-used per se – hell, even Warren Ellis is forever pointing out that he’s not *that* Warren Ellis – but that it’s other writers specifically. I feel like I’m at best creating confusion…
I might do something crazy like see what’s available as a domain name and call myself that 🙂
Good luck in your writing endeavours!
July 24, 2015 — 6:46 AM
AM Gray says:
I understand the joy in seeing your own name on something… but honestly, you can call yourself anything you want. There was a fanfic writer whose username was tarasueme so that’s what her books are published under – with spaces.
And there are the endless issues that Jenny Trout and Jennifer Armentrout had with people mixing them up. They’re aren’t even common names and people got them confused much to the horror of the less successful one.
Is there a middle name you could use? Nora Roberts writes her detective stories under JD Robb. It’s just different enough. You know?
July 24, 2015 — 7:45 AM
Tonje (@Zhevoa) says:
Hey, sorry for the late response. I only just discovered Chuck and his blog the other week, and now I’m in the process of digging through all the wonderful, shiny gold in the mine. 🙂
I’ve got pretty much the opposite problem of yours. My name is completely unique. There is literally no one else in the world with the same combination of names that I have.
So, for different reasons, I’m slightly hesitant to put my full, real name out there. One google search, and they’ve got my home address – even my personal details – through the open online registers here in Sweden.
So well, I decided to find a pen name. Relevant to my case is that I’ve also got the craziest collection of rare and fancy surnames on both sides of my family (as if the two I’ve got weren’t enough), so I had a list of ten or so very unusual surnames to choose from, and still keep it family.
I chose one and combined it with the origin of my first name. Tonje (my real name) is a Norwegian short form of Antonie, which is derived from Antonia, so… Antonia it is.
Also, one of my great-grandfathers’ name was Anton. 🙂
Surprisingly, with time, I’m beginning to see this pen name as mine, just as much as my real name. That “Antonia” person mentioned over there, it’s me. 🙂
So yeah, I really encourage you to dig around a bit in your family history, do some research and see if you find any names that feel like they *could be* yours.
September 1, 2015 — 6:14 AM
B. says:
I’m returning to fiction writing after a very long break from it. I have several things in mind that I want to do. One could be a novella (or novel) series (not really sure on the length yet). Several are short stories that deal with the series. Another is a project I completed nearly 10 years ago that has been collecting dust (and should probably be burned – to be honest). And, there are still other smaller ideas I have here and there to play with.
My situation is this, what do I do. I have the urge to write all of this – get it out of my head and play, per se. BUT, sitting down to the blank screen is more terrifying than I remembered it to be. After a long and bitter break from your writing, how did you break off the rust and corrossion, clear the cobwebs, and get the creative engine to turn over again?
Thank you for your help. 🙂
July 22, 2015 — 10:40 AM
Traci Kenworth says:
Just do it. Little by little. Word by word. Sentence by sentence. It’ll build until it flows. I know how you feel. I went through a lot of years downtime and then came back to it. It wasn’t easy but it slowly starts to work again. Have patience with yourself. Reward yourself for each bit of work. Make it fun again. Writing is something that slips into your soul and you just have to do it if it’s in you.
July 22, 2015 — 4:47 PM
Dan says:
I’ve got this script that’s done okay in competitions, gotten positive feedback. But one note I got always stuck with me and I decided to freshen the script up and address it. That was a year ago and the whole thing seems to have come apart.
I did some planning yesterday, and today, I totally killed it. Now I’m just hoping I don’t look back on today and feel that I made things worse. That’s the sinking feeling that can be paralyzing.
There’s also the shitty feeling of “Am I whining? Publicly? In the comments section of some writer’s site?”
July 22, 2015 — 2:37 PM
angstycockroach says:
Long story short – I’m worried that my writing sucks. And I don’t mean sucks as in “meh, it’s still kinda tolerable in short doses”, I mean sucks as in “the fuck is this guy even *doing?*”
I tried out the previous flash fiction to get myself back in the saddle as it were. So there’s that.
July 22, 2015 — 4:04 PM
Laura W. says:
I’m sorry. I’m sure it doesn’t suck as badly as you think it does right now…or maybe it does, but still, you’re writing and that’s something.
July 22, 2015 — 10:46 PM
Laura W. says:
Pseudonyms! Author pages! Building a real platform for my fake alternate identity! :/
Yeah…I have the short stories set to go. I have actually self-pubbed the first one (one I don’t care too much about) so that I could work out the details of formatting and cover-making and blurb-ing and all that. But then I realized that I may as well be spitting this stuff out into the void if I don’t connect with anyone — but since I’m writing the short stories under a pseudonym, I have no twitter account, author page, or anything under that other name so far…with which to connect with anyone. So. There’s that. And mainly, my big question is: “Can I use a stock photo as my author photo?” Is that…allowed? Ethical? Too corny?*
UGH I’m overthinking this, aren’t I…
*I hate being photographed even when writing under my real name.
July 22, 2015 — 10:45 PM
Noni Mausa says:
Plot, plot plot. Making me nuts.
I’m 30000 into a Maeve Binchy type novel, where there are about five intertwining story lines. Thankfully, it’s taking place in one small community, and in one short space of time, a summer. I love the setting and the characters, but plotting it has got me stuck. Any rough and dirty suggestions for slapping down a plot structure? Once I have the bones, I am good at clothing them, but those bones are evading me.
July 23, 2015 — 6:27 AM
L.C.Beast says:
I have stories–loads and loads of stories. Sequels, prequels, vaguely connected-els. Different worlds to build and play and have even more stories in.
My problem is being perhaps TOO much of a project and story magpie. My muse/interest/mood can literally change from day to day, or even switch based off hearing a particular song. It’s great in a sense, as it allows me to have vastly different settings and flavors, but I also worry it’s detrimental because I often feel as if I don’t have enough focus on one particular story. It makes me writer slower, as I bounce around often from story to story throughout the weeks and months (and also because I have a great love of world-building, and have recently discovered about myself as a writer that aside from short stories, I HAVE to have a rather developed world to write in or I get completely stuck).
Anyone have any advice for someone who tends to collect story ideas and snippets and bits of pieces like shiny objects? While I enjoy pulling out and looking at all my peices and partially-written scenes and knowing their potential and the snatches of background I’ve already come up wit, I’d also like to be able to tie them all together with each other to share finished products with other people.
July 23, 2015 — 11:43 AM
coreyamanda says:
I fear that i am more of an ‘imagine-r’ than a writer, these days. There it is, bright as day: beautiful, clear, marvelous. And then i start to write/ type. And the image shifts, becomes this convoluted mess of half thought-out ideas and scenes. In my head, the scene rolls, i can spin you a tale and i am a god……. But on paper? On paper, I am nothing. No-one.
July 25, 2015 — 2:18 AM
Wayne says:
I’ve spent a year editing and rewriting this manuscript. Was the first book I finished and it was terrible and overcomplex in structure. Three interweaving stories, about 40k words each. I’m determined to put the work in and finish it. Have a feeling it’s confused and jumbled and not much better. Cut out some passive waffly crap,but added new bugs in almost equal measure. Hoping it’ll someday be good enough to show to others.
August 3, 2015 — 10:07 PM